Justice Sonia Sotomayor on Wednesday said she believes judicial philosophy, for the first time in history, has become “tightly interwoven” with political parties that use it as “slogans” for political platforms.

“Yes, I have concerns that we might be in crisis,” Sotomayor said during the inaugural Robert A. Katzmann Lecture at New York University School of Law. “As norms in the nomination process are broken, as more senators, local politicians and media question the legitimacy of the court, many of them heap scorn on the court. The threat [to judicial independence] is greater and unprecedented than at any time in our history.”