Update: Obama Nominates Sotomayor to Supreme Court

President Barack Obama announced at a press conference this morning that he is nominating Sonia Sotomayor, a 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals judge in New York City, to the Supreme Court.

If confirmed by the U.S. Senate, Sotomayor, 54, would become the nation’s 111th justice, replacing Justice David H. Souter when he retires.

Sotomayor would be the first Latina to serve on the nation's highest court, if confirmed.

In his remarks, Obama said it was Sotomayor's experience -- earned not only while serving three decades on the bench, but also as a young woman with a modest upbringing (she was raised by Puerto Rican parents in the shadows of Yankee Stadium in the South Bronx) who navigated her way to success -- that led to his decision.

Sotomayor's background has provided her with the "common touch and sense of compassion," Obama said. She's "faced down barriers. Even as she accomplished ... much in life, she has never forgotten where she began."

Obama said Sotomayor knows "how the world works and how ordinairy people live -- a necessary ingredient we need on Supreme Court."

If confirmed, Sotomayor will have more varied experience when she arrives to the Supreme Court than any other justice had when they were appointed, Obama said. Sotomayor has experience as a prosecutor, litigator and trial judge, and would be the only justice who has trail judge experience if confirmed, Obama said.

Sotomayor was educated at Princeton and Yale Law School, where she became editor of the Yale Law Journal.

For the past 11 years, Sotomayor has served on the 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals in New York City, which Obama called one of the most demanding circuits in the country. She has presided over 450 cases as an appeals court judge, including the Major League Baseball strike in 1994. She issued an injunction, thereby breaking the strike, Obama said, adding jokingly that "Sonia Sotomayor saved baseball."

Obama said Sotomayor's "breadth of perspective will be invaluable as a Supreme Court judge."

Sotomayor also spoke, thanking the room full of colleagues, family members, and White House staff for "the most humbling honor of [her] life." She said she was "standing on the shoulders of countless people" who were instrumental in helping her realize her dreams. She said the one person who she aspires most in life to be like is her mother, who worked two jobs to raise Sotomayor and her brother after the death of their father.

"I am all that I am because of her," Sotomayor said. "And I am half the woman she is."

Obama ended his comments by entreating the Senate to "act in a bipartisan fashion .. as swiftly as possible."

"Republicans will reserve judgment on Sonia Sotomayor until there has been a thorough and thoughtful examination of her legal views," said Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele in a written statement.

A list of all of Obama's appointees and their Senate confirmation dates is available on the White House's Web site.