Bayh rips 'sad' SCOTUS confirmation process

Sen. Evan Bayh (D-Ind.) took a shot Tuesday at the confirmation process for Supreme Court nominees, calling it a "sad kabuki theater."

In an appearance on MSNBC, Bayh was asked if he agreed with a 1995 piece by court nominee Elena Kagan in which she called confirmation hearings a "vapid and hollow charade."

"Absolutely Joe," the centrist senator said. "You get these very erudite people coming before Congress saying as little as possible in very intelligent-sounding phrases. It's really kind of a sad kabuki theater but that's what it's evolved into."

Kagan's comments are likely to come up during her hearing; lawmakers may use them to see if she will take the process seriously.

During her hearing last year to be confirmed as solicitor general, Kagan backed down slightly from her remarks, saying she was "frustrated" as a staff lawyer on the Senate Judiciary Committee during the confirmation hearing of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

"When the Senate ceases to engage nominees in meaningful discussion of legal issues, the confirmation process takes on an air of vacuity and farce," Kagan wrote.

To many people's surprise, Bayh announced his retirement in February, saying that he was fed up with partisanship in Washington. The Democrat does not sit on the Judiciary Committee.