Patrick Leahy

It took more than four score years and a Civil War that claimed the lives of hundreds of thousands to end the enslavement of African-Americans and include as citizens 'all persons born or naturalized in the United States.'

Elena Kagan earned her place at the top of the legal profession. Her legal qualifications are unassailable.

We need a Justice who can create moderate majorities on this immoderate Supreme Court.

We are polarized regionally. We are polarized politically.

I hope you will tread carefully and consider the reputation of the Court as a whole when evaluating whether to overturn longstanding precedent.

I believe that the most important qualification for judicial service is the nominee's judicial philosophy or her approach to interpreting and applying the law to decide cases.

The courts are not subsidiaries of any political party or interest group, and our judges should not be partisans.

The genius of our Founders was to establish a Constitution firm enough to enshrine freedom and the rule of law as guiding principles, yet flexible enough to sustain a young Nation that was destined to grow into the greatest, the richest…

We are taking the law and bending it as far as we can to capture a whole new class of guns.

I believe the country needs and deserves a Supreme Court that bases its decision on the law and the Constitution, not politics or ideological agenda by either the right or the left.

Thank you. My brother-in-law was a teacher--he is a Holy Cross priest, and he was a teacher there for some time.

Judges have to approach every case with an open mind and a commitment to fairness.

I respect your plight and I take so seriously which you pledge to all of us here that you will do your best to consider every case impartially, modestly, with a commitment to principle in accordance with law.

I appreciate that you engaged with Senators, you have answered their questions more fully than many recent nominees.

I don't see anything wrong with seeing the way the treaty has been interpreted in other countries.

I can't remember when anybody's been asked such a wide variety of questions or answered them as forthrightly as you have.

I thank my colleagues on both sides of the aisle for being responsive to that.

Senator Leahy's proposed Survivors Equality Act of 2010 would appropriately amend DOHSA to include recovery for loss of society.

You spoke eloquently about the rule of law, securing the blessings of liberty, about the Constitution, and about your respect for all three branches of our democratic Government.

I appreciated your recognition of his service to the country in your opening statement Solicitor General Kagan.

One of the things that will change slightly our schedule this week is the death of Senator Byrd.

I am announcing that the Senate Judiciary Committee will hold the confirmation hearing on the nomination of Solicitor General Elena Kagan to be an Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court beginning on June 28.

I applaud both the Republicans and Democrats on this Committee who have joined so well in that.

Will you work with us on legislation that we can enact to allow us to shut down these kinds of Websites that are being used by organized crime?

What I am trying to do is build support for even more and tougher legislation and enforcement by the Administration.