Kagan had won accolades from “across the ideological
spectrum,” Obama said, praising her “openness to a broad array of
viewpoints” and what he said was a “habit of understanding before
disagreeing.”
“She sought to recruit prominent conservatives” when she was dean of
Obama said, and encouraged students to debate and find common ground in
the practice of law. He also praised her work in support of everyday
Americans as the government’s chief lawyer and as a legal scholar.
“I think it says a great deal about her commitment
to protect our fundamental rights,” Obama said. “It says a great deal
about the path Elena has chosen.”
Kagan would replace Justice
could take place in late June or early July. Kagan’s confirmation would
make history in one sense: It would mark the first time three women
served on the
The scene at the
Administration officials hope the confirmation
process will be like Sotomayor’s too. Though Republicans lined up to
grill Sotomayor, picking apart her judicial philosophy and the
president’s emphasis on her “empathy” as a qualifying attribute, she
was confirmed without much trouble.
In that case, of course, Republican lawmakers were
being cautious not to alienate Latino voters eager to see her ascend to
the high court.
Kagan’s constituency is much closer to the
on Monday morning. Present in the room were fellow veterans from the
Clinton administration. Obama introduced Kagan to the crowd as “my
friend.”
In his remarks, Obama lauded Stevens’ commitment to
“restraint and respect for precedent” and his awareness of the effect
of judicial decisions on people.
“While we can’t presume to replace his wisdom and
experience,” Obama said, Kagan can “ultimately provide that same kind
of leadership on the court.”
Kagan said she felt “blessed” to have represented the U.S. government before the
She praised the work of Justice
argument for adding Kagan to the court. The president has expressed
great dismay that the court recently struck down campaign finance laws
in its Citizens United decision, overturning decades of precedent.
Administration officials say Kagan would be a backstop against that
happening again.
“Law matters,” Kagan told the crowd. “It keeps us safe. It protects our most fundamental rights and freedoms.”
Like Stevens, Kagan has ties to
Kagan was confirmed by the
year as solicitor general by a 61-31 vote. As solicitor general, she
argued for the government, and lost, the Citizens United case.
At age 50, Kagan would be the youngest member of the
court and the only one without previous judicial experience. She also
would be the fourth to have grown up in
She would be the third justice in a row to have gone to
grads. Her appointment would also leave the court without a Protestant
for the first time. Currently, six of the justices are Catholics and
two are Jewish, as is Kagan.
As dean at Harvard, Kagan developed good relations
with conservative professors, students and alumnae despite her
progressive credentials.
She once hosted a celebratory dinner for conservative Justice
In part because of that track record, some liberal
activists had come to consider Kagan one of the more conservative
people on Obama’s working list of potential nominees.
But advisers to the president characterize her as a
progressive who is able to find common ground with legal thinkers
across the left-right spectrum.
Obama advisers said that was what the president was
looking for: a nominee who might work to keep the court’s five
conservatives from running roughshod over the four liberals.
Kagan’s nomination is not much of a surprise in
political circles, where her name has been in play for months. She
surfaced as a possible candidate when a
When Stevens announced his retirement, Kagan was
thought to have the inside track to the nomination. In academia and in
politics, she has worked with key players in Obama’s circle.
Despite her years as a law professor, Kagan has
managed to avoid taking stands on controversial subjects such as
abortion or affirmative action. While at Harvard, however, she joined a
lawsuit that contested whether military recruiters could come to the
campus to interview graduates. Harvard and several other law schools
had a policy against having recruiters for employers who discriminated
based on sexual orientation.
When the lawsuit reached the
Some conservatives say Senate Republicans should
question Kagan closely because she has a limited public record. They
cite her 1995 law review article arguing that senators should require
nominees to talk about their views on legal controversies. In that
article, she said that
hollow charade” where nominees were permitted to “stonewall” and avoid
detailing their actual views.
“It’s especially important that the
Crisis Network, a conservative interest group, said the debate over
Kagan would center on her status as an administration insider who was
picked, as she charged, to “rubber stamp” the president’s domestic
policy agenda if legislation pertaining to healthcare and financial
regulatory reform were challenged in court.
Liberals are already lined up behind her.
“She has an excellent chance, and she would be terrific,” Harvard law professor
been vetted and recently confirmed. Her writing is not voluminous,
which is also a plus.”
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(c) 2010, Tribune Washington Bureau
Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.
