President Barack Obama nominated another native New Yorker to the Supreme Court Monday.

The president has chosen Solicitor General Elena Kagan to replace outgoing Justice John Paul Stevens.

In announcing the decision, the president said her professional experience shows she respects the law, and knows how to look at both sides of an issue.

"Elena is widely regarded as one of the nation's foremost legal minds,” Obama said. “She's an acclaimed legal scholar with a rich understanding of constitutional law, she's a former White House aide with a commitment to public service and a firm grasp on the nexus and the three branches of government."

"Law matters because it keeps us safe, because it protects our most fundamental rights and freedoms, and because it is the foundation of our democracy,” said Kagan.

Kagan was born and raised in the city and graduated from Hunter College High School on the Upper East Side in 1977.

She was the first female dean of the Harvard Law School and the first woman to serve as solicitor general, arguing cases for the Obama administration before the Supreme Court.

Obama pointed out Kagan's first argument was in the Citizens United case, where she pushed for limits on corporate campaign spending.

“She’s repeatedly defended the rights of shareholders and ordinary citizens against unscrupulous corporations," said the president. "Last year, in the Citizens United case she defended bipartisan campaign finance reform against special interests seeking to spend unlimited money to influence our elections."

Kagan would be the first justice without judicial experience in nearly 40 years and the court's youngest member. It would also be the first time three women have served on the court at once.

Speaking on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” Attorney General Eric Holder said he holds his fellow New Yorker in high esteem.

“She’s done a wonderful job in the Justice Department,” said Holder. “I’ve known her since the Clinton years and I think she’d be a great justice.”

Just how contentious her confirmation will be remains to be seen, but Obama went out of his way Monday to portray Kagan as a consensus builder, pointing out at Harvard Law she recruited a number of prominent conservative scholars to the school.

On the issue of abortion, it was reported Monday Kagan urged then-President Clinton to support a compromise bill that would have banned late-term abortions, except in cases where the mother's health was at risk.

It's unclear how that will play with supporters on the left.

Meanwhile, members of the Senate committee that will preside over Kagan's nomination hearings are already weighing in.

Democrats, including New York Senator Chuck Schumer, are cheering the President's choice.

'From her record, she appears to be a moderate, not too far left, not too far right and she has a great deal of practical experience,” Schumer said. “So I think she's a good pick."

But Republicans are wary – saying Kagan must answer questions about her background, and ensure she will not be a rubber stamp for the Obama administration.

"Obviously we want to do our job of due diligence. Who knows what we might find in her record once these things are sent up to the Senate and we begin to read them,” said Senator John Kyl, a Republican representing Arizona. “I doubt that there is anything there that would occasion a filibuster, but I am not going to commit to anybody."

Senate Judiciary Committee Chair Patrick Leahy says a confirmation vote should take place by August.

Obama last year chose Bronx-native Sonia Sotomayor to succeed retiring Justice David Souter.