it was classic elena. she saw a path forward when most people saw nothing but deadlock and it led to a 19-1 vote to pass the bill out of committee. a mark bipartisanship consensus building that few believed was possible. that's what i believe elena kagan will bring to the court. she was tough. and tenacious in argument when necessary. but she also knew when it was necessary to strike a compromise. she had a knack for knowing how to win people over, an ability to make people see the wisdom of an argument. i remember lots of late nights and a very quiet capitol building walking off the senate floor to meet with my staff and elena. and invariably, elena would be the one to have a new idea, a fresh approach. it was a tutorial in consensus building from someone for whom it was pure instinct and won her the respect of republicans and democrats alike. no doubt, her hands-on experience working the governance process is actually in this day and age and in then moment of the court probably an enormous asset. frankly

talking about elena kagan. caller: i am really upset that democrats never seem to be able to get "activist judges" and the republicans seem always to be able to get activist judges, pro-business and we cannot seem to get a candidate like that. i'm really upset with her selection but i do understand it, because her paper trail is so thin. i think after sonia sotomayor, barack somebody who -- one as somebody without a paper trail. host: what you mean by activist judges? caller: the case that she lost, saying corporations are basically people, that is pro- republican. it just really irritates me that people like jeff sessions are coming out and talking about activist judges but when they put roberts and alito, the activist judges to me as a liberal. host: thanks. jess bravin. guest: activist judges is a term that gets thrown around a lot. actually president obama in his book "audacity of hope, " he said an activist judge is a judge that rules against you, in effect. as a journalist would try to stay away from that

. >> i want to ask a question that jeff sessions has been critical of elena kagan's position regarding military recruitment relating to discrimination against gays when she was dean of harvard, and saying she was being hypocritical by criticizing that policy but not criticizing harvard from mexican money from members of the saudi royal family for a center. what do you think of that? >> if i was on the board of overseers of harvard, i am not sure i would be that eager to except saudi money, even though i think the idea of having real studies of islamic life, islamic religion, islamic society is a good one to have in this country. that was not a decision she made. i think that is a bit of stretch. are they going to ask questions about recruiting? sure, we have all talked about that, but in my mind that is a tempest in a teapot. the military is able to recruit on the harvard campus all the time when she was the dean. it was under one condition prior to the supreme court decision, under another one afterwards, but they were always able to recruit. of what i found about her attitude was eve

today we saw elena kagan on capitol hill. one of the questions that were asked or raised about her background is whether she indeed, where she would come down in this second amendment fight. what did you hear? what do you believe? >> after watching sotomayor, i honestly believe the change that president obama is bringing to washington is contradictory to the change he promised on the campaign trail where he promised and they gave flyers to americans all over the country saying he would always support the second amendment. his first nominee.... >> ifill: what about elena kagan? >> there's nothing in her track record that believes she'll be supportive. i'm a second amendment absolutist. i don't want anyone on the supreme court that will not support that. >> president obama hasn't done a thing about the second amendment since he's been in. he's not even will to go talk about gun violence. we're wait to go hear more of her testimony. sounds like she'll be open minded. >> she said heller is settled law. >> if i were taking a law s

from the supreme court -- elena kagan's approach is modest. today is the day of questioning of elena kagan before the confirmation. what do you expect in terms of the questioning by members of the judiciary committee? guest: it foreshadows their line of attack. not only for the past several weeks but in the opening statements yesterday, a the my think we should look for is the republicans arguing that her lack of judicial experience would get in her way -- one of the things we should look for. that her resume as a law clerk for a more liberal lion, thurgood marshall, an official in the clinton white house, and the of the harvard law school -- all those things make her ill suited for life on the law bench. they have revealed her in the local eyes as being a good political hack. the democrats will say that she is the first potential justice a judge is a wonderful thing. but the court could use more non-judges. these types of people can do some of the best negotiating and to understand the real world kinds of cases the government is party to. hos

