When Ruth Bader Ginsburg was sworn in as the 107th justice to the United States Supreme Court in August, 1993, she became the second woman to sit in this court (Sandra Day O’Connor was the first woman) and the first Jewish justice since 1969. She was born on born March 15, 1933. She has survived two cancer illnesses (colon cancer and pancreatic cancer). At 77 years old she will be the oldest justice on the Supreme Court after John Paul Stevens, who is 89, retires. She is part of the liberal side of the court. Have you seen pictures of Ruth Bader Ginsburg? She does not look well. She has said she is healthy and intends to continue her roll on the Supreme Court.
Other older members of the court include: Justice Antonin Gregory Scalia is 74 and is a conservative, Justice Anthony McLeod Kennedy is 73 and is a moderate and has swayed in his decision making, Justice Stephen Gerald Breyer is 71 and is a liberal.
Elena Kagan is Jewish. She was born in New York City on April 28, 1960. She graduated from Hunter College High School in 1977 and earned her B.A. from Princeton University in 1981. She worked for the Michael Dukakis presidential campaign. She was dean of Harvard Law School. On January 5, 2009, President Barack Obama nominated her to be Solicitor General of the United States. Thus, she became the first woman to hold the office responsible for arguing for the Government of the United States in front of the Supreme Court whenever the government is party to a case. Kagan was a law clerk for Judge Abner Mikva of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit and for Justice Thurgood Marshall of the U.S. Supreme Court. She was also an associate at the Washington D.C. law firm Williams & Connolly.
Television news shows are all saying that Kagan is a consensus builder. That was an important part of her role as dean of Harvard Law School. She has been known to face controversy particularly her banning of military recruitment on the Harvard campus because of the military’s “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy.
Kagan is qualified to serve on the Supreme Court.
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