Justice Sonia Sotomayor offered a rare public apology Wednesday to fellow Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh for “hurtful” comments she made suggesting he was out of touch with working people.
During an appearance last week at the University of Kansas School of Law, she unloaded on a court member, who she didn’t name, but from the context was clearly Justice Kavanaugh over a decision where he supported Homeland Security’s ability to make immigration stops using race as part of a mix of factors.
Justice Kavanaugh, a Trump appointee, had suggested that since the stops were brief, they didn’t infringe on a person‘s rights. Justice Sotomayor, an Obama appointee, said that ignored everyday realities.
“I had a colleague in that case who wrote, you know, these are only temporary stops,” Justice Sotomayor said during the remarks in Kansas, Bloomberg reported. “This is from a man whose parents were professionals. And probably doesn’t really know any person who works by the hour.”
On Wednesday, she acknowledged those remarks crossed lines.
“I made remarks that were inappropriate,” she said. “I regret my hurtful comments. I have apologized to my colleague.”
Her initial comments were reminiscent of past remarks that drew attention during her confirmation process in which she had claimed that a “wise Latina woman with the richness of her experiences would more often than not reach a better conclusion than a white male who hasn’t lived that life.”
During her 2009 confirmation, she acknowledged that sentiment was “a bad idea.”
Justice Kavanaugh has not publicly responded to his liberal colleague’s jab or apology.
The justices often trumpet their collegiality and on-the-bench civility, despite ideological differences, and a public spat like this is rare.
– Stephen Dinan contributed to this report.