i give you elena kagan, the 43rd to administer the solicitor general of the united states. [applause] >> thank you so much. thank you, michael and judge easterbrook for your hospitality here. thank you all for your hospitality here. when judge easterbrook first asked me if i would come and speak at this event i thought, how terrific. i love chicago. i love the seventh circuit. it would be my honor. i thought that he would speak about my job as solicitor general and tell you a little bit about what it is like to have the second-best shot in the united states. but in light of recent events, i thought that would not be the right thing to talk about. the only appropriate subject tonight is justice stevens and his extraordinary career. [applause] and really, alllyou need to know about justice stevens is really -- is what he told you about my exchange with him earlier today when i was coming out here and i looked at the program and i saw that the program has "remarks by justice stevens" and "address by elena kagan." i thought that does not make any sense at all. [laughter] so, i

talking about elena kagan.caller: i am really upset that democrats never seem to be able to get "activist judges" and the republicans seem always to be able to get activist judges, pro-business and we cannot seem to get a candidate like that. i'm really upset with her selection but i do understand it, because her paper trail is so thin. i think after sonia sotomayor, barack somebody who -- one as somebody without a paper trail. host: what you mean by activi judges? caller: the case that she lt, saying corporations are basically people, that is pro- republican. it just really irritates me that people like jeff sessions are coming out and talking about activist judges but when they put roberts and alito, the activist judges to me as a liberal. host: thanks. jess bravin. guest: activist judges is a term that gets thrown around a lot. actually president obama in his book "audacity of hope, " he said an activist judge is a judge that rules against you, in effect. as a journalist would try to stay away from that term

i've known elena for 27 years. we met as first-year law students at harvard where were assigned seats next to each other. see, your consistent for all our classes. we were later colleagues as editors of the "law review" and as law clerks to different supreme court justices and we have been friends since. elena possesses a formidable intellect, an exemplary temperament and a rare ability to disagree withous without being disagreeable. she calm under fire and mature and liberate in her judgments. elena would also bring to the court a wealth of experiencet the highest levels of our government and of okay demmics, including teaching at the university of chicago serving as dean of the harvard law school and experience at the white house and as current solicitor general of the united states. if such a person who has been -- who has demonstrated great intellect, high accomplishments and upright life is not easily confirmable, i fear we will have reached a point where no capable person would readily accept a noination for

and i do not know if the elena kagan hearings will move or from that. marie has probably read her argument in the law review about how when she was a staffer -- a temporary staffer to senator biden's committee during the ginsburg hearings, she felt it was to stage and to much of a charade. she complained, not sitting where she is going to sit in a couple of weeks, that as an observer it did not yield much information to the public. >> the robert bork ones obviously yielded lots of information to the public, with a very unhappy ending for robert bork. since then, it has not been as confrontational at that level >> what about thomas? >> that was an unusual situation. if you look at what happened before the accusations from anita hill, that was very much of questions from senators, a response from the nominee, and not much follow-up from the senators. >> i hope i live long enough to see the day that a nominee to the supreme court says to the president "if you are going to nominate me, i am not going to appear before the senate judiciary committee. that is

the old man and his wife, elena, will stay. this is where they were born, where they have always lived. the words they used to speak are disappearing. it hurts too much to talk. sometimes it hurts too much to breathe. sometimes, it hurts too much to wake. there is no other place but here. there is no place to go. they have to stay. and wait. but wait for what?" >> brown: again, the major developments of the day: hurricane alex closed on the texas/mexico border region, and disrupted efforts to contain the gulf oil spill. the u.s. house moved to approve the compromise bill reforming financial regulations. the "newshour" is always online. hari sreenivasan, in our newsroom, previews what's there. hari? >> sreenivasan: you can watch benjamin saenz read from his work on our "poetry series" page. on the oil spill, learn more about the work of deep sea scientists profiled in tom's piece. on the kagan confirmation, find today's liveblog from our partners at scotusblog-- a look back at our coverage of the court over the years and a guide

. >> reporter: and now one of his former clerks solicitor general elena kagan is president obama's nominee to follow in his footsteps. >> thurgood marshall who did more to promote justice over the course of his legal career than did any lawyer in his lifetime. >> brown: marshal's legacy will surely resurface during the upcoming confirmation hearings. in the meantime theater-goers

