Obama Nominates Elena Kagan to be Next Supreme Court Justice

[Landslide Lyndon]

Another fail from Obama. Maybe when the Republicans gain 6 Senate seats, he'll appoint Robert Bork.

Please. It's bad that he picks judges based on qualities other than ideology? Get real.

And Wood was a potential pick based on ideology and not qualifications? Please. Kagan is a moderate hero pick for the sake of a moderate hero pick and I fail to see how that's any better than what you're (incorrectly) complaining about.

I was pointing out jfern's stupidity in expecting Obama to pick a liberal. Besides, it makes sense he'd pick Kagan, we need more justices who weren't career judges prior to their appointment.

And didn't he personally know Kagan or something? Expecting another Stevens is stupid and not how our judicial nomination process should work.

What's unreasonable about expecting someone sort of liberal when there are only 41 Republican Senators and to replace the most liberal member of the court. I really would hate to see who Obama has in mind for some later replacements. Obama needs to give the liberals a reason to show up in November. He hasn't.

You're acting like Kagan isn't closer to where Obama actually is, which I'm pretty sure is the case.  Why should Obama pander rather than select a Justice that's roughly the same disposition he is?

Well, the same was said about W. and Harriet Miers but the conservative base understandably wanted some more tangible evidence.

[Landslide Lyndon]

Wow - just read through a couple of appellate briefs that she's put forth as Solicitor General.

They suck.

It was no secret that her performance as Solicitor General was unimpressive, to say the least.
She was harshly rebuked more recently at the dog fighting video case.

[Landslide Lyndon]

Wow - just read through a couple of appellate briefs that she's put forth as Solicitor General.

They suck.

Yeah, and the Supreme Court has already treated some of her opinions presented to the Supreme Court with contempt. 

The only area where she seems to excel is public relations. When you're compared to Harriet Miers, you know something has gone horribly wrong.

Obama may think that with her apparently good-natured and affable personality she will manage to persuade Kennedy to join the liberals more frequently. But then again if she failed miserably to do exactly that as Solicitor General, I can't see how she will manage it as a Justice.
Not to mention that Wood had a proven record of actually persuading conservatives to join her opinions.

[Landslide Lyndon]

Well, with friends like this...


http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/newsdesk/2010/05/elena-kagans-nomination.html

[Landslide Lyndon]

Excellent.  She's got solid liberal credentials, is 49 years old, and most importantly of all, is perfectly qualified for this Court.  I'm more than pleased.

Uhhhh...
What are exactly her solid liberal credentials that every journalist in America has missed?

[Landslide Lyndon]

Another thing that is depressing about Obama's choice of Kagan over Wood is the fact that it represents the triumph of cowardice over courage.

Wood, Sunstein, Koh and Liu have taken positions on most controversial matters and weren't afraid to talk about them, even when they were unpopular. Thus they are considered uncomfirmable.

But Kagan, perhaps driven by ambition or perhaps by cowardice, carefully avoided to make her opinions known, even among her closest friends. And so she is rewarded with an appointment at the Supreme Court. What's wrong with this picture?    

[Landslide Lyndon]

Could someone make a list of Kagan's right wing tendencies, at least when it comes to jurisprudence?  I mean, she does not have that much of a paper trail, and some stuff of not much import perhaps to the contrary, so I would be interested as to the source of all of this "progressive" angst. Thanks!

I think people just hate to see a great man go, only to be replaced by an unknown..  and one who is unlikely to be as left-leaning as he was.

The truth is that among female justices, only Ginsburg was any good, but it is also generally true that people tend to move left on the Court rather than right, so this Kagan might not be all bad.  Once she stops having to worry about popular opinion and politicians and so forth, she may do the 'right' thing.

True and despite progressive concerns about Sotomayor she turned out pretty decent too.

There weren't any particular progressive concerns about Sotomayor. She was a well-known quantity with a clear record and a lot of people ready to vouch for her liberal credentials.

Kagan on the other hand has nothing to show but the assurances of her pals from academia and the Democratic party. Even Sheldon Whitehouse said that he hopes to learn some things about her judicial philosophy during the confirmation hearings.  

[Landslide Lyndon]

Here is an interesting analysis about Kagan and her career and why the best adjective to describe her choice is "depressing"
http://andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com/the_daily_dish/2010/05/the-purity-of-her-careerism.html

And a hilarious footnote:
http://andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com/the_daily_dish/2010/05/the-wisdom-of-age.html

[Landslide Lyndon]

If Kagan is confirmed then Washington governor Christine Gregoire is the favorite to replace her as Solicitor General, in which case there will be a special gubernatorial election in November.

http://politicalwire.com/archives/2010/05/12/gregoire_considered_to_replace_kagan.html