Sotomayor: Second Amendment Is an Individual Right

Among the series of questions that Judge Sonia Sotomayor fielded from senators Tuesday morning were those addressing her position on gun rights, specifically her opinion of the recent Heller decision issued by the Supreme Court. Last year, District of Columbia v. Heller determined that the Second Amendment's guarantee that Americans can keep and bear arms is a right of every individual, not just a general right of a community as a whole.

The committee's chairman, Patrick Leahy, first told Sotomayor that he enjoys target shooting on a regular basis back home in Vermont and then asked, referring to Heller, "Is it safe to say you accept the Second Amendment is an individual right?"

Sotomayor answered plainly, "Yes sir," and added, "I understand how important the right to keep and bear arms is to many people; one of my godchildren is a member of the NRA."

Last week, the NRA sent a letter to senators expressing its "very serious concerns" that Sotomayor is anti-gun, warning, "Should her answers regarding the Second Amendment at the upcoming hearings be hostile or evasive, we will have no choice but to oppose her nomination to the Court."

On the Heller decision at least, Sotomayor was neither hostile nor evasive Tuesday morning.

Stay tuned . . .