Mandel Ngan/AFP/Getty Images; from http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=113438661The Supreme Court officially opened a new term yesterday, October 5, 2009, and new justice Sonia Sotomayor made her debut. Nina Totenberg filed a story on NPR in which two of the other justices, Chief Justice Roberts and Justice Anthony Kennedy, discuss how stressful it can be for a new member of the court to enter the scene. The court is like a family, Chief Roberts said, and it's difficult to make room for someone new.
Today on Usatoday.com, there was a story about how Justice Sotomayor, on her first day on the bench, got her words in by interrupting. Some of the justices do this and some don't. It seems Sotomayor is one who does.
Which I totally get. If the justices are like a family, then how does a new member of the family inject herself into the fray in a meaningful way? My family is one of those talk-a-mile-a-minute types. Often, you only hold the floor by talking more loudly and frequently than anyone else. As the fourth of four kids, I had to do this. A lot. Other times I'd get frustrated and just keep quiet, but that was no fun, because all the action would just pass me by. So mostly I'd jump in as best I could, and usually at least one family member would hear me.
Good luck to you, Justice Sotomayor. Show your new family that you can join in the action. Oh, and please uphold the Constitution while you're at it.
Susannah,
ReplyDeleteGood insight. I'm rooting for Justice Sotomayor too.
Sharon
And I'm sure you've heard by now that she did more than just interrupted. It's been reported that she asked more questions in just one hour than Justice Thomas has asked over several years. (Apparently he's also gone 144 cases without uttering a word.)
ReplyDeleteA probably misleading fact, but totally satisfying nonetheless.