. >> next, a supreme court nominee elena kagan and associate justice antonin scalia on campaign finance. >> these expenditures would corrupt the federal system. congress has a self interest. we are suspicious of congressional action in the first amendment area precisely because we are -- at least i am. i doubt that one can expect a body of incumbents to draw election restrictions that do not favor incumbents. is that excessively cynical of me? i do not think so. >> i think justice scalia is wrong. in fact, corporate and union money go overwhelmingly to incumbents. this may be the single most self-denying thing congress has ever done. if you look at the last election cycle and look at corporate tax money and ask for it goes, it goes 10 times more to incumbents and challengers. in the prior election cycle, even more than that, and for an obvious reason. when corporations plate in the political process, they want winners. they want people who will produce outcomes. they know the way to get those outcomes is to invest in incumbents. that is what they do, in double digits times more than the

>> i think they should pay attention to elena kagan's record in her testimony. under our constitution, the senate is entrusted with the process of providing advice and consent, and i am absolutely confident that if you give a fair reading, elena kagan's record and her performance in every job she has had, what you see is somebody with an extraordinarily powerball intellect, somebody with good judgment, somebody understands the impact that laws have on individual americans, somebody who is able to broker understandings between people of very different ideological balance -- bents, someone who is extremely hardworking, extremely diligent, knows how to build consensus, has been an outstanding lawyer, has been an outstanding team of one of our top law schools. even though this is my alma mater, it

isn't elena kagan on the side of the torture of memos? she sounds like president obama's harriet miers, almost. guest: she is a political insider in many ways and someone the president can be -- can trust. most of us don't know what she is about. that does reflect what harriet miers' position was. i don't think elena kagan had anything to do with torture memos. host: would you say you are funded by conservatives or leftists? guest: i am not privy to that information. our philosophy is one that should be equally applicable to conservatives or illegal -- or liberals. when you see someone who has a dual approach, you see them taking positions that do not live up with republicans or democrats party lines. the philosophy of taking a position pro the constitution sometimes makes them a liberal. in overturning or of holding loss that they might differ with, they were in favor of the matter called marijuana case because there is an issue of federalism that goes to the constitutional philosophy, not just a conservative policy. host: the republican

bill clinton has comments about elena kagan and his service during her administration. that does it for today's "washington journal." we will be back tomorrow morning and next we will have the interview with senator patrick leahy. thank you for watching. [captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2010] . . >> mr. chairman, i wonder if you can comment on elana kagen's writings about 20 years ago abthe con23ir78ation process about how she talked about nominees avoiding substantive questions. do you think it would be appropriate for her to respond about whether row v wade was correctly decided? >> you actually asked several questions. one, how i feel about her writing. i thought she was right. she probably may have second thoughts about that now being a nominee. i told hers that one of the areas she is going to be asked, the question about how forts coming. it's been my experience that nominees to the supreme court shouldn't be less than less forth coming. i think she will be asked a number of questions. on ro

the republicans tried to pin elena kagan down on a number of things. jeff sessions, who is the ranking republican on the committee, went after once again her policy of ... at harvard while she was dean of the harvard law school of limiting the access that military recruiters had to law students. how far did he get? >> well, i think he may have scored some points just partly because he was so persistent in trying to make it clear that he believes that she actually violated a congressional statute. the solomon amendment . after a federal appellate court had made a ruling finding that the statute was unconstitutional, elena kagan went and returned to harvard's prior policy of not granting the military equal access. she tried to explain that she really wasn't violating the statute, that she returned to a policy that she believed the department of defense had okayed basically for a number of years before that court challenge. >> woodruff: it came down to, in part, it came down to deference to a circuit court, an appellate court ruling, that said was the rea

today let's welcome elena kagan. over the past few weeks, there's been a drift net out trying to find some disqualifying fact or fact. but to date, i don'believe any such factor has bn found. i believe that you were imminently confirmable. your experience, i believe, makes you a very strong nominee for the court. you're the first woman solicitor general of the united states. and the solicitor general ithe only federal official that's required in statute to be "learned in the law." of the 45 peoe who have held the job, five have gone on to the supreme court. you have filed hundreds of briefs before the court, you have successfully defended law. and you have the supreme court of nearly every living solicitor general. you are the first woman an of harvard law school. there you developed a reputation as a leader who brought all sides to the table. you're a legal advis to president clinton, served as associate white house council, deputy director of the domestic policy council, and you covered some tough issues. tobacco r

