Elena Kagan

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Add Kagan, and High Court Won't Have Any Protestants

Court rarely reflects country's faith mix well

(Newser) - If Elena Kagan is confirmed, the Supreme Court will have six Catholics, three Jews, and, for the first time in history, not a single Protestant. That might not seem as important as it used to, but Ed Kilgore of FiveThirtyEight decided to take a quick look at the court's historic...

Kagan Supports Cameras in Supreme Court

Public could watch "extraordinary" events

(Newser) - Would Elena Kagan support putting cameras in the Supreme Court? Looks like it. C-SPAN footage posted on Mediaite shows the nominee discussing the issue in July 2009. Having cameras in court would allow the public to see "an amazing and extraordinary event," she says. People would see "...

Kagan Pushed to Ban Late-Term Abortions in '97

Told Clinton that otherwise he risked GOP veto

(Newser) - As a White House adviser in 1997, Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan urged then-President Bill Clinton to support a ban on late-term abortions, a political compromise that put the administration at odds with abortion rights groups, according to documents reviewed by the AP. Kagan told Clinton that if he didn't...

Kagan Pick Reveals Savvy Obama Strategy
Kagan Pick Reveals
Savvy Obama Strategy
OPINION

Kagan Pick Reveals Savvy Obama Strategy

Prez manages to play it safe and progressive at the same time

(Newser) - President Obama's pick of Elena Kagan for the Supreme Court says more about the president than his nominee, writes Glenn Thrush. The president spoke boldly about the need to stand up to big business in his pre-selection talk while privately seeking a safe pick who could be confirmed without much...

Steele Fires Opening Salvo Against Kagan

Her crime? Quoting Thurgood Marshall against slavery

(Newser) - If you were hoping for a quick, bipartisan approval process for Elena Kagan, keep dreaming. Michael Steele has put out a statement leaving little doubt that Republicans intend to challenge Kagan any way they can. He criticizes her for trying to bar military recruiters from Harvard Law School's campus, “...

Obama Names Kagan to Supreme Court

Calls her a great legal mind

(Newser) - Barack Obama officially announced “our solicitor general, and my friend, Elena Kagan” as his pick to replace John Paul Stevens on the Supreme Court today, calling her a trailblazer, a tenacious defender of ordinary citizens, and “one of the nation's foremost legal minds.” He highlighted her ideological...

Kagan Choice for Court: How It Will Play Out

She'll have critics on both right and left, but will skirt major battles

(Newser) - The Senate confirmation hearings for Elena Kagan will likely include some minor dust-ups but no major battles, observers say. Liberals are worried she's more conservative than Stevens and will thus push the court to the right, but are unlikely to seriously oppose her. Conservatives respect her overall, though her move...

Meet Obama's High Court Pick

 Elena Kagan: 
 More Pragmatic 
 Than Liberal 
Meet Obama's supreme pick

Elena Kagan: More Pragmatic Than Liberal

Elena Kagan's wanted to be a Justice for a long, long time

(Newser) - Elena Kagan posed for her high school yearbook photo wearing a judge's robe and holding a gavel. At 17, she already knew she wanted to be a Supreme Court Justice. “That was a goal from the very beginning,” a classmate at her Upper West Side New York high...

Obama Will Nominate Elena Kagan to Supreme Court

President Obama plans to nominate solicitor general for high court seat

(Newser) - President Obama plans to nominate Elena Kagan to the Supreme Court to replace John Paul Stevens tomorrow, MSNBC reports and numerous other sources comfirm. Should Kagan, 50, be confirmed, the high court would have three female justices for the first time. Her nomination marks the first time in 38 years...

White House Blasts CBS for Outing Court Candidate

Rep says network 'applying old stereotypes' to single women

(Newser) - The White House blasted CBS for publishing a column yesterday 'outing' Supreme Court candidate Elena Kagan—thing is, she's not a lesbian, maintains a White House rep. The post, written by conservative blogger Ben Domenech, said Obama would "please his base" by selecting "an openly gay justice."...

Frontrunner Kagan Would Tilt Court Further Right

For liberals, she'd be a disaster, writes Glenn Greenwald

(Newser) - The smart money's on Elena Kagan to be President Obama's pick as John Paul Stevens' replacement on the Supreme Court. The solicitor general is "exceptionally smart" with loads of qualifications and expertise, writes Glenn Greenwald, but she'd be a disaster for liberals. The former dean of Harvard Law School...

Obama Eyes Elena Kagan, 2 Others for Supreme Court

President will move fast once Stevens steps down

(Newser) - Justice John Paul Stevens still hasn't decided exactly how soon he'll retire from the Supreme Court, but President Obama already has his eye on three potential replacements: Solicitor General Elena Kagan and federal appellate judges Diane Wood and Merrick Garland. The White House is preparing to move quickly with a...

Top Court Candidates Differ Widely on Exec Power

New justice will be key to defining prez limits

(Newser) - Most Supreme Court watchers say that Barack Obama's choice to succeed David Souter will change little, since the retiring justice was a reliable member of the court's liberal bloc. But on critical questions of presidential power, which Souter regularly sought to check, the new justice's vote could...

Supreme Court Buzz Centers on Wood, Kagan

Both in DC; sources say Obama began interviews with Wood

(Newser) - The Washington rumor mill is focusing on two names as President Obama steps up the search for a Supreme Court nominee,  the Washington Post reports. Federal Appeals Court Judge Diane Wood visited the capital Tuesday, ostensibly to attend a judicial conference, but insiders say she met with the president...

Five Women on Obama's Short List for Supreme Court

(Newser) - President Obama has narrowed his list of Supreme Court picks to at least six names, with women in five of the top spots, reports CNN. Obama is expected to make a selection by Memorial Day, sources say. Among the finalists: Federal appeals court judges Sonia Sotomayor and Diane Wood; Solicitor...

Supreme Wish List: Pragmatist, Easy to Confirm, 'Home Run'

As Obama vetting begins, 4 women lead

(Newser) - President Obama's choice to replace David Souter on the Supreme Court will be a pragmatist unafraid to challenge conventional wisdom, insiders tell the Washington Post. While Obama will not play it safe, they say, neither does he want a provocative choice that will create another partisan confirmation battle. "He's...

Oh, No! A Single Woman May Replace Souter
Oh, No! A Single Woman May Replace Souter
OPINION

Oh, No! A Single Woman May Replace Souter

Lack of a ring turns top female Supreme Court candidates into targets

(Newser) - David Souter is a lifelong bachelor, but the possibility of a bachelorette replacement has started an uproar. Why? Because those potential Supreme Court justices are women, and when a powerful woman is unmarried it "seems to make everyone think: lonely, misfit, or lesbian," write Dahlia Lithwick and Hanna...

Obama May Look Off-Court to Fill Souter Vacancy
Obama May Look Off-Court to Fill Souter Vacancy
ANALYSIS

Obama May Look Off-Court to Fill Souter Vacancy

Expect a woman from outside appeals circuit

(Newser) - With everyone attempting to predict President Obama's thinking on a nominee to replace David Souter on the Supreme Court, CBS News makes two observations. The White House has dropped hints that it wants someone who is not a federal appeals court judge—as all nine current justices once were. And...

New Solicitor General in Line for High Court

Center-left lawyer will work closely with Supremes

(Newser) - Elena Kagan became America's first female solicitor general yesterday, putting her one step closer to a possible Supreme Court nomination, the AP reports. As the so-called "10th Supreme Court justice," Kagan will effectively audition for the high court if she argues a Voting Rights Act case next...

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