Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor has once again demonstrated why she has no business ruling on cases involving President Trump. During her recent speech at the American Bar Association TIPS Conference, she made inflammatory partisan remarks that should disqualify her from any Trump-related cases going forward.
Let's be honest here -- when a Supreme Court Justice starts rallying lawyers to "fight this fight" against a sitting president's administration, we have a serious problem. Sotomayor didn't even try to maintain a veneer of impartiality.
“If you’re not used to fighting, and losing battles, then don’t become a lawyer. Our job is to stand up for people who can’t do it themselves,” she reportedly said. “And our job is to be the champion of lost causes. But right now, we can’t lose the battles we are facing. And we need trained and passionate and committed lawyers to fight this fight.”
That "we" she keeps referring to should raise red flags for anyone who cares about judicial independence. Make no mistake about it - this wasn't some general call for lawyers to uphold justice. As legal scholar Jonathan Turley observed, Sotomayor's comments were clearly partisan references to the onslaught of legal challenges against the Trump administration.
The “we” left many surprised and concerned that the jurist was rallying the left as a type of constituency. She declared “We need trained and passionate and committed lawyers to fight this fight. For me, being here with you is an act of solidarity.”
Clearly, such comments are subject to different interpretations. Newspapers like the New York Times made the obvious connection, stating that it was made “against the backdrop of immense stress on lawyers and the legal system from the Trump administration.”
The message was not lost on activists who heralded “Justice Sotomayor’s support for the aggressive pro-democracy movement is so important at this critical time.” Court-sanctioned lawyer and Democratic activist Marc Elias added, “She understands that while we must bring difficult cases and be willing to lose, we must always fight to win. And by lending her voice in ‘solidarity,’ she affirmed that it is ‘our time to stand up and be heard.'”
This isn't the first time Sotomayor has shown her partisan colors. She previously encouraged law students to organize for abortion rights and criticized the Supreme Court's handling of Trump's presidential immunity case. But her latest comments cross a bright line that should compel her recusal from Trump-related matters.
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Justice should be immune to politics, which is why Lady Justice wears a blindfold. But Sotomayor seems to have forgotten this basic principle, along with numerous federal judges who have repeatedly tried to obstruct Trump's agenda through legally dubious rulings.
The Supreme Court's legitimacy depends on the public's faith that cases will be decided on constitutional principles rather than political preferences. When a justice openly sides with partisan activists fighting against a sitting president, that faith is severely undermined. With more cases involving the Trump administration likely heading to the high court, she’s made it clear repeatedly she’s not an impartial arbiter of the law—she’s part of the resistance. That’s not judicial independence. That’s political sabotage in a black robe.
If Sotomayor has any respect left for the institution she serves, she should voluntarily recuse herself from cases involving Trump. Her recent comments make it impossible to believe she can approach such cases with the impartiality her position demands.
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