Sonia Sotomayor: "Left-wing in theory, right-wing in practice"

That's the verdict of David Zirin, sports editor for The Nation, who claims "we can learn all we need about Sotomayor's politics and perspective by examining her decisions in sports." After examining Sotomayor's votes in the 1995 baseball lockout case and in a 2004 case dealing with the NFL's draft-eligibility rules, Zirin has his doubts about her left-wing credentials:

In both, Sotomayor makes strong statements for union rights—that the baseball owners are challenging collective bargaining and that the NFL players' union has the right to restrict who plays. In both cases she is faithfully serving the interests of money and power. Sotomayor is a Yankees fan, which should just be a dead giveaway. Left-wing in theory, right-wing in practice—no wonder she clicked so smoothly with the current administration.