Washington – President Barack Obama will nominate U.S. Solicitor General Elena Kagan to serve as an associate justice on the U.S. Supreme Court, NBC News’ Pete Williams reported late Sunday night.
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Kagan, 50, served as the Dean of Harvard Law School from 2003 to 2009. Obama nominated her to serve in her current post as solicitor general early in 2009, and she won Senate confirmation by a vote of 61-31. She is the first woman to serve as solicitor general of the United States.
She was widely viewed as a front-runner when Obama was considering candidates for a Supreme Court opening last year, but the president ultimately chose Sonia Sotomayor for the job.
Some liberal critics have said that Kagan’s views on executive power and the treatment of terrorist detainees are too conservative.
If confirmed, Kagan will fill the vacancy left by retiring Justice John Paul Stevens. Stevens, 90, announced his decision to retire on April 9 after nearly 35 years of service on the high court.
Kagan was born to a Jewish family in New York City. She is the middle of three children of Gloria Gittelman Kagan and Robert Kagan.
If Kagan is nominated and confirmed, the Supreme Court will be made up entirely of Catholics and Jews.
Will jewish actually help us?
Rubashkin can’t even get to the supreme court? Will it have any benefit??
Interesting to point out that Supreme court will have 3 Jewish Justices, of course all liberals.
this does not sound good. all obama wants to do is wrap himself among so called jews and say he is a friend of ours, in this manner he can do what he wants to do.
If she is confirmed there will be 3 Jews in the supreme court for the first time ever, joining Justices Ruth bader Ginsburg and Stephan Breyer.
Any relation to the chofetz chaim?
Does she belong to J street or AIPAC?
(reply to #7 ) I agree with you that she’s a great legal scholar, and well respected, but what makes her an ehrlicha yid
Kagan is an excellent choice. She will be the first person in many decades to be appointed to the Supreme Court who was not a Federal Appeals Court Judge immediately before her appointment. She will be the fifth Solicitor General to later serve on the court; the others were William Howard Taft, Stanley F. Reed, Robert H. Jackson, and Thurgood Marshall — that puts her in pretty good company.
Both Kagan and current Justice Sotomayor graduated Summa Cum Laude from Princeton!
A supreme court composed of Catholics and Jewish Judges? I beginning to feel better and better about living. Baruch Hashem.
What exactly is the job of the solicitor general? Does she decide who can be a meshulach?
We have had three Jewish Supreme Court judges in Canada now for several years. One of them is Rosalie Abella the wife of historian Irving Abella who wrote the book “NONE IS TOO MANY” – the account of Canada’s attitude to Jews during World War II. (the title is an exact quote from the government). So far the Jewish influence on the court has not been of any great benefit to our community – especially the frum community. We shall what happens if the upcoming Quebec niqab/burqa law gets to the Supreme Court.
Kinda odd she would be nominated. She has NEVER served as a Judge of any kind at any point in her career. I guess that makes Obama feel comfortable with her since he has no prior experience either…
I believe if any president (Republican or Democrat] ever appoints a Jewish woman to the Supreme Court first of all she must present an attendance record of a kosher mikva, present her sheitel and undergo a mechina by a rov, otherwise no appointment to the
Supreme Court
Does anyone see a relationship between this story and the previous one “Poll: Chassidic/Orthodox Are Strongest Anti-Obama Group ” Chassidim have historically voted Democratic.
Here is another piece of news published yesterday by the washington post.
“A poll done by the McLaughlin Group asked American Jews if:
(a) vote to re-elect Obama, or (b) consider voting for someone else. 42% said they would vote for Obama and 46%, a plurality, preferred the second answer. 12% said they did not know or refused to answer.”
This is simply another ploy by the Obamanation to try and regain Democratic Jewish votes.
On the confirmation hearing she will have to answer who is right Ahron or Zalmen
This woman attempted to bar military recruiters from Harvard when she was dean of the law school. She has ZERO business being on the highest court in this country.
NO, 17 . So what , I did too .
NO. 4 . Regrettably, for not too long .
Charlie Hall, You are spewing valuable information .
NO 56. No wonder , he is very knowledgable ….
RE.# 56 . LOL.
“but his main claim to fame as AG was supporting the internment of Japanese Americans during WW2!”
And then he turned out to be one of this country’s most liberal Supreme Court justices. Ike rued the day he selected him.
You never know.
Every article mentions that she is Jewish but is she a practicing Jew? Does she have any ties to the Jewish community? Is she an anti-Israel Jew, member of J Street? Does she have more in common with Noam Chomsky than Alan Dershowitz? Rahm Immanuel is Jewish but I doubt anyone in Israel considers him a friend. Simply being born a Jew is no indication that she is a friend of the Jewish people.
I wonder if all you chachomim, mevinim, yiras shomayim faced with a serious l.iability suit check on your lawyer if he attends the daf yomi, wear tzitzis and a black hat or his legal background
Perhaps you would be happier with a nominee who got his or her degree from a store-front school. Please tell me what is wrong with someone who gets their law degree from a great school—I bet most of you are very machmir about where a Rov gets his smicha from.