The confirmation vote to make Sonia Sotomayor the next Associate Justice of the Supreme Court is expected today. The confirmation is all but inevitable, the only remaining question is what the final vote total will be. Thirty Republicans have announced they are voting no, including Orrin Hatch who has never voted no on a SCOTUS nominee before. At least eight Republicans have announced that they are voting yes. It’s hard to believe that this process has devolved so quickly – the confirmation vote on Ruth Bader Ginsburg was 96-3.
Update: Sotomayor is confirmed 68-31 (the totals were announced by Senator Franken). Congratulations to new Associate Justice Sotomayor.