May 14, 2009

The Honorable Barack Obama
President of the United States
Office of Public Affairs,
The White House
Fax 202-456-2461

Dear Mr. President Barack Obama,

On behalf of the Board of Directors of The Hispanic Institute, I am writing to support the nomination of Judge Sonia Sotomayor for Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States.  

I want to highlight some of the important achievements that distinguish this judge as the ideal candidate for the upcoming Supreme Court vacancy. Judge Sotomayor’s academic record illustrates her vigorous intellect: in 1976 she graduated summa cum laude from Princeton; she entered Yale Law School in that same year and, after becoming editor of the law journal, graduated in 1979 after earning her J.D.  

She was driven to public service and upon graduation, and for the next five years, Judge Sotomayor was an assistant district attorney in the New York County District Attorney’s Office. In November 1991 President George H.W. Bush nominated her to the U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York and she was confirmed by the Senate on August 11, 1992. In 1998 she was nominated by President William Jefferson Clinton to serve on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit and confirmed by the Senate on October 2, 1998.

Based on her academic and professional achievements, as well as her dedication to public service, we believe Judge Sotomayor is imminently qualified and we stand in strong support of her being nominated as the next Associate Justice of the Supreme Court.

Sincerely,

Gus West
Board Chair
The Hispanic Institute
202.544-8284 [1]
guswest@thehispanicinstitute.net [2]