i do not believe he used those words to refer to elena kagan. however, i am pretty sure he would not want to make that mistake again because when he said so initially, that is something that republicans jump on, that it was inappropriate to have borne a justice. however, when he introduced elena kagan, we have heard democrats say the same thing, that she understands the impact of court rulings on people's lives. that is a positive that people should be looking for in a justice. republicans take issue with some of that and say that it is an inappropriate consideration for a justice to be making. host: cheryl. reston, virginia. are you there? caller: can you hear me? i wanted to make a comment on activism and then make another comment about elena kagan. this notion of judicial activism is really a red herring. the supreme court is a coequal branch of government. it is their goal to tell us what blogged is -- the law is. in doing that does not constitute being an activist in some sort of negative way. when it happens on the right, you do not hear m

the elena kagan hearings continue through thursday.special web site that will allow you to watch the hearings in a number of different ways. c-span.org/kagan. live coverage begins at 12:30 tomorrow. there is background and links to many documents. we will discuss many of the terms that will be coming up in the questioning of elena kagan. you may not be familiar with these terms. we will do so in real time. check it out online c-span.org. theresa, from las vegas, go ahead. caller: i have a general comment. thank you, c-span. it is early. whenever there are guests, specifically talking about financial industry, financial reform, i would love to get some background, specifically about what they or their group or their people -- were they were during the bubble or before -- where they were during the bubble or before the crash. i would like to know if they were people or had associates who had red flags. that is something, for me, i find really important to know before -- regarding credibility of people that i am listening to now. but they

it you would be voting for justice elena kagan. i expect more of that today. it would be interesting to see as the day goes on and the second round of questions began, whether or not it winds down a little bit. it is clear she has the votes. one of the things i found interesting yesterday is she was much more relaxed. elena kagan on monday look like she was going to be physically sick at one point. she had a terrible look of unease. yesterday she was calm, collected, and very funny and relaxed. there is a danger because you don't want to be too informal because you will not appear to be judicious. it was always her nomination to lose and so far she has not done anything to dissuade anybody. host: "the new york times" and "the washington post" in particular have taken the cue from the democrats talk about the robert c. court. -- roberts court, looking at the different cases and how the different justices ruled. thank you, sir, or your time. guest: my pleasure. take care. host: we want to show you another moment from yesterday's hearings when she was asked about

monday, the confirmation hearing for supreme court nominee elena kagan begin on capitol hill. watch as they began testimony live on c-span3. you can follow the hearings on c-span radio and c-span.org. watch replays of the day's testimony at 9:00 p.m. eastern on c-span2. as you follow the confirmation hearings for supreme court nominee elena kagan, you can learn more on one. we have set up a website where you can watch hearings, see the previous appearances on the c- span network, and you documents related to the hearing. that is that c-span.orgk. agan. you can follow the hearings on twitter and join the conversation using your facebook account. c-span -- bringing you direct access to the kagan confirmation hearings. >> is the internet communications are something of? a look at the fcc's aperture reclassify the internet. of what the communicator's" on c-span2. kidded said majority leader harry reid was campaigning in his home state of nevada on saturday. he is running for reelection this year against nevada state representative sharron angle. his remarks are 25 minutes. >> firs

elena kagan earned her place at the top of the legal profession.er qualitycatifications are untouchable. as a student she accelled. she was a law clerk to justice marshal. and i appreciate seeing justice marshal's son in the audience here today. she worked in private prac and taught law to the nation's most respected law schools. she counseled president clinton on a wide variety of issues. sometimes referred to as the 10th justice. i believe we are a better country because of the path that elena kagan has taken in her career. chief justice marshal wrote, our constitution is intended to endure for ages and to be adapted to the various crises of human affairs. subsequently, our constitution has withstood the test of time. %-r founders were to establish the constitution firm enough toto enection in bush versus gore was so jarring and why it shook in many people's minds the credibility of the court. five conservative justices rejected the court's own precedent, and the bipartisan law enacted by congress. rejected 100 years of legal development in order

