Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney (R) on Thursday continued to encourage Senate Republicans to hold their fire on Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor. “Some of the things that the nominated justice has said in the past are troubling, but I think that she deserves a full, fair and thorough hearing before a final decision is made,— Romney said. “The process should be a civil one, and we should show respect to her and this process.— “Let’s give her a chance to explain her views,— he added. President Barack Obama nominated Sotomayor this week to replace retiring Justice David Souter on the high court. If confirmed, she would become the nation’s first Hispanic Supreme Court justice. Romney, who began encouraging fellow GOPers to reserve judgment on her nomination earlier this week, spoke to reporters after moderating a panel on the Employee Free Choice Act hosted by the Workforce Fairness Institute. The business group, which held the event at the Consumer Electronics Association in Crystal City, Va., opposes the EFCA. The legislation, which would make it easier for workers to unionize, currently is under consideration by both chambers. The likely 2012 GOP presidential candidate, who lost the Republican presidential nomination last year to Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), suggested that he will not support any compromise on the “card check— bill, saying he would remain opposed to the key planks of the legislation: a revised balloting process for union elections and third-party arbitration for workplace contracts. “There’s just no why that I could see that they would make sense for the economy or the workers of America,— he said.