Leahy: Hearings Will Continue
Solicitor General Elena Kagan's confirmation hearings will continue on schedule, the Senate Judiciary Committee said today, kicking off even as senators mourn the passing of Sen. Robert Byrd (D-WV).
In a statement issued this morning, Sen. Pat Leahy (D-VT), chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, reflected on Byrd's service, both to his state and to the upper chamber.
"No Senator came to care more about the Constitution or to be a more effective defender of our constitutional government than the senior Senator from West Virginia. He was a senator's senator," Leahy said.
"Others will speak of his records for time served in the Senate and in Congress and for the number of votes he cast. I know him as a mentor and a friend. I was honored to stand with him and fight against assaults on the Constitution and against an unnecessary and costly war in Iraq.," Leahy added. "He was a self-educated man who learned much throughout his life and had much to teach us all."
But, a Judiciary Committee spokeswoman said, Kagan's confirmation hearings are still scheduled for today. The committee will meet at 12:30 p.m., when Kagan will be escorted and introduced by Sens. John Kerry (D-MA) and Scott Brown (R-MA).