i've known elena for 27 years. we met as first-year law students at harvard where were assigned seats next to each other. see, your consistent for all our classes. we were later colleagues as edito of the "law review" and as law clerks to different supreme court justices and we have been friends since. elena possesses a formidable intellect, an exemplary temperament and a rare ability to disagree withous without ing disagreeable. she calm under fire and mature and deliberate in her juments. elena would also bring to the court a wealth of experience at the highest levels of our government a of okay demmics, including teaching at the university of chicago serving as dean of the harvard law school and experience at the white house and as current solicitor general of the united states. if such a person who has been -- who has demonstrated great intellect, high accomplishments and upright life is not easily confirmable, i fear we will have reached a point where no capable person would readily accept a nomination for jud

>> i think that they should pay attention to delana rigid elena -- eleana kagan's testimony. the senate is entrusted with advice and consent. i am absolutely confident if we give a fair reading of elena kagan's performance in every job she has had, she is someone with extraordinarily powerful intellect, someone with good judgment, somebody who understands the impact that loss -- laws have on ordinary americans, have been broker understanding between people of different ideological bent, someone who is extremely hard- working, extremely diligent, extremely personable, knows how to build consensus, has been an outstanding lawyer, an outstanding team of one of our top law schools -- and it is just one of. . >> i expect that my republican colleagues and my democratic colleagues should ask for tough questions and listen to her testimony, go through the record, go through all the documents that have been provided and then vote their conscience. >> [unintelligible] don't -- >> both their conscience. >> i have a question with two parts, if i may. >> but they are related. [laughter] >

. >> larry: tonight, supreme court nominee elena kagan on the hot seat. highly partisan highly political hearings under way. >> i will do my best to consider every case impartially. >> larry: plus a landmark decision from the high court. gun owners win it. then, a 7 year old vanishes from school three weeks and thousands of it tips later his disappearance still a mystery. does the second grader's stepmom know something that could help find him? next on "larry king live." good evening. today's confirmation hearings were devoted to opening statements by committee members and nominee elena kagan herself, if confirmed, kagan will succeed justice john paul stevens retiring after 35 years on the court. here to talk about it is james carville, cnn political contributor and democratic strategist and a conservative talk show host and organizer with the tea party coalition and back in l.a., stephanie miller, host of her own program and we go to las vegas with the libertarian talkative half playing at the hotel and casino in vegas. they also have a series on showtim

does jobe the nomination of elena kagan will go up -- host: the nomination of elena kagan will go up in two weeks. what is your reaction to her pick? guest: a painful irony that the stevens seek as filled by elena katelynn will move to the right. very few legal analysts will disagree with the clear analysis that see it -- stevens has been a stronger civil liberties of order than elena kagan. it is a sad day when a democrat in the white house makes a nomination to the supreme court to move an overly conservative, right-wing court further to the right. host: is the presiient of box in? if you put someone in too far to the left, he could face a republican filibuster? guest of the president fox himself in. he needs to decide what is worth fighting for. he has been willing to fight for certain things and not for others. a few moments ago we heard about how the campaign to send more troops to afghanistan. he has broken a good campaign promises. i think that the president is in excess of apologist. he can fight on capitol hill. he could fight for a general libertarian to go the supreme cour

with the confirmation hearing for supreme court nominee an elena kagan coming up later this month, this sunday, c-span takes you inside the supreme courr to see public spaces and rarely seen places. hear from the justices as they describe the court, the building and its history. that is this sunday at 6:30 p.m. eastern, on c-span. >> thursday, bp ceo tunny hayward is scceddled to testify on capitol hill. testify on capitol hill. that will be live at 10:00 a.m. perspectives on an effort by the fcc to regulate broadband services. our guests are walter mccormick and kathy sloan. >> well, as the federal communications commission moves closer to reclassifying broadband as a telecommunications service, we are joined by two guests who will be discussing hat. walter mccormick is the presideet andcaeo -- and ceo of the telecommunications group. >> we represent the nation puts a broadband service providers. we provide service in urban areas -- nation's broadband service providers. areas and urban areas.rural >> is broadband is reclassified as title ii, what time do you perceive to your member com

