Statement of Debra L. Ness, President, National Partnership for Women & Families:
“Today President Obama nominated an independent thinker and a person of towering intellect and deep commitment to justice to join the U.S. Supreme Court. Solicitor General Elena Kagan is eminently qualified for this post. She has a proud history of public service, a fair and thoughtful approach to legal issues, a record of extraordinary accomplishment, and a history of working effectively with people who hold diverse political and legal views.
Solicitor General Kagan has dedicated her life to seeking a just society. If she is confirmed, she will have the chance to continue that work on our highest court. She is a superb and brilliant choice to serve as a United States Supreme Court justice.
Elena Kagan’s record – as a practicing attorney, a law school professor, the first woman Dean of Harvard Law School, and our nation’s first woman Solicitor General – is distinguished by keen intellect, fair and independent thinking, and remarkable achievement.
Our nation lost a powerful champion for justice when John Paul Stevens retired. President Obama’s nomination of Solicitor General Elena Kagan offers the promise that the nation will continue to benefit from having that kind of champion on its highest court.
The Senate confirmed Elena Kagan as Solicitor General with strong Republican support. It should confirm her as the 112th justice of the U.S. Supreme Court without controversy or delay.â€
