Sotomayor receives NARAL endorsement

Washington D.C., Jul 22, 2009 / 21:34 pm

The pro-abortion group NARAL Pro-Choice America has announced its support for Judge Sonia Sotomayor’s nomination to the U.S. Supreme Court.

NARAL president Nancy Keenan and NARAL Pro-Choice New York president Kelli Conlin issued a joint statement on Tuesday saying that President Barack Obama made a “sound choice” in nominating Sotomayor.

“From the beginning, we have said her nomination reflects the president's commitment to ensuring that justices have strong legal credentials and understand how the law affects everyday people's lives, including the need to keep politicians from interfering in our personal, private medical decisions.”

Keenan and Conlin noted that they had testified to the Senate Judiciary Committee that the fate of the pro-abortion Supreme Court decision Roe v. Wade “hangs in the balance.” They added that they were “pleased” that Judge Sotomayor, in their view, expressed “stronger support for the established constitutional right to privacy” than either Chief Justice John Roberts or Justice Samuel Alito.

Those two previous Supreme Court nominees, they said, had “anti-choice” records before being nominated and confirmed.

According to the NARAL leaders, Judge Sotomayor had said several times in her confirmation hearing that the constitutional right to privacy includes “the right to choose.”

Keenan and Conlin explained that strong support for Sotomayor from their “pro-choice allies” contributed to their own decision to support her nomination, as did President Obama’s “consistent record” of support for Roe v. Wade and for placing likeminded individuals in “key posts.”

Soon after Sotomayor’s nomination was announced, the New York Times reported that some pro-abortion groups were “quietly expressing unease” about her reliability in upholding Roe v. Wade. At the time, Keenan released a statement saying NARAL was looking forward to learning more about Judge Sotomayor’s views on abortion.

The Denver Post reports that Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT), Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, has expressed confidence that Judge Sotomayor will be confirmed by a full Senate vote in time for the Supreme Court’s first meeting on September 9.