Today’s hearing for Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor was a huge comedown for Arlen Specter, the Pennsylvania senator who as a Republican was chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee for the John Roberts and Samuel Alito confirmation hearings. Now, after switching to the Democrats in an open bid to save his job, Specter is next-to-last in seniority among Democratic senators on the committee. (He is ahead of Sen. Al Franken, who joined the committee just days ago, well after Specter.)
Specter skipped the morning session of the Sotomayor hearing Monday, but showed up to make his opening remarks after lunch. After the hearing, I asked Specter how his experience this time differs from the Roberts and Alito confirmations. “Well, I’ve sat in these hearings in a variety of positions,” Specter said. “I was way down the line when I questioned Judge Bork, and I am said to have had a role in that proceeding. It doesn’t matter where you sit, it’s a matter of what you say.”
