The National Jewsih Democratic Council issued this statement regarding the Sotomayor nomination:

Obama Makes the Right Choice with Selection of Sotomayor to the Supreme Court

NJDC welcomes President Barack Obama’s selection of Judge Sonia Sotomayor to fill the U.S. Supreme Court vacancy. With the selection of Sotomayor, Obama has shown sound judgment and profound respect for our nation’s highest court by selecting an individual who has strong credentials, is highly regarded, and is committed to our constitutional values, rights, and liberties.

We are also proud of Obama’s commitment to have the Supreme Court reflect America’s rich and diverse population, by selecting the first Hispanic justice. More importantly, the President’s nominee has the intellectual capacity and real world experience to be a world class justice.

We applaud this selection and expect the nomination of Sotomayor to receive Senate confirmation in a timely manner.

Interestingly, back on May 15 the Supreme Court Blog had a deatailed article on Sotomayor discussing her rulings. READ IT. There is too much there for me to merely summarize. It covers abortion rights, first amendment rights, environmental law, etc. etc.

Glenn Greenwald over at Salon.com has a good rundown of the nomination. Worth reading, though it focuses more on the stupid tizzy that right wingers are getting into about her.

Catholics United had this to say:

“Catholics United welcomes President Obama's nomination of Sonia Sotomayor to the Supreme Court. We admire Judge Sotomayor's reputation for putting aside political beliefs in order to issue sound legal decisions, her commitment to religious liberty, and her significant federal judicial experience. These are precisely the qualities that Catholics look for in those we trust to interpret the law.”

“In addition to her distinguished professional career, Judge Sotomayor's own personal experience makes her uniquely suited to serve our nation in this important position. She has a first-hand understanding of the plights of America's immigrants and working families, having been born to Puerto Rican parents and raised in a housing project in the South Bronx. When confirmed, Judge Sotomayor will be the first Hispanic to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court. We wholeheartedly embrace this move toward a judiciary that better represents the diversity of the American people.”

“We call on other leaders within the Catholic community to join us in welcoming Judge Sotomayor's nomination and to approach her confirmation hearings with civility and reason.”

ALF-CIO's statement:

Praising her nomination, AFL-CIO President John Sweeney says Sotomayor possesses a “direct and personal understanding of the struggles America’s workers endure every day.”

She grew up in public housing in the Bronx, the daughter of a factory worker, and understands the real world consequences of the decisions she makes from the bench...

Sweeney says Sotomayor “has consistently interpreted our labor laws in the manner in which they were intended.”

She has enforced the right to be free of all types of discrimination in the workplace, to be paid the correct wages and to receive health benefits to which employees are entitled. She has recognized that persecution for union activity can be a basis for granting asylum in this country.

Wade Henderson, president of the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights (LCCR), says that along with her “common sense understanding of how laws affect the realties of people’s daily lives,

Judge Sotomayor is also the first Latino to be nominated to the high court. She is a first generation American and grew up in the South Bronx—fulfilling another of President Obama’s promises to add diversity of background to the Supreme Court.

So far sounds like an excellent choice by President Obama.