Kagan tells Judiciary Committee she admires Justice Marshall, but will be herself on court

Kagan testifies she’ll be her own person on bench

WASHINGTON — Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan says she admires Justice Thurgood Marshall but would think and act for herself if confirmed for the high court.

In an exchange Tuesday with Republican Sen. John Kyl of Arizona, Kagan was asked about an article she had written picking up Marshall’s notion that arbiters of the law should do what’s right and let the law catch up.

Kagan, a former law clerk for Marshall, said she believes the late justice’s life was about “seeing the court take seriously claims that were not taken seriously anywhere else.” But she also said, “If you confirm me to this position, you’ll get Justice Kagan. You won’t get Justice Marshall. And that’s an important thing.”