Caller after caller to a radio show popular in Central Florida's booming Puerto Rican community gushed Tuesday over President Barack Obama's decision to nominate one of their own to the nation's highest court.

Even the Republicans.

"I thought partisan lines would prevail, but they did not," said the show's host, Fernando Miguel Negron, who endorsed Obama last year but has supported Republican candidates. "There's a saying in Puerto Rico that our coffee may be sour, but it's our coffee, and I think that's what it is in a nutshell. People may disagree with some of her views but they can identify with her."

The overwhelming response during Negron's four-hour show to Sonia Sotomayor and her inspiring story — from Bronx housing project to Yale Law School to federal appellate judge — illustrates the challenge her nomination poses for the Republican party, which is struggling to make up the ground lost with Hispanic voters during heated battles over immigration reform.

Though conservative groups assailed Sotomayor as a "liberal'' and an "activist judge," most Republican leaders in Florida and nationwide treaded gingerly.

Sen. Mel Martinez, who backed former President George W. Bush's more conservative choices for the Supreme Court and was considered a potential nominee for an earlier opening, said he hoped for a "fair and thorough'' confirmation process.

"I take great pride in seeing the nomination of an Hispanic person to serve in this high position — a historic first," Martinez, the first Cuban American to serve in the Senate, said.

Miami's Ninoska Perez Castellon, a frequent and fierce Obama critic, said of Sotomayor on her Spanish-language radio show: "Only in America."

"As a Cuban you have to feel proud," Perez Castellon, a founder of the conservative Cuban Liberty Council, said in an interview. "It should be an inspiration to women and to all of us who came here from different countries, especially Hispanics."

Miami's three Cuban-American Republican members of Congress -- Reps. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, Mario Diaz-Balart and Lincoln Diaz-Balart -- were silent on the nomination. And many national and state party leaders held their fire in what is typically a fierce political battle.

"For today, we congratulate Judge Sotomayor on this accomplishment and look forward to the coming weeks as members of the United States Senate face the daunting task of carefully analyzing Judge Sotomayor's qualifications and experience . . ." said Jim Greer, chairman of the Republican Party of Florida.

Republicans were divided over Sotomayor when she faced Senate confirmation in 1998 for a seat on the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. Among the 25 Republicans backing her was then-Florida Sen. Connie Mack.

Gov. Charlie Crist, the leading Republican candidate to replace Martinez in the Senate in 2010, said of Sotomayor's nomination: "I'll take a look at it."

The only prominent Florida Republican to issue a statement critical of Sotomayor was former House Speaker Marco Rubio, who is aggressively courting the party's conservative wing as he challenges Crist for his party's nomination.

"Judge Sotomayor deserves a fair hearing and respectful treatment, but there is much in her legal background that is troubling and demands scrutiny and honest discussion," Rubio said.

Join the discussion

The Miami Herald is pleased to provide this opportunity to share information, experiences and observations about what's in the news. Some of the comments may be reprinted elsewhere in the site or in the newspaper. We encourage lively, open debate on the issues of the day, and ask that you refrain from profanity, hate speech, personal comments and remarks that are off point. In order to post comments, you must be a registered user of MiamiHerald.com. Your username will show along with the comments you post. Thank you for taking the time to offer your thoughts.

     Showing: Oldest first Newest first Most-recommended first Least-recommended first

@Nyx.AuthorDisplayName@ wrote on @Nyx.PostedAtTime@:

@Nyx.repliedToText@

@Nyx.replyAnswerText@

Reply to this Comment @Nyx.Recommender@ @Nyx.AbuseReporter@