Friday, July 24, 2009 2:15 PM
Sotomayor Likely Done With Senate Meetings
Sonia Sotomayor has probably made her last Capitol Hill visit as a nominee. Thursday's meetings with GOP Sens. Richard Burr of North Carolina, John Barrasso of Wyoming and John Ensign of Nevada are expected to be her final ones, according to the White House.
She has met with a total of 92 senators, including all Democrats except ailing Sens. Robert Byrd of West Virginia and Edward Kennedy of Massachusetts. The following five GOP lawmakers have not -- and most likely will not -- meet with Sotomayor:
• John McCain, Arizona (has not announced his vote)
• Michael Enzi, Wyoming (has not announced his vote)
• Christopher (Kit) Bond, Missouri (has not announced his vote)
• Richard Lugar, Indiana (announced July 17 he will vote yes)
• Pat Roberts, Kansas (on May 28, became the first senator to announce his intent to vote no)
• James Inhofe, Oklahoma (announced his opposition on June 10 and refused to meet with her)
Enzi spokesman Coy Knobel said in an e-mail that "there is no particular reason" why the senator hasn't met with the nominee: "He will take into consideration all questions and answers and her record before he makes a decision on Sotomayor's nomination."
A White House aide said today that the number of meetings Sotomayor has had with senators is a record, based on the aide's conversations with people who have worked on past nominations. Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Samuel Alito both met with more than 80 senators as nominees, according to former Bush officials Jamie Brown and Rachel Brand.


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