Slow Release of Kagan Files Prompts Questions about Delaying Nomination Hearings

Laura Meckler of the Wall Street Journal wrote in a column this past week that according to Susan Cooper, spokeswoman for the National Archives, the Clinton presidential library is in possession of approximately 168,000 pages of documents and emails that Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan left behind after serving for four years in the Clinton White House.  Meckler wrote:

Archivists at the Clinton library have begun reviewing the material, but Cooper wouldn’t say whether they will finish before June 28, when the Senate Judiciary Committee plans to begin confirmation hearings. Already, Sen. Jeff Sessions, the committee’s top Republican, is calling for delay…

Terri Garner, director of the William J. Clinton Presidential Library and Museum, told the Tribune Co. in an interview that it would be “very difficult” for the library to produce the material in time. “There are just too many things here,” she said. “These are legal documents and they are presidential records, and they have to be read by an archivist and vetted for any legal restrictions. And they have to be read line by line.”

Now, according to Paul Bedard of U.S. News & World Report, Americans United for Life, “[o]ne of the nation's most prominent anti-abortion groups is seeking a delay in the confirmation hearings for Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan in order to provide the Clinton library time to find and make public her key writings while a White House lawyer and later domestic policy aide.” Bedard wrote:

In a letter to Judiciary Chairman Sen. Pat Leahy and others, AUL President Charmaine Yoest wrote: "We are deeply concerned that the Senate Judiciary Committee will have insufficient time to review Elena Kagan's record before commencing her hearing on June 28, 2010. Therefore, we request that you provide whatever time is needed for members to thoroughly prepare for the hearing, even if it requires postponing the hearing date."

In her letter, Yoest argued “it is critical that committee members be given ample time to review the documents she produced while serving in the executive branch, and thoroughly question her about those writings in order to understand the philosophy she would bring to the court," because Solicitor General Kagan, unlike nominees that have previously served as judges and have therefore written judicial opinions, has been able to keep her political and philosophical beliefs private.  Yoest explained, "We at Americans United for Life, like most Americans, believe that a nominee's judicial philosophy goes to the heart of his or her qualifications to serve on the United States Supreme Court.”

Today, Sen. Jeff Sessions, Republican Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee warned he would move to slow Kagan's path to confirmation unless senators are granted full access to the files, expressing that the nomination hearings would not be adequate without time for a proper examination of the documents.  "We're heading to what could be a train wreck," he said.

President Obama has requested the documents and the White House has said it wants the materials released as quickly as possible.  Yet, as of now, the committee has given no indication as to whether it is considering delaying the start of the hearings.  There is little doubt that a delay is necessary to allow for a comprehensive review of the documents that will lend insight into Kagan’s beliefs and judicial philosophy.