Kevin Roberts: “after careful consideration and assessment of the nominee's record and expressed views, I rise today to express my…”

“after careful consideration and assessment of the nominee's record and expressed views, I rise today to express my opposition to Solicitor General Elena Kagan's nomination to the U.S. Supreme Court. In the nomination process, a telling and inciteful statement by another Senator is most applicable and pertinent. During the Senate's debate on the nomination of Chief Justice John Roberts, then Senator Barack Obama stated: . . . that while adherence to legal precedent and rules of statutory or constitutional construction will dispose of 95 percent of the cases that come before the court, so that both a Scalia or Ginsburg will arrive at the same place most of the time on those 95 percent of the cases--what matters on the Supreme Court is those 5 percent of cases that are truly difficult. In those cases, adherence to precedent and rules will only get you through the 25th mile of the marathon. That last mile can only be determined on the basis of 1) one's deepest values, 2) one's core concerns, 3) one's broader perspectives on how the world works, and 4) the depth and breadth of one's empathy. I respectfully disagree with this rationale and find it troubling. Our judges must decide all cases in adherence to legal precedent and rules of statutory or constitutional construction.”