Solicitor General nominee Elena Kagan resisted any suggestion today that she would make dramatic changes in the federal government’s advocacy before the Supreme Court, declining to criticize legal arguments made by the Bush administration and telling members of the Senate Judiciary Committee that she is prepared to defend almost any law Congress passes.
Kagan, dean of Harvard Law School, appeared before the committee for a two-hour confirmation hearing amid widespread speculation that she might be nominated to the Court if a seat were to become vacant. Two Republican senators even brought up the appointment and confirmation process for federal judges, leading Kagan to say that she no longer believes nominees should give their views on potential cases.
The hearing also included Associate Attorney General nominee Thomas Perrelli, managing partner of Jenner & Block’s D.C. office, but senators directed more of their attention at Kagan. They asked her about her academic writings, her clerkship for Justice Thurgood Marshall, her lack of appellate experience, and how she would decide the government’s legal positions.
Click here to read the full Legal Times story.
Comments