English subtitles for clip: File:President Obama Nominates Elena Kagan for Supreme Court.webm

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(applause)

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President Obama:
Thank you very much.

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Everybody, please have a seat.

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Good morning, everybody.

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Of the many responsibilities
accorded to a President by our

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Constitution, few are more
weighty or consequential than

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that of appointing a Supreme
Court justice -- particularly

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one to succeed a giant in the law
like Justice John Paul Stevens.

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For nearly 35 years, Justice
Stevens has stood as an

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impartial guardian of the law,
faithfully applying the core

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values of our founding to the
cases and controversies of our time.

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He has done so with restraint
and respect for precedent --

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understanding that a
judge's job is to interpret,

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not make law -- but also with
fidelity to the constitutional

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ideal of equal justice for all.

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He's brought to each case not
just mastery of the letter of

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the law, but a keen
understanding of its

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impact on people's lives.

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And he has emerged as a
consistent voice of reason,

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helping his colleagues find
common ground on some of the

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most controversial and
contentious issues the

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Court has ever faced.

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While we can't presume to
replace Justice Stevens' wisdom

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or experience, I have selected a
nominee who I believe embodies

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that same excellence,
independence, integrity,

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and passion for the law -- and
who can ultimately provide that

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same kind of leadership on the
Court: our Solicitor General,

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and my friend, Elena Kagan.

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(applause)

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Elena is widely regarded as one of
the nation's foremost legal minds.

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She's an acclaimed legal scholar
with a rich understanding of

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constitutional law.

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She is a former White House aide
with a lifelong commitment to

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public service and a firm grasp
of the nexus and boundaries

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between our three
branches of government.

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She is a trailblazing leader --
the first woman to serve as Dean

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of Harvard Law School -- and
one of the most successful and

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beloved deans in its history.

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And she is a superb
Solicitor General,

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our nation's chief lawyer
representing the American

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people's interests
before the Supreme Court,

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the first woman in
that position as well.

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And she has won accolades from
observers across the ideological

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spectrum for her well-reasoned
arguments and commanding presence.

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But Elena is respected and
admired not just for her

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intellect and record
of achievement,

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but also for her temperament --
her openness to a broad array of

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viewpoints; her habit, to borrow
a phrase from Justice Stevens,

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"of understanding
before disagreeing";

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her fair-mindedness and
skill as a consensus-builder.

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These traits were particularly
evident during her tenure as dean.

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At a time when many believed
that the Harvard faculty had

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gotten a little one-sided
in its viewpoint,

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she sought to recruit prominent
conservative scholars and spur a

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healthy debate on campus.

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And she encouraged students from
all backgrounds to respectfully

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exchange ideas and seek common
ground -- because she believes,

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as I do, that exposure to a
broad array of perspectives is

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the foundation not just for
a sound legal education,

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but of a successful
life in the law.

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This appreciation for diverse
views may also come in handy as

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a die-hard Mets fan
serving alongside her new

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colleague-to-be, Yankees
fan Justice Sotomayor,

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who I believe has ordered a
pinstriped robe for the occasion.

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(laughter)

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But while Elena had a
brilliant career in academia,

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her passion for the law
is anything but academic.

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She has often referred to
Supreme Court Justice Thurgood

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Marshall, for whom she
clerked, as her hero.

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I understand that he reciprocated
by calling her "Shorty."

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(laughter)

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Nonetheless, she credits him
with reminding her that,

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as she put it, "behind law
there are stories -- stories of

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people's lives as
shaped by the law,

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stories of people's lives as
might be changed by the law..."

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That understanding of law, not
as an intellectual exercise or

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words on a page, but as it
affects the lives of ordinary

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people, has animated every
step of Elena's career --

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including her service as
Solicitor General today.

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During her time in this office,
she's repeatedly defended the

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rights of shareholders and
ordinary citizens against

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unscrupulous corporations.

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Last year, in the
Citizens United case,

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she defended bipartisan campaign
finance reform against special

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interests seeking to
spend unlimited money

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to influence our elections.

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Despite long odds of success,
with most legal analysts

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believing the government was
unlikely to prevail in this

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case, Elena still chose it as
her very first case to argue

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before the Court.

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I think that says a great deal
not just about Elena's tenacity,

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but about her commitment to
serving the American people.

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I think it says a great deal
about her commitment to protect

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our fundamental rights,
because in a democracy,

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powerful interests must not be
allowed to drown out the voices

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of ordinary citizens.

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And I think it says a great deal
about the path that Elena has chosen.

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Someone as gifted as Elena could
easily have settled into a

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comfortable life in a
corporate law practice.

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Instead, she chose a life of
service -- service to her

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students, service
to her country,

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service to the law and to all
those whose lives it shapes.

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And given Elena's upbringing, it's
a choice that probably came naturally.

