President Obama's nomination for the Supreme Court has left law professors and political advocacy groups a thin record to mull over, especially on religious liberty and abortion cases.

When she served in President Bill Clinton's administration, Kagan urged Clinton to support a ban on late-term abortions, according to a memo obtained by the Associated Press. She also recommended that Clinton support legislation banning human cloning. Clinton supported both proposals, which failed to pass in Congress.

"It's political pragmatism," said David Smolin, a law professor at Samford University's Cumberland School of Law. "To me it says more about her as somebody who prudentially tries to get what's possible rather than holding out for the ideal position. If asked, she would probably say it was arguably compatible with Roe v. Wade and does not indicate one way or another her own view of Roe v. Wade."

Pro-life organizations have expressed concern about Kagan's nomination while pro-choice groups have ...

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