NAACP backs Obama's Supreme Court nominee Kagan

WASHINGTON — The NAACP is endorsing Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan.

The nation's oldest and largest civil rights group on Saturday voted unanimously at a board meeting in Florida to back Kagan, who's President Barack Obama's choice to succeed retiring Justice John Paul Stevens.

Kagan is now solicitor general — that's the government's top lawyer at the Supreme Court.

NAACP president Benjamin Jealous says the NAACP was impressed by Kagan's work as a White House aide during the Clinton administration, including her work to strengthen hate crimes legislation and civil rights enforcement.

Jealous also noted that Kagan was effective in boosting enrollment of black and Hispanic students when she was Harvard Law School dean.