Elena Kagan Gives Congress Its Most Jewish Moment Ever
Graphic by Angelie Zaslavsky
As might be expected of an Upper West Side girl who demanded a bat mitzvah, Elena Kagan seems pretty comfortable with her roots.
“As you know, I don’t think it’s a secret I am Jewish,” she said yesterday, during the second day of her confirmation hearings in front of the Senate’s Judiciary Committee.
But the real kicker came when a question from South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham created what was possibly Congress’ Most Jewish Moment Ever.
As reported by the JTA:
Graham, probing Kagan on threats to the United States, asked her if she was unnerved by the Christmas Day bomber.
“Where were you on Christmas Day?” Graham asked.
“Like all Jews,” Kagan responded, “I was probably at a Chinese restaurant.”
“I could almost see this one coming,” [Patrick] Leahy quipped.
Then Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) jumped in: “Those are the only restaurants that are open!”
To watch a video of the Senate’s momentary mishegas click here.
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