Recently, OK WASSUP! suggested President Obama should nominate a black man to the Supreme Court. But it appears the president had other plans.
According to NBC News, President Obama has selected Elena Kagan to fill the seat on the U.S. Supreme Court soon to be vacated by Justice John Paul Stevens. Kagan is currently the U.S. Solicitor General, responsible for arguing for the government before the Supreme Court. As former Dean of the Harvard Law School, she unarguably has a distinguished professional record, both as a practicing attorney and legal scholar. She has extensive government experience, serving in the Clinton White House from 1995 to 1999 as Associate Counsel to the President and then as Deputy Assistant for Domestic Policy.
Some legal critics are already weighing in that President Obama’s choice of Kagan is a good one. She is only 50-years-old, meaning she could serve on the bench and leave Mr. Obama’s stamp on the court for potentially the next 30 years; As Solicitor General, she has been Mr. Obama’s right hand since his inauguration, meaning he likely trusts her and her judgment immensely; Every other member of the court is a former federal appeals court judge. And although Kagan argues before the Supreme Court on a regular basis, she has never served in the judiciary. The president is said to have wanted to select a legal scholar over a judicial one, a role Kagan fits perfectly; Adding another woman to the court (just after naming Justice Sonia Sotomayor last year) would instantly add more diversity to the court; And since Ms. Kagan is currently the Solicitor General, she has already gone through Senate confirmation, meaning there is likely nothing unknown about her that could derail her confirmation.
To learn more about Elena Kagan, click HERE.
I'll reserve my thoughts on her until I've done some in-depth reading on her. However, I will say this: My initial take on her is that she appears to be good solid choice.In the meantime, here's a summary of what generally matters most to me in making a U.S. Supreme Court choice: First: Whether he OR she is Black, White, Latino, Asian, Native American, WHATEVER / straight or gay or bisexual_hardly matters to me. I care more about being “fair and open-minded,” to use the President's words. Moreover, the person should demonstrate that He/She has the highest standards of integrity, is intelligent, articulate, SANE and NOT given over to ideological extremisms; is knowledgeable about the law, willing to do in-depth research, able to write decisions that are clear and cogent; is an active listener but also able and willing ask probing questions to get at the heart of the matter… Read more »