Judge Sonia Sotomayor has finished two days in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee. Monday was opening statements, and in typical fashion it was the politicians who sucked up the VAST majority of the day. Sotomayor only spoke for 8 minutes, while the senators went on for hours!

Tuesday, the questioning began.

I have to admit that this is something like the World Series for political junkies. I had a long to do list today, of which little was accomplished because I couldn’t leave the television. The theatrics are fascinating to me.

A couple of things I noticed:

1) Even though most Republicans seem resigned to the fact that Sotomayor will be confirmed (GOP Sen. Lindsey Graham even said Monday that she will have the votes so long as she does self destruct), they aren’t letting her off easy. Sens. Sessions, Graham, and Hatch had some of the toughest questions for her.

2) It seemed to me that President Obama was as much on display as Sotomayor. GOP senators repeatedly referred to Obama’s remarks introducing Sotomayor as his pick. In those comments, he said he wanted a judge who had empathy. Every Republican senator brought up that term and used it against Sotomayor. I wonder if the Obama team wishes they had left that phrase out of his prepared remarks?

3) No matter your political persuasion, I think all would agree that Judge Sotomayor presents a compelling personal story. That has come through loud and clear at these hearings. Of all the justices I have watched, she seems the most easy to relate to. I’m not saying that will make her a good justice, it’s just an interesting observation.

4) She appears to have learned well from Justices Roberts and Alito. Both were very strong in their confirmation hearings, making few if any mistakes. Sotomayor appears to have gotten their playbook.

Day three will be here soon… I can’t wait!