among our guests tomorrow, we will focus on the confirmation hearings for elena kagan. edward lee will be joining us. he is the director of the mexican affairs office of the state department. that is tomorrow morning. thank you for being with us today. enjoy the rest of your weekend. have a great week. [captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2010] ♪ . . >> after the, reaction to the firing from senate armed services committee leaders, john mccain and carl levin. and later, defense secretary greagates and admiral mullen exn why they agree with the decision to replace general mcchrystal. >> of course, the lottery is prescribed by law. if demand are basis supply you have to do a lottery. >> i think this is the civil rights issue of today and it is not just about race. it is about class. >> tonight, the market -- the lottery producer madeleine sackler on the family that she hosted for the lottery, and the anti-charter schools and demand. >> mr. chairman, we are pleased to have you here of the g-20 leaders ar

they said no they didn't get a job. >> brown: one person who did get the job was the new nominee, elena kagan. lawrence fishburn declined to offer her any advice. he's the actor, remember. if she's so inclined she can now watch her former boss in action. >> color makes no difference in so far as this court is concerned. >> brown: and see him come to life on stage. >> woodruff: in fact, supreme court nominee kagan was in the audience at the kennedy center last week. performances of "thurgood" continue through sunday. >> woodruff: again, the major developments of the day. president obama began a two-day trip to gulf coast states, and planned a primetime speech tomorrow night on the oil spill. white house aides said b.p. now seems willing to set up a huge escrow fund to pay for damages from the disaster. and officials in the central asian nation of kyrgyzstan reported at least 138 people dead and 1,800 hurt in ethnic violence since last week. the newshour is always online. hari sreenivasan, in our newsroom, previews what's there. hari? >> sreenivasan: another soccer story: this one is abou

and get a jump on next week's supreme court hearings elena kagan . here's an excerpt of our conversation with marcia coyle. >> i would say probably the nomination of robert bork was the major turning point in how we have hearings today for a number of reasons. he became quite controversial because of the position he took on how he interprets the constitution, which he felt went back to the original intent of the framers , and when he did that, he didn't find a right to privacy in the constitution. and this ignited a lot of debate and discussion outside of the judiciary hearing room. but with thomas, there was a charge of sexual harassment. and it was something that reflected on his character. but it became a very bitter sort of confirmation. >> there is nothing this committee, this body, or this country can do to give me my good name back, nothing. >> today, everything seems more highly partisan so i don't think you can just blame supreme court confirmations for that. we see it on just about every issue and so do the american people see it on just ab

at 8:30 eastern, more about the supreme court confirmation hearings of elena kagan. and we will discuss

he writes -- if elena kagan is anti-military, she certainly didn't show it. the firm advocate of the veterans association. the most thoughtful thanks of all just graduating from harvard law school. the supposedly anti-military elena kagan sent a handwritten note thanking me for my military service and wishing me in my new life as a judge advocate. i want to thank you for doing that too. ly pi will put it in the record. captain merrill's op-ed. >> senator leahy, this has been a sort of a long process, this process. sometimes an arduous one. i've only cried once during this process. and i cried when i woke up one morning and i read that op-ed from captain merrill. that it meant just an enormous amount to me. he's a magnificent man doing great things for our country. and his praise meant more to me than anybodies. >> i haven't met him, but i was very touched by it. senator sessions. >> thank you, mr. chairman. and i value our relationship and we disagreed over documents in a few things. but i believe you tried to handle this committee in a fair way. no one's had

host: elena kagan's nomination wiil go before the senate judiciary committee two weeks from tomorrow. by all accounts, she will be confirmed as the next associate justice and the supreme court. guest: a painful irony that the stevens seat will be filled by miss kagan and it will move to the right. very few legal analyst will disagree with a clear analysis that stevens has been a much more of strong civil libertarian than kagan. er than elena kagan it is a sad day when a democrat in the white house mak a t the supreme court toove an overly nservative, court furtro rit. host: is the presiie of x in? if you put someonen oo far to face at could publican libuster? guest of the president x in. dide what is wrt fighting f. he hasbeen willing to fight fo nhingand not for othe. fewoments we heard out w the he also has broken many of his good campaign promises, but not broken the one to escalate the war. the president and sometimes unfortunately the excess of apologists make excuses for him. he can fight on capitol hill when he wants to. he could fight for genuiie civil llbertarians for the sup

