Jusice Breyer (left) in an informal exchange with law professor Goodwin Liu, a noted constitutional scholar. (Peg Skorpinki photo)
Two days after President Barack Obama nominated Goodwin Liu of Berkeley to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, Republicans fired the first shot across his confirmation's bow.
"Instead of nominating an individual who has demonstrated an impartial commitment to following the Constitution and the rule of law, President Obama has selected someone far outside the mainstream of American jurisprudence," said U.S. Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala., the Senate Judiciary Committee's ranking Republican. "Professor Liu believes that judges should look to 'evolving norms and social understandings' in interpreting the Constitution, he has a history of advocating for racial preferences, and he served on the Board of the directors of the ACLU."
Sessions said he will withhold final judgment until a full, fair review of Liu's record is completed. "But it seems to me that his judicial philosophy does not respect the American ideal of judges as neutral arbiters of the law. I hope my initial impressions are wrong." ...
At a glance, Liu's record seems sure to give conservatives a case of the vapors. A 39-year-old Democrat up for a lifetime seat on this powerful court, he chairs the progressive American Constitution Society's board of directors; he's a former member of the boards of the American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California and Chinese for Affirmative Action; and he served on the Obama-Biden Presidential Transition's education policy and agency review teams...
Liu was among 59 California law professors who signed an October 2008 letter attesting that Proposition 8 — the constitutional amendment barring same-sex marriage — discriminates against gays and lesbians...
http://www.insidebayarea.com/my-town/ci_14522162Previous postsProgressives to rejoice, Obama nominates Goodwin Liu (Thu Feb-25-10)
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x7789498Editorial: Liu is more than qualified to serve on appeals court (Mon Mar-01-10)
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x7816130Fox News composes a hit piece on Obama nominee Goodwin Liu (Fri Mar-05-10)
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x7846137