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Smooth sailing ahead: The Senate Judiciary Committee kicked off confirmation hearings for President Obama’s Supreme Court nominee, Elena Kagan, on Monday. The Washington Post looks at all the factors Kagan has going in her favor—including a busy news cycle that includes the Gulf oil spill, the World Cup, and the death of Robert Byrd. But the Post notes that “the relative ease of the process so far is also a measure of how skilled operatives have become at managing nominations—and choosing nominees who are notable in part for their political blandness.” Republicans have failed so far to effectively go after Kagan. “There's been so little oxygen for this," complains one senior Republican aide.