Yesterday, President Obama announced his choice to replace retiring Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens. Obama selected current Solicitor General Elena Kagan as his appointee. As Solicitor General, Kagan serves as the United States' lawyer, and represents the United States in matters before the
U.S. Supreme Court. She is the first woman to hold the position, and if confirmed to the Supreme Court, will only be the 4th woman to have served on the court in its history. Obama praised Kagan as "one of the nation’s foremost legal minds", and a "trailblazer".
What makes her appointment significant?
If confirmed, Kagan will not only the be the 4th woman in history to serve on the Supreme Court, but she will also join Justice Ginsburg and Justice Sotomayor, making the first time three woman have ever sat on the court at once. Kagan is also the first appointee in nearly 40 years to not already be a judge. Prior to Kagan's service as Solicitor General, she served as the Dean of Harvard Law School, and a lawyer in the Clinton administration. Throughout history, there have been several justices without prior records as judges, most notably Chief Justice Earl Warren, who led the high court through the civil rights era.
What happens now?
As provided by our constitution, Kagan's appointment must now be confirmed by the United States Senate. They will start with a hearing in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee in which Senators will have the opportunity to question Kagan. If approved in the committee, Kagan's nomination then goes to the full Senate, which must also approve her nomination.
What to look for?
A Supreme Court nomination process can be very interesting to watch, be sure to watch the news for updates on the process, and particularly when the confirmation hearings start. These hearings are usually televised live, and can be very interesting and informative.
References courtesy of: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/11/us/politics/11court.html
