Washington, DC--Congressman Eliot Engel (D-NY-17) issued the following statement regarding today’s announcement by President Barack Obama that U.S. Solicitor General Elena Kagan has been nominated to serve as the 112th Supreme Court Justice in our nation’s history.

“I applaud President Obama’s nomination of Solicitor General Kagan and his foresight in shaping a Court with wide-ranging experience. Solicitor General Kagan is from Manhattan, and like Justice Sonia Sotomayor before her, will add a unique perspective to the Court. Both of these New York City women have excelled in a traditionally male-dominated field.

“If confirmed, she will be the latest in the history of Supreme Court justices for whom this is their first experience as a judge – Earl Warren, William Rehnquist, Louis Brandeis, and many others. As a former clerk for Justice Thurgood Marshall, Deputy Director Domestic Policy Council for President Bill Clinton and as a senatorial aide, Kagan has experience in each branch of government, as well as being the first female dean of Harvard Law School.

“I am hopeful the Senate will provide her with a swift confirmation.”