Kagan Could Be Confirmed Thursday Afternoon

With a Senate vote expected this afternoon, Elena Kagan's confirmation to become the fourth woman to serve on the Supreme Court is essentially "assured," the AP/Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports. Nearly every Senate Democrat, the chamber's two independents and a number of Republican senators have said they will support Kagan, ensuring more than enough votes to secure the confirmation (Hirschfeld Davis, AP/Atlanta Journal-Constitution, 8/5).

As of Thursday morning, only three Republicans had not announced how they will vote on Kagan, according to CQ Today. Among this group, Sens. Scott Brown (Mass.) and Christopher Bond (Mo.) are considered "possible 'yes' votes," CQ Today reports. Bond -- who opposed Kagan's nomination to become solicitor general but supported President Obama's first Supreme Court nominee, Justice Sonia Sotomayor, last year -- said Wednesday that he still hopes to meet with Kagan before the vote. Republican Sen. Mike Enzi (Wyo.) also has not said how he will vote.

So far, five Republicans have pledged to support Kagan and only one Democrat -- Sen. Ben Nelson (Neb.) -- plans to vote against her. Thirty-three Republican senators have said they plan to oppose Kagan. Even if Bond and Brown both support Kagan, she is likely to receive fewer "yes" votes than the 68 -- including nine Republicans -- that Sotomayor garnered last year (Stern, CQ Today, 8/4). Republicans are not expected to mount a filibuster against Kagan's confirmation (Oliphant, Los Angeles Times, 8/5).

Ginsburg Considers Possibility of Three Female Justices 'Exhilarating'

If confirmed, Kagan would become the third female justice on the current court, joining Justices Sotomayor and Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Ginsburg, the second woman ever to serve on the Supreme Court, said the prospect of three women serving simultaneously is "one of the most exhilarating developments."

According to the AP/San Diego Union-Tribune, there has been "persistent speculation that Ginsburg could retire next year and give Obama his third vacancy to fill." However, Ginsburg -- who is 77 years old and has undergone treatment for pancreatic cancer -- said she hopes to serve until age 82, the age at which former Justice Louis Brandeis retired (Sherman, AP/San Diego Union-Tribune, 8/4).

U.S. News & World Report Columnist Considers Kagan's Influence on Court

The "conventional wisdom" is that Kagan would "not change much on the court" because "she's a liberal justice replacing her fellow liberal, retir[ed] Justice John Paul Stevens," U.S. News & World Report columnist Mary Kate Cary writes. However, Kagan's confirmation would create "a critical mass" of women on the bench "that will change the way the group once called the 'brethren' will approach its work," Cary says, adding, "A lot of the difference has to do with the kind of questions women ask." Cary notes that the presence of women in newsroom and boardrooms changed the face of journalism and corporate culture because women see the world differently than men and tend to ask different types of questions (Cary, U.S. News & World Report, 8/4).














Washington Times Editorial Advocates Filibuster

A Washington Times editorial argues that opponents of Kagan's confirmation "should use every parliamentary tool available," including the filibuster, "to delay a final confirmation vote until after the August recess." Because the "new Supreme Court term doesn't start until October, ... [a] delay doesn't hurt anything," the editorial continues, concluding that a fight against Kagan is "a battle that needs to be waged" (Washington Times, 8/4).


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