but make up your mind not based on some political action group. >> what have you learned about elena kagen sibssh process started? she's been through a conif i rememberation process once before. but how quowled you describe her if you had to? you mentioned several times only 100 senators get to vote. >> i knew her before when she was in the white house before, and i of course sat on her conif i rememberation hearing and vote for solicitor general. i've always been impressed with her intellect. she is extraordinarily good lawyer. i get the impression she is ready. she is ready, she is eager. this is not a case of this is my civic duty, i will do it. she is ready, eager, willing to do the great deal of work and thought and care that goes into being a supreme court justice. i'm very, very impressed with her. just as i was with justice society mire. >> she is going through i can only assume a pretty intense series of boards, hearing rehearsals. but i wonder if you could tell us what you do to prepare for the hearings and what you'll be doing the last final days before you get started with your

i don't think there's any question with elena kagen and her legal smarts. so i thinks that sort of a given going into her hearing. >> what are you hearing from the ranking republican of the committee about his strategy and does he, jeff sessions, does he represent the republican voice on the committee? >> he does. i think he is clearly the point man on this. and he i think has been careful as he was with the hearings last year to say publicly that he is not prejudging anything. he wants to be fair, thorough. but he is starting to push back a lot more forcefully now as the hearings approach about concerns he has about elena kagen's political views, about the role that may play in her judging. and as you heard, this whole issue of military recruitment and the harvard controversy and what that might say. i think we're going to hear a lot more from him about that and it may be a snrtpiece about what republicans try to do to try to highlight the hearings. i wouldn't be surprised from some military folks who have strong views about how it made them feel that 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

. -- 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 progress by coordinating our efforts to promote economic growth, t

elena kagan, known for her keen intellect and her ability to reach across the aisle. it is not enough to confirm or as the next supreme court justice? there is another story "kagenfied to sit on the u.s. supreme court." ted poe says elena kagan has never been a judge, never seen the courtroom from the bench, never had the judge's responsibility, never instructed the jury, never made any point of law. she has never tried a criminal, civil, or even a traffic case. she has not decided any constitutional issues. tuesday, the confirmation hearing for general david petraeus. the weekly standard -- obama finds a general. there's an editorial supporting the confirmation. that hearing begins on tuesday morning at 9:30. we will be covering both of these events. the elena kagan hearings continue through thursday. we have a 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 tim

as you follow the confirmation hearings for supreme court nominee linda kagen, you can learn more online. we have set up -- elena kagan, you can learn more on line. we have set up a website where you can view documents related to the hearings. it is at c-span.org/kagan. you cannot also follow the hearings on twitter and join the conversation -- can also follow the hearings on twitter and join the conversation using facebook. now, a senate confirmation hearing for two high-ranking military officers, general re oh dear know, the current commander of u.s. forces in iraq -- ray oh dear no -- odierno, the current commander of u.s. forces in iraq and lieutenant general lloyd austin. >> we're here to discuss the nominations of two extremely distinguished officers, general odierno, and lieutenant general lloyd austin, nominated to be general and commander u.s. forces, iraq. on behalf of the committee, lee me thank you both for devotion, your commitment to the service of our country, your willingness to continue to be in positions of extreme responsibility. we know that the nominees are not alone in making these sacrific