Senator Arlen Specter has participated in 11 Supreme Court confirmation hearings. This will be his last. He focuses on issues involving the relationship between Congress and the Court.
First, the Court’s treatment of the factual determinations underlying legislation. It is a point of particular concern on Capitol Hill that the Justices in the Citizens United decisions essentially ignored the findings underlying the McCain-Feingold legislation regarding the reasons for imposing the restrictions on contributions and independent expenditures. (Although the Court did not address the constitutionality of the Voting Rights Act in the case raising that issue last year, their comments during the oral argument of that case indicated a similar reluctance to credit the very comprehensive findings that accompanied the reauthorization of that statute.)
Kagan says that she would give “great deference” to Congress’s findings.
Second, Specter turns to the question of televising Supreme Court arguments and expressses dismay that although recent nominees have said that they would examine the issue with an open mind, nothing has changed and the Court has continued to refuse to televise arguments. Kagan is a little more forthcoming, saying that televising the Court’s proceedings would be a “good thing,” but that she would want to consult with other Justices before reaching a conclusion on the issue. (Showing a bit of her widely-reported sense of humor, Kagan says that if television came to the Court “I’d have to get my hair done more often.”)
Specter says, ” Let me commend you on that. You have shown a really admirable sense of humor, and I think that is really important, and as Senator Schumer said yesterday we’re looking for somebody who can moderate the court, and a little humor would do them a lot of good.”
Finally, Specter asks about the Court’s declining docket–why does it decide only half as many cases today as it did twenty years ago? Kagan says she doesn’t know why, but that she thinks that there are more cases that the Court should take.
