Elena Kagan Confirmation: See Why 37 Senators Voted 'No'

Elena Kagan made it through the confirmation process to become the fourth female justice ever to serve on the Supreme Court.

Despite a bipartisan group of lawmakers lining up to support Kagan to succeed retired Justice John Paul Stevens on the high court, 36 GOP Senators and a one Democrat -- Sen. Ben Nelson of Nebraska -- voted against her.

Here are the Senators who voted against Kagan's confirmation to the Supreme Court and their reasons why:

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Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.)

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Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) issued the following statement addressing his intention to vote against Kagan's confirmation:

“I voted against the president’s nomination of Elena Kagan to be Solicitor General and I will vote against her confirmation to the Supreme Court for the same reason: I remain deeply troubled by her aggressive opposition to allowing military recruiters the same access to Harvard Law School as other prospective employers when she was its dean. “President Obama won the election, and I am not surprised that he would nominate someone to the Supreme Court whose political and judicial philosophy is different from mine. It is not necessary for a judicial nominee to be ‘on my side’ politically for me to vote to confirm her. One year ago I voted to confirm the president’s nomination of Sonia Sotomayor to the Supreme Court. “I met with Ms. Kagan. She is intelligent, able and accomplished. Because Ms. Kagan has never been a judge, assessing what kind of Supreme Court Justice she might be requires a close look at her professional conduct – including her six years as the dean of Harvard Law School. In denying military recruiters equal access to Harvard Law students, Ms. Kagan ignored Harvard’s obligations under federal law. Instead, she acted based upon what she thought the law should be. The use of her authority as dean in that way leads me to believe that she would use her authority as a Supreme Court Justice to advance her own policy preferences.”

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Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) issued the following statement addressing his intention to vote against Kagan's confirmation:

“I voted against the president’s nomination of Elena Kagan to be Solicitor General and I will vote against her confirmation to the Supreme Court for the same reason: I remain deeply troubled by her aggressive opposition to allowing military recruiters the same access to Harvard Law School as other prospective employers when she was its dean.

“President Obama won the election, and I am not surprised that he would nominate someone to the Supreme Court whose political and judicial philosophy is different from mine. It is not necessary for a judicial nominee to be ‘on my side’ politically for me to vote to confirm her. One year ago I voted to confirm the president’s nomination of Sonia Sotomayor to the Supreme Court.

“I met with Ms. Kagan. She is intelligent, able and accomplished. Because Ms. Kagan has never been a judge, assessing what kind of Supreme Court Justice she might be requires a close look at her professional conduct – including her six years as the dean of Harvard Law School. In denying military recruiters equal access to Harvard Law students, Ms. Kagan ignored Harvard’s obligations under federal law. Instead, she acted based upon what she thought the law should be. The use of her authority as dean in that way leads me to believe that she would use her authority as a Supreme Court Justice to advance her own policy preferences.”

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Comments

[Paladin2]

11:54 PM on 08/31/2010

The first page of comments mostly sound like high school students and this is a class president matter. What little I've heard of her 'record' and without reading all those racist, ignorant, responsible for everything wrong in the world Repubs opinions I can make my mind up just by looking at the crowd of scoundrels he's surrounded himself with and a five page history of the woman and her views and know that giving her a lifetime seat on the court will only move it further down the road towards the tyranny so many seem to think is OK for the U.S. I for one, don't.

[CBasilJr]

11:33 PM on 08/11/2010

After hearing the Republican litany of "strict interpretationalist" and "original intent of the writers of the Constitution," I am wondering how long it will be before the conservative SCOTUS of Justice Roberts will, sua sponte, reverse Justice Marshall's decision in Marbury v. Madison.

After all, Marshall took a suit regarding the appointment of a federal official and made it into the seminal case where the federal courts took over the role of being the interpreters of the Constitution.

