Legal Beat

Oklahoma Republican Sen. Tom Coburn has announced he will oppose Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor, making it likely that the Judiciary Committee will approve the nomination on a 13-6 vote.

Coburn was the last of seven Judiciary Committee Republicans to declare his position. The panel, which has 12 Democrats, is scheduled to vote on the nomination Tuesday morning. Only one panel Republican, Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, plans to vote in favor of the nomination. All of the Democrats are expected to vote for it as well.

According to The Oklahoman newspaper Coburn opposes Sotomayor because of her views on gun rights and foreign law. Excerpts from her past speeches also demonstrate that Sotomayor will be unable to exercise impartiality, Coburn contends.