PRINCETON, NJ Nancy Weiss Malkiel, Dean of the College at Princeton University, has expressed concern over Elena Kegan’s recent nomination to the Supreme Court. “Miss Kagan is certainly a candidate of the highest caliber, and I wish her well,” Malkiel said. “But she represents an alarming trend– Supreme Court nominations of Princetonians have risen 200% over the past few years. If the judiciary keeps indiscriminately awarding its highest positions to every Princetonian who shows up, what standard will Princeton’s most successful legal professionals have left with which to measure their achievements?”
Malkiel recommended a 35% limit on Princetonians in all of America’s highest offices. “The executive branch already does a fine job; the number of Princetonian presidents is already safely under the 35% guideline, and the House and Senate should not be affected either. However, a seat on the Supreme Court should be a meaningful achievement for former students; adding more Princetonians cheapens that meaning. How will they know they are truly extraordinary if all of them succeed? I simply do not want our former students in the judiciary to be disadvantaged.”
If confirmed, Kagan is expected to rule such arbitrary quotas unconstitutional.
– Steve Liss ’10