Indiana politicians react to Supreme Court nominee

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) - President Obama nominated Solicitor General Elena Kagan to fill the upcoming vacancy on the Supreme Court Monday, a nomination that is important to several Indiana politicians.

Senator Richard Lugar is one of seven Republicans who voted to confirm Kagan when she was nominated to be Solicitor General. Through a spokesman, Lugar says that means nothing now. He will take a wait-and-see approach during the confirmation hearings.

Elena Kagan, meantime, was a Harvard Law School classmate of former state Representative David Orentlicher. The Indiana University Law Professor worked alongside her for two years as an editor on the Harvard Law Review.

"You know, when she was on, she was very much on," says Orentlicher, "You know, we talk in politics, you ask, is that someone you could have a beer with? Yeah, you could have a beer with Elena Kagan."

Now, as Kagan seeks confirmation, she is an issue in the Indiana Senate race.

Republican Dan Coats is demanding that she face tough questioning and his fellow Republicans are insisting that Democrat Brad Ellsworth take a position on the nomination.

"He should at least tell Hoosiers how he'll approach judicial confirmations," says Indiana GOP spokesman Trevor Foughty.

The Ellsworth campaign released a statement Monday night.

Liz Farrar, with the Ellsworth campaign, said, "If elected to the Senate, he (Brad Ellsworth) would look for judges that are well-qualified, respect the Constitution, and approach each case with an open mind and a willingness to listen to both sides."

Kagan will likely be confirmed before the fall election, according to a number of legal experts, in part because her views will be tough to pin down.

"Elena Kagan's been very careful," says Orentlicher. "The gap between the opinions she must hold and the opinions she's publicly revealed is huge."

If she is confirmed, Orentlicher points out, every member of the Supreme Court will have a degree from Harvard or Yale.

In a statement sent to 24-Hour News 8, Senator Evan Bayh calls Kagan “smart and accomplished.”

He says he will keep an open mind as he follows the confirmation process.