Web Update: Obama nominates Kagan ’81 to Supreme Court

At a White House press conference Monday morning, President Barack Obama nominated Solicitor General Elena Kagan ’81 to replace retiring Supreme Court Associate Justice John Paul Stevens.

“Elena is widely regarded as one of the nation’s foremost legal minds,” Obama said. “She’s an acclaimed legal scholar with a rich understanding of constitutional law. She’s a former White House aide with a lifelong commitment to public service and a firm grasp of the nexus and boundaries between our three branches of government. She is a trailblazing leader.”

The announcement, which followed a month-long search, confirmed speculation that Kagan was the front-runner for the nomination.

If the Senate approves her nomination, Kagan would also be the third consecutive Princetonian to join the court, following the confirmations of Sonia Sotomayor ’76 in 2009 and Samuel Alito ’72 in 2006. She would be the fourth female justice in the court’s history, and the third woman on the sitting court.

As solicitor general, Kagan argues cases on behalf of the president’s administration before the Supreme Court.

“During the last year, as I have served as solicitor general, my longstanding appreciation for the Supreme Court’s role in our constitutional democracy has become ever deeper and richer,” Kagan said.

Kagan was nominated to that post by Obama in January 2009 as the first female for that position and was confirmed by a Senate vote of 61-31.

At the conference, Kagan spoke with marked optimism about the court’s role in the American legal system.

“The court is an extraordinary institution in the work it does, and in the work it can do for the American people by advancing the tenets of our Constitution, by upholding the rule of law and by enabling all Americans — regardless of their background or their beliefs — to get a fair hearing and an equal chance at justice,” she said.

Kagan has also served as the first female dean of Harvard Law School and as associate White House counsel under President Bill Clinton. She began her career as a law professor at the University of Chicago Law School. Of the rumored candidates for the nomination, Kagan was the only one without any previous judicial experience.

Kagan earned a bachelor’s degree in history summa cum laude from the University, where she served as editorial chairman of The Daily Princetonian. She earned a master's in philosophy from Oxford University, in 1983 and her law degree magna cum laude from Harvard Law School in 1986.

Click here for further coverage of the Kagan nomination and articles from The Daily Princetonian's archives.