WASHINGTON - The Supreme Court nomination of Judge Sonia Sotomayor, a candidate more likely than some on President Obama's short list to arouse Republican opposition, could complicate the president's task on another major agenda item - healthcare.
Over the next two months, while the Senate will be debating Sotomayor's views on affirmative action, the applicability of foreign judicial rulings, and the right to privacy - all hot-button issues guaranteed to provoke resentment on the ideological edges of both parties - it will also be trying to come together in a spirit of compromise on healthcare.
"I really think that the stars may be aligned here and we potentially can get it done if everybody comes at it with a spirit not of ideological rigidity," Obama told C-SPAN over the weekend, referring to healthcare.
But much of the negotiating on healthcare is slated to take place during the debate over the Sotomayor nomination. The two Senate committees handling the healthcare overhaul expect to have legislation in place well before the August recess; Obama wants Sotomayor confirmed by then, as well, so she can prepare for the Supreme Court's next term in October.
That makes for a busy two months on Capitol Hill, and while it's reasonable to expect that the Senate can pursue its dual responsibilities without much procedural interruption, a battle royal over the Supreme Court could consume time and sap the president's political momentum.
"If [Sotomayor's confirmation] takes a month, it does bump things up against the adjournment time," said Dartmouth College political scientist Linda Fowler. "The worry for Obama is less the loss of bipartisan spirit than the time constraints. An acrimonious nomination fight just eats up a lot of time."
Supreme Court appointments have been the main battleground for the two parties' sharply different views on social issues, especially abortion and racial preferences. And while it is unclear whether the Sotomayor nomination will run into strong opposition, early signs are that the GOP is girding for battle.
Many conservative groups released statements expressing concern about her support of "identity politics" - a line of attack that may succeed in raising questions about both her selection for the high court and her recent ruling against white firefighters who were denied promotions despite scoring higher than minorities on an exam.
Some Republicans consider her more of a liberal activist than the other three names on Obama's short list.
But as the first Hispanic nominee to the Supreme Court, Sotomayor also has the pride and support of an increasingly large ethnic group behind her.
Back in 1986, when President Ronald Reagan tapped the conservative Antonin Scalia for the court, many liberals chose not to oppose the nominee because of the pride of the Italian-American community, from which he would be the first justice.
"The fact that Obama chose the first Hispanic nominee will be a big hindrance to those who want to oppose her," said Mickey Edwards, former GOP representative from Oklahoma, who noted that the states most important to the Republicans electorally - Texas, Arizona, and Florida among them - have large Hispanic populations.
"Pick your fights, and this is one you don't want to do," advised Edwards.
As for doing healthcare in the midst of a Supreme Court nomination, he said, "I think the two things can move along on different tracks."
Obama can at least hope so.
The real question is whether Obama comes out of the Sotomayor nomination with enough political capital to wage one more historic battle.
