This week the Senate Judiciary Committee voted in favor to advance Judge Sonia Sotomayor’s nomination to a full vote before the Senate. However, all Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee, with the exception of Sen. Lindsey Graham, voted against her nomination. Notably, Senator “Cronyn” (correctly spelled Cornyn) of Texas, who represents a large Latino population (more than one third of the Lone-star state) voted against Judge Sotomayor, but he was recently re-elected and was likely calculating that this vote against her will not impact his own future.

I was able to catch this clip on NPR with two experts discussing the impact that opposing Sotomayor could have in the Latino political sphere in the future. My take is that Republican Senators who have chosen to oppose Sotomayor are making a bold calculation that could backlash. Given the current political climate, President Obama has taken a more centrist approach to governing than many expected, and Sotomayor’s judicial record has not indicated that her rulings fall outside of the mainstream. Throughout the hearings, Judge displayed an even temperament, defying the notion that she is an “angry Latina.” She has acquired the support of rank and file law enforcement, district attorneys, and even Republican Senators Mel Martinez, Richard Lugar, and Olympia Snowe (the voice of reason wing of the GOP). Considering that there are other bones to pick with the Obama administration and more progressive Democrats about health care, gun control, taxes, and possibly immigration, the GOP Senators’ choice to put up a fight regarding Judge Sotomayor is silly and rather shortsighted.

Back in March, Seneca blogged about Latinos and the GOP, suggesting that “the GOP has an enormous challenge in how to attract Latinos into its big tent.” Is opposing a mild and moderate Sotomayor a good way to make us feel like there is room for us in that tent? I don’t think so. But for the actions of these GOP Senators to backfire in the future, our community is going to have to remain engaged and not forget about how Sotomayor was treated from the “splainin” comment to the continued mispronunciation of her name.

Finally, I wanted to share this great segment from NPR’s Maria Hinojosa regarding Sotomayor’s name. Note Mark Krikorian‘s statement about the correct pronunciation of the Judge’s name. When will some people accept the longstanding Latino heritage in the US and give us the respect of saying our names correctly?