elena kagan earned her place at the top of the legal profession. her qualitycatifications are untouchable. as a student she accelled. she was a law clerk to justice marshal. and i appreciate seeing justtce marshal's son in the audience here today. she worked in private prac and taught law to the nation's most respected law schools. she counseled president clinton on a wide variety of issues. sometimes referred to as the 10th justice. i believe we are a better country because of the path that elena kagan has taken in her career. chief justice marshal wrote, our constitution is intended to endure for ages and to be adapted to the various crises of human affairs. subsequently, our constitution has withstood the test of time. our founders were to establish the constitution firm enough toto en s onshrine free dem adom and the ru free gdom and the rule of law. it took more than four score years of the civil war to claim the lives of hundreds and thousands to win then slavement the e the enslavement of african-americans. the country in our democracy we're

>> i think they should pay attention to elena kagan's record and her testimony.under the constitutional system, the senate is entrusted with the process of providing advice and consent. i am absolutely confident that if you give a fair reading of elena kagan's record and her performance in every job that she has had, what you see is somebody with an extraordinarily powerful intellect, somebody with good judgment, somebody who understands the impact that laws have on individual americans. -- individual americans, somebody was able to broker a differing opinions between people with very different ideological bents, someone who is extremely hardworking, extremely intelligent, extremely personable, knows how to build a consensus, has been an outstanding lawyer, has been an outstanding team of one of our top law schools. a and even though it is my all modern, notice -- it is my alma mater notice i only said one of. has been solicitor general and has the support of a number of jurists that she has worked with. as i examine some of the arguments that have been floated a

. >> starting monday, watch the confirmation hearingssfor elena kagan. you can seer re-airs.s provides unique insight about the corporate is available in hardcover and as an e book. is the internet and information services, telecommunications or something else? monday, a look at the efforts to reclassify the internet by the fcc. >> let me say to the american people. this is a change in personnel, but it is not a change in policy. general petreaus took part in our review last fall. >> learn more about the president's choice to head forces in afghanistan. the general has been on c-span more than 40 times. watch his appearances on line any time at the c-span video library. it is washington, your way. >> what you have to address are the two leftists in this mess. who left a budget deficit of 155 billion pounds with absolutely no proposal to deal with it? who put forward -- >> order. >> now, from london, prime minister's questions from the british house of commons. earlier this week come to the british government unveiled a tax increases. the proposed plan dominated most of the de

on monday, the supreme court pick, elena kagan, also goes before the panel. we will have live coverage. like astaire, south carolina. mary, democrats line. what do you think? caller: i think it is long overdue. i hated to see general petraeus replaced by anyone younger and less experience. i think the respect follows the line, somebody greater than all mankind. then the president and the people will work together with him. he does not say that he has to walk in front of him but at least walk beside him and don't put yourself in front of him. we need to utilize all of these people who need jobs in defense of our country. and we do not need the world. about our dirty laundry and people wanting to boost their -- we do not need the world hearing about our dirty laundry and people wanted to boost their careers. mcchrystal probably has a great plan. i don't know if he is democrat or republican he sounds not what the president is. i just think he has put his foot in his mouth but it is kind of a golden foot and his mouth because now he is going to be run down by the

elena kagen has never made a judgment call from the bench, not a single one. but as a supreme court justice, she'd be second-guessing trial judges and trial lawyers who had been through the mud and blood and tears of an actual trial in an actual court of law. how can she possibly be qualified to fill the post of a sueme court justice? . being a judge would be an exercise to the new supreme court nominee. she's read about being a judge in books, i suppose. she might have even played pretend in her college classroom, but she's never been a judge. she's never made a judicial decision and her first one should not be as a member of the united states supreme court. she has never determined justice, not a single time. yet, she wants to be a supreme court justice. besides never beina judge, she's never even been a trial lawyer. she never questioned a witness, argued a case to a jury or tried a case to any jury anywhere in the united states. she has no courtroom trial experience as a judge or as a lawyer. real world experience makes a difference. reading books about so

