Newt Gingrich joined fellow conservative Rush Limbaugh in the battle against Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor Wednesday, writing on his Twitter that the New York federal judge who would be the first Latina to hold a seat on the court is "racist."
Gingrich referenced a 2001 Sotomayor speech at the University of California-Berkeley, where Sotomayor said "a wise Latina woman" could reach a better legal decision than a white man, to slam President Barack Obama's Court nominee for discrimination.
"Imagine a judicial nominee said 'my experience as a white man makes me better than a Latina woman,'" Gingrich tweeted on the site. "New racism is no better than old racism."
Sotomayor said in the Berkeley speech that she would hope "that a wise Latina woman with the richness of her experiences would more often than not reach a better conclusion than a white male who hasn't lived that life."
The former Speaker of the House pushed for Sotomayor to be removed from Senate consideration for the seat because of her comments.
"White man racist nominee would be forced to withdraw. Latina woman racist should also withdraw," Gingrich wrote.
The White House hit back at Gingrich's remarks, saying naysayers about Sotomayor's seat should think before they open their mouths.
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"I think it is probably important for anyone involved in this debate to be exceedingly careful with the way in which they've decided to describe different aspects of this impending confirmation," spokesman Robert Gibbs said.
"I think... when people of American and the people of the Senate get a chance to look at more than just the blog of a former lawmaker that they will come to the same conclusion as the president did," Gibbs said.
Rush Limbaugh yesterday bashed Sotomayor for being a "reverse racist" who would push the minority agenda and couldn't be fairly "blindfolded" to matters of race.
"She is a horrible pick. She is the antithesis of a judge, by her own admission and in her own words," Limbaugh said on his show.
The two high-profile conservatives are the most vocal opponents to Sotomayor's nomination. Republicans have been unsure about how to fight Sotomayor's appointment and have wavered in their attacks against the potential justice.
Sotomayor would be the first Latina and only the third woman to sit on the Supreme Court if she's confirmed by the Senate.
