Sonia Sotomayor confirmation to the appeals court would put Sotomayor in a better position for a possible Supreme Court nomination (despite there being no vacancy at the time nor any indication the Clinton administration was considering nominating her or any Hispanic). Therefore, the Republican majority decided to slow her confirmation. Radio commentator Rush Limbaugh weighed in that Sotomayor was an ultraliberal who was on a "rocket ship" to the highest court. During her September 1997 hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee, Sotomayor parried strong questioning from some Republican members about mandatory sentencing, gay rights, and her level of respect for Supreme Court
Hispanic and Latino Americans in Portuguese-speaking countries. Preference of use between the terms among Hispanics and Latinos in the United States often depends on where users of the respective terms reside. Those in the Eastern United States tend to prefer the term "Hispanic," whereas those in the West tend to prefer "Latino". Both terms refer to ethnicity, as a person of Latino or Hispanic origin can be of any race. In Spanish, "Latina" is used for persons of feminine gender; "Latino" is used for those of masculine gender, or by default. For example, a group of mixed or unknown gender would be referred to