for nominee elena kagan, we take you inside of the supreme court. hear from the justices as they provide insight about the court, history. >> the guuf of mexico oil spill as one of the main topics of today's white house briefing. press secretary robert gibsobs talks about the economy, access to bp representatives, and new legislation. >> it's like 90 today, is in it? the president will meet with small business owners and workers here at the white house and have remarks in the rose garden. he put forth a series of proposals to help small businesses grow and higher and will continue to have congress grow on these points. this is essential to getting americans back to work. these are the topics that he is about an hour or so ago. >> did they discuss picking up the salaries of those who were laid off? the stock keeps going down. of its value. -pis the ministration concerned that the company might that be financially able to pay these costs and we might drive it into bankruptcy? >> i don't want to get to comment on stock prices. our approach on this has

elena kagen. to read more on the supreme court, read the c-span's latest book. it is available in hardcover and then as an e-book. at the end of an all-night session, a house-senate conference committee passed the financial regulation bill this morning at about 5:45 a.m. at the white house, president obama commented on the legislation before departing for the g-20 summit in toronto, canada. >> good morning, everybody. in a few moments, i will depart for canada to take part in the summit with the g-eight and g-20 nations. this is the third g-20 summit since i was sworn in as president. in our first meeting in london, with the world in the grips of the effort -- the worst financial crisis of our time, we acted boldly and swiftly to bring our economy back from the brink. in our second meeting in pittsburgh, with our recovery beginning to take hold, we agreed to work to pursue a balanced pattern of global growth and repair of our financial systems. this weekend in toronto, i hope we can build on this

. >> now, supreme court nominee elena kagan on the lingering effect of the glass ceiling. >> i thinkmen at the top of every sphere. if you looked it general counsels for the 14 -- for -- that top companies, or other organizations, in each of those places you've felt that there were equal opportunity for women to rise to the top of them. i don't think we're there yet. i think we're pretty close in on profits and government. the problems are much more with respect to the business community and law firms. and i think that they would say the same, that they know that this is a significant problem in their ranks, that women are not staying in law firms or in businesses, and there seems to be a real glass ceiling. >> starting monday, what's the confirmation hearings for supreme court nominee elena kagan live on c-span3, c-span radio, and that c-span.org. c rea errors every night on c- span2. to learn more about the nation's highest court, get our book "the supreme court," with conversations with justices active and retired. available in hardcover and as an e-book. >> let me say to the amer

. >> with the nominee of elena kagan coming up, c-span takes you inside the supreme court to see the public places and rarely seen spaces. hear from the justices as they provide insight about the court, the building and all its history. the supreme court, home to america's highest court. on c-span. nato secretary general told reporters in brussels that a handover to security could start at the end of the year but defense secretary robert gates who also talked to reporters after the meeting in brussels said the nato counterinsurgence as i considered a taliban strong hold needs more time to succeed. this is about 40 minutes. >> good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen, the secretary general will make an opening statement and then we have time for questions. >> thank you for coming. considering the that i am competing with the opening ceremonies of the world cup, let me say i really respect your commitment to journalism. [laughter] >> the main item this morning was the meeting on afghanistan. where general mccrystal briefed us on the progress of operations. his assessment was very straight

. >> next, a look ahead at the confirmation hearings for supreme court elena kagan.he washington journal." than the former deputy national security adviser for counter terrorism will stop

performed by national captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2010] >> elena kagan debates with associate justice antone inscalia on campaign finance. >> these expenditures would corrupt the federal system, and i think that -- >> congress has a self-interest. i mean, we are suspicious of congressional action in the first amendment area precisely because we -- at least i am. i doubt that one can expect a body of incumbents to draw election restrictions that do not favor incumbents. now, is that excessively cynical of me? i don't think so. >> i think justice scalia is wrong. in fact, corporate and union money go overwhelmingly to incumbents. this may be the single most self-denying thing that congress has ever done. if you look, if you look at the last election cycle and look at corporate tax money and ask where it goes, it goes 10 times more to incouple bents than to challengers. and in the prior cycle, even more than that. when they play in the political process, they want winners. they want people who will produce outcomes for them, and they know the way to g