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Elena is the granddaughter of
immigrants whose mother was,

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for 20 years, a beloved public
schoolteacher -- as are her two

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brothers, who are here today.

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Her father was a housing lawyer,
devoted to the rights of tenants.

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Both were the first in their
families to attend college.

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And from an early age, they
instilled in Elena not just the

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value of a good education,
but the importance of using

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it to serve others.

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As she recalled during her
Solicitor General confirmation

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hearings, "Both my parents
wanted me to succeed in my

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chosen profession.

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But more than that, both drilled
into me the importance of

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service, character, and integrity."

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Elena has also spoken movingly
about how her mother had grown

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up at a time when women had few
opportunities to pursue their

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ambitions and took great joy in
watching her daughter do so.

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Neither she, nor Elena's
father, lived to see this day.

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But I think her mother
would relish this moment.

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I think she would relish -- as
I do -- the prospect of three

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women taking their seat on the
nation's highest Court for the

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first time in history.

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(applause)

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A Court that would be more
inclusive, more representative,

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more reflective of us as a
people than ever before.

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And I think they would both be
tremendously proud of their

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daughter -- a great
lawyer, a great teacher,

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and a devoted public servant
who I am confident will make an

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outstanding Supreme Court justice.

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So I hope that the Senate will
act in a bipartisan fashion,

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as they did in confirming Elena
to be our Solicitor General last

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year, and that they will do
so as swiftly as possible,

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so she can get busy and take
her seat in time to fully

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participate in the work
of the Court this fall.

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With that, I would like to
invite the person who I believe

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will be the next Supreme Court
justice of the United States,

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Elena Kagan, to say a few words.

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(applause)

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Solicitor General Kagan:
Thank you. Thank you.

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(applause)

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Thank you, Mr. President.

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I am honored and I am humbled
by this nomination and by the

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confidence you have shown in me.

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During the last year as I have
served as Solicitor General,

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my longstanding appreciation for
the Supreme Court's role in our

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constitutional democracy has
become ever deeper and richer.

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The Court is an extraordinary
institution in the work it does

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and in the work it can do for
the American people by advancing

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the tenets of our Constitution,
by upholding the rule of law,

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and by enabling all Americans,
regardless of their background

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or their beliefs, to get a
fair hearing and an equal

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chance at justice.

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And within that
extraordinary institution,

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Justice Stevens has played
a particularly distinguished

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and exemplary role.

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It is, therefore, a special honor
to be nominated to fill his seat.

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I have felt blessed to represent
the United States before the

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Supreme Court, to walk into the
highest Court in this country

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when it is deciding its
most important cases,

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cases that have an impact
on so many people's lives.

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And to represent the United
States there is the most

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thrilling and the most humbling
task a lawyer can perform.

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I've been fortunate to have been
supported in all the work I've

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done as Solicitor General by a
remarkable group of lawyers and

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staff, many of whom
are here today.

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They exemplify professionalism,
public service and integrity.

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And I am grateful for all
that they have taught me.

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My professional life has been
marked by great good fortune.

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I clerked for a
judge, Abner Mikva,

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who represents the
best in public service,

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and for a Justice,
Thurgood Marshall,

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who did more to promote justice
over the course of his legal

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career than did any
lawyer in his lifetime.

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I have had the opportunity to
serve under two remarkable

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Presidents who have devoted
themselves to lifting the lives

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of others and to have inspired a
great many more to do the same.

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I had the privilege of leading
one of the world's great law

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schools and of working there to
bring people together and to

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help ensure that they and the
school were making the largest

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possible contribution
to the public good,

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both in this country
and around the world.

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I am proud of what all
of us accomplished there.

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And through most of
my professional life,

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I've had the simple joy of
teaching -- of trying to

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communicate to students why I
so love the law not just because

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it's challenging and endlessly
interesting -- although it

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certainly is that -- but
because law matters;

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because it keeps us safe;
because it protects our most

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fundamental rights and freedoms;
and because it is the foundation

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of our democracy.

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I'm thankful to my brothers and
other family and friends for

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coming to Washington to
be with me here today.

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And much more, I am thankful for
all of their support and loyalty

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and love, not just on
this day but always.

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If this day has just a touch
of sadness in it for me,

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it is because my parents
aren't here to share it.

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They were both, as
the President said,

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the children of immigrants and
the first in their families to

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go to college.

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My father was the kind of lawyer
who used his skills and training

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to represent everyday people
and to improve a community.

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My mother was a proud
public schoolteacher,

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as are my two brothers --
the kind of teachers whom

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students remember for
the rest of their lives.

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My parents' lives and their
memory remind me every day of

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the impact public
service can have,

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and I pray every day that I live
up to the example they set.

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Mr. President, I look forward
to working with the Senate in

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the next stage of this process.

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And I thank you
again, Mr. President,

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for this honor of a lifetime.

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Thank you so much.

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(applause)