If the Honorable Senators are to be taken at their word, then one of the first things that they should do is determine that Justice Marshall overstepped his constitutional limitations and leave no part of the government with the role that the federal courts have grabbed for themselves.

Of course, they won't. That would strip the SCOTUS of its ability to override the will of the American people.

[imoth]

08:08 AM on 08/08/2010

Don't you elect women to the US Senate?Just wondering because there were only two women included in the 37, who voted against a female supreme court nominee.

In comparison, here in Finland about 40 % of representatives are women. Are there ever discussions how to get more women to Senate and House of Representatives?

[gtaylor8]

06:22 PM on 08/07/2010

Saxby Chambliss is hilarious when he declares: “Ms. Kagan is clearly outside of mainstream America".

I get the feeling Saxby is constantly surrounded by southern good ole boys. Completly out-of-touch with rest of country.

[middleoftheroad]

03:02 PM on 08/07/2010

And all the dems (Obama) who voted against Roberts and alito have a problem with voting against a nom like her??? What a joke.

[normalintexas]

01:45 PM on 08/07/2010

It bends the mind that someone like Ensign and Vitters (and the rest of the dimwits) could sit in judgment of someone like Elena Kagan.

Congratulations Elena Kagan.

[rmonroe]

05:43 PM on 08/07/2010

Exactly. Insane, isn't it. As for Ben Nelson, if you live in Nebraska please do anything you can to oust this fool. Democrats don't need him. Either get rid of him or make him change parties.

[msjimmied]

11:42 AM on 08/07/2010

I know! I know! Cos they are all REPUBLICANS!

What do I win? :-)

[normalintexas]

01:45 PM on 08/07/2010

You win Ben Nelson.

[Avigdor]

08:58 AM on 08/07/2010

Isn't Kagan the only person ever to sit on the Supreme Court without any experience whatsoever as a judge? How very "unprecedented."

[Chrispenn]

10:05 AM on 08/07/2010

she would be the 41st out of 110 that had no judicial experience (media matters.org)

[cookerman45]

10:14 AM on 08/07/2010

wrong, way wrong.

[fireW]

08:20 AM on 08/07/2010

Corker defends his decision with the abject assertion "...she believes it is appropriate to use the court to achieve a political end. ". Gee, I wonder what he thought of the con-engineered SCOTUS decision to appoint Chimpie in '00.

[cookerman45]

11:23 PM on 08/06/2010

cause they are racist.

[Avigdor]

08:34 AM on 08/07/2010

The "race" thing is getting old. Not to mention boring and ineffectual. Keep it up.

[cookerman45]

10:11 AM on 08/07/2010

yes, when your middle class white it tends not to affect YOU.

[Hard2kill]

10:50 PM on 08/06/2010

Ben Nelson strikes again...

[Jay Jefferson]

10:24 PM on 08/06/2010

Obama has made a shocking declaration in the following video. He was just caught on tape saying: “People say that maybe I’m not American citizen, some people said I have a forged birth certificate. Well first of all, it’s true, I’m not American, I was not born in Hawaii, I wasn’t born in the United States of America. I come from Kenya…”

http://www.eutimes.net/2010/08/obama-tells-students-its-true-im-not-american-i-come-from-kenya/

[bmike]

09:51 PM on 08/06/2010

After seeing Clarence Thomas on the court its hard to say every person in the country is not qualified.Clarence broke the qualifications temp plate the bar is on the ground

[ebonyblade]

08:09 AM on 08/07/2010

....Bingo.

[Steelsil]

09:50 PM on 08/06/2010

Why would the party of NO say NO? Is this a trick question?

[bike2055]

08:43 PM on 08/06/2010

I do wonder how many of these conservative, white males are gay, yet spew hatred towards the gay population. If the past is indication where conservative, white males representatives are caught hitting on young pages, or caught traveling abroad with an escort or having a wide stance in a bathroom, I would guess about half.

[bmike]

09:43 PM on 08/06/2010

More than you think,that's how many.