Sotomayor clears Judiciary Committee: Sen. Lindsey Graham says yes; Sen. Orrin Hatch says no. I was impressed by the 1st; do not understand the 2nd.

I have always been impressed with Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina for being evenhanded and practical. He would have made a better candidate for president in 2008 than Sen. John McCain, and would have chosen a different running mate.

The negative vote against that surprised me was Sen. Hatch of Utah.

Today The New York Times reports:

President Obama’s nominee to the Supreme Court, Judge Sonia Sotomayor, moved closer to taking her seat on Tuesday as the Senate Judiciary Committee overwhelmingly approved her nomination and sent it on to the full Senate.

The committee’s vote was 13 to 6, with Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina the only Republican joining the panel’s 12 Democrats in voting for the nomination.

Among the Republicans who voted against Judge Sotomayor were two who came from states with large Hispanic voting populations. Another two, Senators Orrin G. Hatch of Utah and Charles E. Grassley of Iowa, are committee veterans who had never voted against a nominee selected by a Democratic president.