Today, President Barak Obama announced his pick to replace Justice Souter on the US Supreme Court.  This person is Judge Sonia Sotomayor, a judge on the 2nd Court of Appeals.  While it is hard to say whether this is a good choice, it is a brilliant nomination choice for.

1>  President Obama has chosen a nominee that will have little-to-no opposition from the Democratic majority in the Senate.

2>  While Justice Souter is a moderate-to-liberal justice, Obama is basically setting up a more liberal stance with a younger judge that can be on the Supreme Court for at least 18-25 years. This can also set Sotomayor up for Chief Justice because of her potential longevity in the Supreme Court.

3>  The race/sex card.  While it is often repeated and emphasised that her nomination is not based on sex/race, everyone knows that this is a card that will be played.  Anyone who brings up either sex or race will set themselves up for being labeled sexist or racist, tarnishing their reputation.  While sex/race/religion should not make a difference, we would be ignorant to not understand how this can be used by both sides, and with the Republicans/Conservatives in the minority in the Senate, this will certainly be brought up to discredit their opposition to Sotomayor.

4>  Opposing opinion states that Sotomayor is an 'activist' judge, and would possibly be a justice that legislates from the bench.  However, I think that if this is her style, then Obama may be setting up the start of a Supreme Court that harkens back to the days of the Warren Court.

While I have yet to voice my personal opinion about Sotomayer's nomination, I wanted to visit the reasonings behind the appointment, which are sure to ensure Sotomayor's appointment as a Supreme Court Justice.