The US Supreme Court and Partisan Politics

The first morning of Judge Sonia Sotomayor's confirmation hearings for the US Supreme Court began and ended without her uttering a single word. Members of the Senate Judiciary Committee held forth at length, in a debate they conceded was more about politics than the law. Democrats called her a "moderate" with a classic American story. Republicans said her "empathy" for one side means prejudice against the other. They raised hot-button issues including women's rights, the death penalty and affirmative action. We hear about the first day of hearings on a nominee who's widely expected to be confirmed. Are both parties in the business of setting agendas?