And here is my take on this news roundup:

1. Kagan Confirmation: She’s undoubtedly a strident liberal, but she seems like a nice, smart lady. Elections have consequences and this is one of them.

2. Park51 Center: Muslims own the land and have the right to build on it. Government shouldn’t block it simply because other followers of Islam attacked the nearby World Trade Center. Nonetheless, for a religion whose followers can be overly sensitive at times, they might have picked a less provocative location.

3. Gay Marriage Ruling: Have no problem with gay people. Gay marriage is not a hot button issue for me. I do want to make a few practical observations. First, this will make the religious right flock to the polls in November, so the timing of this is not good for Democrats. This is the last thing Obama wants to be talking about right now. Second, this is likely to get overturned. Maybe in the 9th Circuit, but almost definitely by this Supreme Court. Third, any bets on how long it takes for a Republican to call for an amendment to the Constitution to block gay marriage? Hell, they can just throw this in with that amendment Lindsay Graham proposed to keep illegal immigrants from obtaining citizenship for their children born in the U.S.