Robert Gibbs and President Obama have both said that if Sonia Sotomayor had to do it again, she would probably have reworded her much harped-upon “wise Latina woman” remarks from a 2001 speech. Sotomayor expressed the same regret to California Senator Dianne Feinstein earlier this week. But the materials she provided as part of the Senate Judiciary Committee’s questionnaire, which was released to the public last night, show that Sotomayor had suggested that a “wise woman” or “wise Latina woman” would reach a better conclusion than a white or male judge in numerous speeches over a ten-year period. Limbaugh will have a field day with this, but Sotomayor’s supporters will likely point out that the context in which her words were spoken still matters—and just because she used the same line multiple times doesn’t make her any more “racist” than she was yesterday. A little lazy maybe, but not racist.
Sotomayor Repeatedly Referenced ‘Wise Woman’ in Speeches [Legal Beat/CQ Politics]
