Elena Kagan Supreme Court nomination

Elena Kagan Supreme Court nomination
Elena Kagan with President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden 2010-05-10.jpg
Kagan with President Obama and then-Vice President Joe Biden at the announcement of the nomination in the East Room of the White House
NomineeElena Kagan
Nominated byBarack Obama (president of the United States)
SucceedingJohn Paul Stevens (associate justice)
Date nominatedMay 10, 2010
Date confirmedAugust 5, 2010
OutcomeApproved by the U.S. Senate
Vote of the Senate Judiciary Committee
Votes in favor13
Votes against6
ResultReported favorably
Senate confirmation vote
Votes in favor63
Votes against37
ResultConfirmed

On May 10, 2010, President Barack Obama announced his selection of Elena Kagan for Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, to replace retiring Justice John Paul Stevens. Kagan's nomination was confirmed by a 63–37 vote of the United States Senate on August 5, 2010. When nominated, Kagan was Solicitor General of the United States, a position to which Obama had appointed her in March 2009. Kagan was the first Supreme Court nominee since Sandra Day O'Connor in 1981 to not be a sitting circuit court judge and the most recent such nominee as of 2023. She was the first Supreme Court nominee since William Rehnquist and Lewis F. Powell Jr. in 1971 to not be a sitting judge on any court.

Nomination

Potential candidates

On April 9, 2010, John Paul Stevens announced that he would retire from the Supreme Court on June 29, at the start of Court's summer 2010 recess. He had served as an associate justice for 34 years. Those considered front-runners for the nomination by press reports, in addition to Elena Kagan, were Diane Wood and Merrick Garland. Kagan had also been a finalist for the Court vacancy one year earlier, when Justice Sonia Sotomayor was selected to succeed the retiring David Souter.

Announcement

President Barack Obama nominates Elena Kagan to the Supreme Court (14 min 6 secs)

President Barack Obama announced the nomination of Elena Kagan to the Supreme Court on May 10, 2010. He praised Kagan as a "consensus builder", and said that she "is widely regarded as one of the nation's foremost legal minds". The nomination was formally received by the Senate that same day, and was subsequently referred to the Judiciary Committee.

Response to the nomination

In the Senate, Kagan's nomination was received positively by most Democrats. Judiciary Committee chairman Patrick Leahy applauded Kagan's experience and qualifications. In doing so, he called attention to her work in academia and with the federal government – noting that both were outside the so-called "judicial monastery" from which most contemporary justices have come. The last justices to join the Court without any prior judicial experience had been Lewis Powell and William Rehnquist, both appointed by President Richard Nixon in 1972.

Republicans were quick to express criticism, particularly over her handling of military recruiters during her time as Dean of Harvard Law School, as well as her work as a law clerk for the late Justice Thurgood Marshall, whom many of them deemed a liberal activist. Even so, minority whip Jon Kyl, who supported Kagan's nominations for solicitor general (a "temporary political appointment") but was reticent to support her associate justice (a "lifetime appointment"), all but ruled out using a filibuster to block a final Senate floor vote on the nomination, telling CBS's Face the Nation, "The filibuster should be relegated to extreme circumstances, and I don't think Elena Kagan represents that." Opposition to Kagan among Senate Republicans was not universal however. A few expressed support for her, including Lindsey Graham, Susan Collins and Richard Lugar.

Activist Michael Johns and tea party members demonstrate against Kagan on July 1, 2010.

The deans of over one-third of the country's law schools, 69 people in total, endorsed Elena Kagan's nomination in an open letter in early June. The letter lauded what it considered her coalition-building skills and "understanding of both doctrine and policy" as well as her written record of legal analysis.

The National Rifle Association announced its opposition to Kagan, and stated that it would score the vote on her confirmation, meaning that Senators who vote in favor of Kagan would receive a lower rating from the organization. At the same time, the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence announced its support for Kagan's nomination.

Judiciary Committee review

Confirmation hearings

Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy swears in Kagan during her first day of testimony.

Kagan's Confirmation hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee began on June 28, 2010. From the 28th through the 30th, Kagan underwent two rounds of questioning by each member of the committee.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid meeting with Kagan.
Judiciary Chairman Patrick Leahy meeting with Kagan.

Several witnesses were called to give testimony before the Judiciary Committee at the hearings. These witnesses included Kim Askew and William J. Kayatta, Jr. of the American Bar Association. The Democratic members of the committee called witnesses that included:

Republican members of the committee called the following witnesses:

  • Robert Alt, Senior Fellow and Deputy Director, Center for Legal and Judicial Studies, The Heritage Foundation
  • Lt. Gen. William "Jerry" Boykin, United States Army (ret.)
  • Capt. Pete Hegseth, Army National Guar* Commissioner Peter Kirsanow, Benesch Law Firm
  • David Kopel, Esq., Research Director, Independence Institute
  • Colonel Thomas N. Moe, United States Air Force (ret.)
  • David Norcross, Esq., Blank Rome
  • William J. Olson, Esq., William J. Olson, P.C.
  • Tony Perkins, President, Family Research Council
  • Stephen Presser, Raoul Berger Professor of Legal History, Northwestern University School of Law
  • Ronald Rotunda, The Doy & Dee Henley Chair and Distinguished Professor of Jurisprudence, Chapman University School of Law
  • Ed Whelan, President, Ethics and Public Policy Center
  • Dr. Charmaine Yoest, President & CEO, Americans United for Life
  • Capt. Flagg Youngblood, United States Army

Committee vote

After the completion of testimony, Republicans on the Judiciary Committee successfully delayed a vote on forwarding the nomination to the full Senate for one week. On July 20, the committee voted 13–6 to endorse and forward the nomination, with only one Republican, Lindsey Graham, voting in the affirmative.

