RENO (AP) - Citing a lack of support for the U.S. military and "demonstrated hostility" toward gun rights, Sen. John Ensign said Friday he will vote against the confirmation of Elena Kagan to the U.S. Supreme Court.
Ensign, R-Nev., singled out Kagan's decision as dean of Harvard Law School to bar military recruiters from the campus career services office because of the ban on openly gay service members.
"This dishonored the military at a time when our servicemen and women were laying down their lives in defense of our country," he said in a statement from Washington.
"Even more troubling was that Ms. Kagan expressed unfamiliarity with the intent of our Founding Fathers when they drafted the Second Amendment, especially given her past work and advocacy to undercut this fundamental individual right," he said.
Ensign said he was impressed with the solicitor general's "intellect and accomplishments" when he met with her earlier this week. But he said it "did little to dispel my concerns as to whether she will adhere to the framer's intent of the Constitution."
The second-term senator said he found a "history of political activism" in his own review of Kagan's writings as both a clerk for Justice Thurgood Marshall and an adviser to President Bill Clinton.
"Ms. Kagan's lack of support for the United States military, demonstrated hostility toward the Second Amendment and her propensity toward political activism signaled to me that her role on the court would be one of liberal judicial activism," he said.
So far, only three Republican senators have said they will vote for Kagan - Richard Lugar of Indiana, Lindsey Graham of South Carolina and Susan Collins of Maine.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., supports her.