http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/us_obama_supreme_court
AP source: Elena Kagan picked for Supreme Court
Read more here: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/us_obama_supreme_courtBy BEN FELLER, Associated Press Writer Ben Feller, Associated Press Writer – 51 mins ago
WASHINGTON – Solicitor General Elena Kagan will be nominated Monday to the Supreme Court by President Barack Obama, a person familiar with the president's thinking says, positioning the high court to have three women justices for the first time.
Obama plans to announce his choice at 10 a.m. in the East Room of the White House. The source spoke on condition of anonymity because the decision, which came after a monthlong search, had not been made public.
Kagan is known as sharp and politically savvy and has enjoyed a blazing legal career. She was the first female dean of Harvard Law School, first woman to serve as the top Supreme Court lawyer for any administration, and now first in Obama's mind to succeed legendary liberal Justice John Paul Stevens.
At 50 years old, Kagan would be the youngest justice on the court, which would give her the opportunity to extend Obama's legacy for a generation.
Kagan must first win Senate confirmation.
A source close to the selection process said a central element in Obama's choice was Kagan's reputation for bringing together people of competing views and earning their respect.
Kagan came to the fore as a candidate who had worked closely with all three branches of government, a legal mind with both a sense of modesty and sense of humor. The source spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss factors that led to Kagan's impending nomination.
PS, If you were like me and did not know of that position...
http://www.freep.com/article/20100510/BLOG36/100510006
Posted May 10, 2010 - 5:52 a.m.
What does the solicitor general do anyway?
BY MARK W. SMITH
FREE PRESS WEB EDITOR
As news broke late Sunday that Solicitor General Elena Kagan would be President Barack Obama's latest pick for Supreme Court, confused readers turned to the Web for answers on what exactly the solicitor general does.
It's a good question, and one that can be answered at the Department of Justice's Web site.
From the DOJ:
"The original Statutory Authorization Act of June 22, 1870, states, 'There shall be in the Department of Justice an officer learned in the law, to assist the Attorney General in the performance of his duties to be called the Solicitor General.'
"The Office of the Solicitor General is tasked to conduct all litigation on behalf of the United States in the Supreme Court, and to supervise the handling of litigation in the federal appellate courts."
Kagan, the first woman to serve as solicitor general, has argued six cases before the Supreme Court.
