Elena Kagan? Really?

May 14, 2010 by Marc Lamont Hill

kagan and president obama

Yesterday, President Obama nominated United States Solicitor General Elena Kagan to replace John Paul Stevens on the Supreme Court. Few were surprised by the choice, as Kagan has long been viewed a frontrunner for the high court. While many observers have applauded Obama’s decision, others like myself were left with a lingering question.

Is this really the best we could do?

Let’s be clear, I am not questioning Kagan’s basic qualifications as a nominee. Unlike those who have questioned her “temperament” and “intellectual curiosity”—loaded queries that only seem to get raised in relation to women and minority candidates—I have little doubt about Kagan’s fitness for the job. Rather, I am concerned about Kagan’s ability to fill John Paul Stevens’ shoes as the progressive anchor of the Supreme Court.

Although she undoubtedly shares the same political persuasion as Justice Stevens, Kagan is considerably less progressive on major issues of the day. While Stevens has filed numerous dissents in an effort to challenge the Bush (and now Obama) doctrine of endless executive power, Kagan has dutifully argued in favor of policies that undermine the spirit and letter of the Constitution. For example, during her confirmation hearing for Solicitor General, Kagan offered unequivocal support for the indefinite detention of suspected terrorists as well as the bizarre belief that the entire world is a battleground. On other issues, from gay marriage to civil rights, Kagan has done nothing to inspire confidence that she would continue Stevens’ tradition of principled and rigorous resistance.

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Categories: MLH
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2 Comments

1. luigi bros. wrote:

I’ve come to accept that Obama is a centrist and is not going to make any progressive changes. He convinced me of this with financial reform. If there was any issue that he could’ve gone all the way on and had popular support it was financial reform. Obama is not a fighter. He’s a compromiser. Not to mention that the democrats in Congress aren’t too progressive themselves.

May 23, 2010 @ 11:33 pm

2. Ms. Rankin wrote:

I am not very familiar with this lady or her political views.. I do question her personal life and how her sexual preference will effect her views and decision making. My initial thought was that Mr. President chose her to bring about a sense of humility and compassion because we as women are more nurturing and understanding so to speak..

May 27, 2010 @ 11:44 am

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