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Friday, Jul 30, 2010 10:15 PM UTC

Senator Ben Nelson will vote against Kagan

The Nebraska Dem won't filibuster Obama's second Supreme Court nominee, but he has to prove that he's no liberal

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Topics: Elena Kagan, War Room, Ben Nelson, D-Neb., Democratic Party, U.S. Senate,

Senator Ben Nelson will vote against KaganElena Kagan and Sen. Ben Nelson (D-Neb.)

Nebraska Democrat Ben Nelson, America’s Most Annoying Senator, will vote against Elena Kagan, because — well, the “reason” he gives is completely unimportant, because he is just voting against her to prove that he is not a socialist, like the president.

Nelson will vote for cloture, though, so this is an entirely symbolic gesture, and what it symbolizes is, “Ben Nelson is an obnoxious political coward.”

Alex Pareene

Alex Pareene writes about politics for Salon and is the author of "The Rude Guide to Mitt." Email him at apareene@salon.com and follow him on Twitter @pareene More Alex Pareene.

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Elena Kagan is the 45th Solicitor General of the United States, confirmed in March 2009. Prior to her confirmation, she was the 11th Dean of Harvard Law School. Among her previous positions is a stint at the White House, from 1995-99, where she served as a counselor.
Kagan received her

bachelor's degree, summa cum laude, from Princeton in 1981. She attended Worcester College, Oxford, and then Harvard Law School, where she was supervising editor of the Harvard Law Review, and graduated magna cum laude in 1986.

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