Full Senate vote

President Obama signing Kagan's commission, August 6, 2010, following Senate confirmation.

The Senate confirmed Elena Kagan to be an associate justice of the Supreme Court on August 5, 2010, by a vote of 63–37. All Democrats, except for Ben Nelson, voted for her, as did Independents Joe Lieberman and Bernie Sanders, and five Republicans: Susan Collins, Lindsey Graham, Judd Gregg, Richard Lugar, and Olympia Snowe.

Vote to confirm the Kagan nomination
August 5, 2010 Party Total votes
Democratic Republican Independent
Yea 56 05 02 63
Nay 01 36 00 37
Result: Confirmed
Roll call vote on the nomination
Senator Party State Vote
Daniel Akaka D Hawaii Yea
Lamar Alexander R Tennessee Nay
John Barrasso R Wyoming Nay
Max Baucus D Montana Yea
Evan Bayh D Indiana Yea
Mark Begich D Alaska Yea
Michael Bennet D Colorado Yea
Bob Bennett R Utah Nay
Jeff Bingaman D New Mexico Yea
Kit Bond R Missouri Nay
Barbara Boxer D California Yea
Scott Brown R Massachusetts Nay
Sherrod Brown D Ohio Yea
Sam Brownback R Kansas Nay
Jim Bunning R Kentucky Nay
Richard Burr R North Carolina Nay
Roland Burris D Illinois Yea
Maria Cantwell D Washington Yea
Ben Cardin D Maryland Yea
Tom Carper D Delaware Yea
Bob Casey Jr. D Pennsylvania Yea
Saxby Chambliss R Georgia Nay
Tom Coburn R Oklahoma Nay
Thad Cochran R Mississippi Nay
Susan Collins R Maine Yea
Kent Conrad D North Dakota Yea
Bob Corker R Tennessee Nay
John Cornyn R Texas Nay
Mike Crapo R Idaho Nay
Jim DeMint R South Carolina Nay
Chris Dodd D Connecticut Yea
Byron Dorgan D North Dakota Yea
Dick Durbin D Illinois Yea
John Ensign R Nevada Nay
Mike Enzi R Wyoming Nay
Russ Feingold D Wisconsin Yea
Dianne Feinstein D California Yea
Al Franken D Minnesota Yea
Kirsten Gillibrand D New York Yea
Carte Goodwin D West Virginia Yea
Lindsey Graham R South Carolina Yea
Chuck Grassley R Iowa Nay
Judd Gregg R New Hampshire Yea
Kay Hagan D North Carolina Yea
Tom Harkin D Iowa Yea
Orrin Hatch R Utah Nay
Kay Bailey Hutchison R Texas Nay
Jim Inhofe R Oklahoma Nay
Daniel Inouye D Hawaii Yea
Johnny Isakson R Georgia Nay
Mike Johanns R Nebraska Nay
Tim Johnson D South Dakota Yea
Ted Kaufman D Delaware Yea
John Kerry D Massachusetts Yea
Amy Klobuchar D Minnesota Yea
Herb Kohl D Wisconsin Yea
Jon Kyl R Arizona Nay
Mary Landrieu D Louisiana Yea
Frank Lautenberg D New Jersey Yea
Patrick Leahy D Vermont Yea
George LeMieux R Florida Nay
Joe Lieberman I Connecticut Yea
Blanche Lincoln D Arkansas Yea
Carl Levin D Michigan Yea
Richard Lugar R Indiana Yea
John McCain R Arizona Nay
Claire McCaskill D Missouri Yea
Mitch McConnell R Kentucky Nay
Bob Menendez D New Jersey Yea
Jeff Merkley D Oregon Yea
Barbara Mikulski D Maryland Yea
Lisa Murkowski R Alaska Nay
Patty Murray D Washington Yea
Ben Nelson D Nebraska Nay
Bill Nelson D Florida Yea
Mark Pryor D Arkansas Yea
Jack Reed D Rhode Island Yea
Harry Reid D Nevada Yea
Jim Risch R Idaho Nay
Pat Roberts R Kansas Nay
Jay Rockefeller D West Virginia Yea
Bernie Sanders I Vermont Yea
Chuck Schumer D New York Yea
Jeff Sessions R Alabama Nay
Jeanne Shaheen D New Hampshire Yea
Richard Shelby R Alabama Nay
Olympia Snowe R Maine Yea
Arlen Specter D Pennsylvania Yea
Debbie Stabenow D Michigan Yea
Jon Tester D Montana Yea
John Thune R South Dakota Nay
Mark Udall D Colorado Yea
Tom Udall D New Mexico Yea
David Vitter R Louisiana Nay
George Voinovich R Ohio Nay
Mark Warner D Virginia Yea
Jim Webb D Virginia Yea
Sheldon Whitehouse D Rhode Island Yea
Roger Wicker R Mississippi Nay
Ron Wyden D Oregon Yea
Source:

Kagan's swearing-in ceremony as Associate Justice took place on August 7, 2010, at the White House. Chief Justice John Roberts administered the prescribed constitutional and judicial oaths of office, at which time she became the 112th justice (100th associate justice) of the Supreme Court.

See also


This page was last updated at 2023-04-08 04:16 UTC. Update now. View original page.

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