Elena Kagan to the Supreme Court

It's official and Elena Kagan is the Supreme Court nominee.

Calling her a "trailblazing lady," President Obama officially nominated Solicitor General Elena Kagan to fill the opening on the Supreme Court in a ceremony this morning in the White House.

Kagan has won accolades from "across the ideological spectrum," said Obama, who praised her "openness to a broad array of viewpoints" and what he said is a "habit of understanding before disagreeing."

"She sought to recruit prominent conservatives," when she was dean of the Harvard Law School, Obama said, and encouraged students to debate and find common ground in the practice of law. He also praised her work in support of everyday Americans, as the government's chief lawyer and as a legal scholar.

Let the debate begin.