June 28, 2010

Watching the Elena Kagan confirmation hearing.

Here's the live stream, which begins at 12:30 ET. You'll also be able to watch non-live. After all the new Supreme Court cases this morning, I'm not going to park myself in front of the screen and watch the Senators read their statements, which should take all afternoon. I'll catch up later and do some commentary, but I need to go live in the physical world for a little while. Please comment on the hearings in this post.

26 comments:

MadisonMan said...

Senators reading statements. Ugh.

When did this tradition start, I wonder, and can it be stopped?

Carol_Herman said...

With Byrd dead, that's one last vote for Kagan. One "by the grace of God," moment from us all.

Unless there are democratic monkeys (senators), who want to stay viable, politically, and they turn Obama's choice down ... Kagan gets IN. And, sits like a "queen" to share her crown with Sotomayor.

When Sotomayor was up, people said, "don't worry. She has diabetes. She won't live as long as Senator Byrd."

Tea leaves, anyone?

The Dude said...

What do we know about her - she has very little self-discipline, is absent-minded to the point of seeming retarded, and she is far outside of the mainstream of American life. These facts alone assure that she will be confirmed and serve for many decades. Thanks, Obama - like herpes, you have given us a gift that keeps on giving.

MadisonMan said...

she is far outside of the mainstream of American life.

A true statement for most lawyers and for anyone sitting on the Supreme Court.

Steven said...

Franken's an idiot. There were no limits on independent expenditures on campaigns by corporations when the Clean Air Act passed (1970); the Federal Election Campaign Act wasn't passed until 1971.

So yes, laws like the Clean Air Act certainly could have passed in an environment where corporations were allowed to make unlimited express advocacy expenditures; after all, the Clean Air Act actually did.

Anonymous said...

Wow... it's the end of the day and only 4 comments?

Isn't it obvious?! Nobody cares! Everyone seems to realize that the confirmation hearing is just a show. Senators giving orchestrated PR statements that aren't particularly moving or effective, and Kagan pretending to be "modest" and opinion-less while simulatenously brandishing her elite Harvard cred. BLAH. BLAH. BLAH...

All fake... every fucking second of it.

And both sides are conspiring together to make it as devoid of authenticity as possible.

It'll still be on the TV news at 6:30 tho', 'cuz those elites at the network news are still in sync with the elite Senators and the elite woman at the elite table.

Kirby Olson said...

I checked in four times today and four times I got introductory remarks where people were saying something about Byrd, and something about RB Ginsberg's husband, and how sad it all was.

When Franken did the same thing, it was all I could take.

The Supreme Court apparently outlawed Christian groups on campuses recently. I couldn't quite understand the ruling. It said the Marxists and anarchists could come into any Christian campus group and yell at the Christians, and the Christians had to put up with it.

Ginsberg apparently said such concerns were not realistic, even though it's been happening for years.

Now, with Kagan in, she'll join the Marxists, and say that they can thrown whatever they want, or string up the Christians, and it's all ok.

It's like a bad dream.

Time to go back to secret meetings in the caves beneath Rome.

Anonymous said...

High-definition! Not pretty.

Steven said...

My mistake; Taft-Hartley banned express advocacy. There was no FEC, though, so you would have had to get an AUSA to decide your ad was an election expenditure instead of just a "We don't like this Congressman's policies" declaration, and then chase after you in the courts to fine your corporation $5,000.

Trooper York said...

You know in the photo in the blog ads next to this post, Ms. Kagan has a real Lou Costello thing going on. Just sayn'

victoria said...

You go, Elena!! prove all the haters wrong. Righties wouldn't know a good candidate if it bit them in the butt.


Vicki

victoria said...

Dead Julius, have a problem with the "elites"? A Joe the plumber type are you? I remember John Stewart saying on his program last year, when did "elite" become a bad word? It means the best and we all want to be the best, don't we? Unless you are Rush, Beck and Hannity who are mediocre and jealous. They have money but they will never, never have class.

Vicki

Anonymous said...

Pasadena exudes class.

Paul Kirchner said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Paul Kirchner said...

I don't understand the point of these hearings anymore. She'll say what she needs to say to get confirmed (not that she wouldn't be confirmed anyway), and then she will take her seat on the Court and vote exactly the way Obama knows she will.

Didn't Sotomayor say during her hearings that international law has no place in SCOTUS decisions, then she joined with with Justice Kennedy’s in his majority opinion in Graham v. Florida, which took foreign law into account.

Only Republican presidents make mistakes about court nominees.

MadisonMan said...

High-definition! Not pretty.

(laugh). One thing I don't want to see: Senators pontificating in HD. The TV stays OFF! Idol and Glee aren't on anyway.

AST said...

I was a lawyer for 30 years. Now I can't stand anything with lawyers and courts in it. Not even Law & Order. Feh.

Anonymous said...

AST -- Please hire me.

former law student said...

Didn't Sotomayor say during her hearings that international law has no place in SCOTUS decisions, then she joined with with Justice Kennedy’s in his majority opinion in Graham v. Florida, which took foreign law into account.


To be precise, international law is the law between nations, not the municipal law of foreign countries. But Sotomayor did say she said she would use neither international law nor foreign law to interpret our constitution.

Now, did Graham take foreign law into account? I would say that in determining if life for juveniles was unusual, it took foreign practice into account. If we're the only country imposing life sentences for juveniles, for non homicides, and only a few states even impose life sentences, then the practice is unusual.

AllenS said...

I'm not following the hearing. There's nothing I can do about it. She'll be confirmed, because there isn't enough Republicans to stop it. I was listening to a Twin Cities radio station yesterday, and heard Al Franken say something about his worry that big business was getting its way or something like that. Meanwhile, Polaris in Osceola, WI is moving to Mexico.

Great. Just fucking great.

Opus One Media said...

AllenS said...
I'm not following the hearing. There's nothing I can do about it. She'll be confirmed, because there isn't enough Republicans to stop it."

errrrr. (error) aren't enough republicans...not isn't...just thought you wanted to be right with English as spoken in this country...unless you are from...omg...illegal....can it be?

Anonymous said...

Unfortunately, Kagan is a freak of nature, an offensive human anomaly, something best displayed inside the ten-cent tent at Ripley's. Or in front of Congress.

AllenS said...

In America, we use capital letters when appropriate.

AllenS said...

For the record, I graduated high school in 1964. I was the first person in my family to complete high school. So, I've got that goin for me.

Anonymous said...

I'm trying to think of the ideal political hookup for Kagan, and I believe Chuck Schumer could be her man.

That takes care of the cosmetics, but now we need someone to ride on the back of her motorcycle. Like Barbara Boxer.

Paul Kirchner said...

@ former law student . . .

I appreciate the correction. As I mentioned previously, I'm a former art student.