Sen. James Inhofe, R-Okla., raised eyebrows Monday by announcing his opposition to Elena Kagan just hours after President Obama nominated her, but Inhofe explained Tuesday that his quick announcement was an effort to be courteous by avoiding pretense.

Inhofe, a staunch conservative, who last year declined to meet with Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor on the ground that he had already decided to oppose her, explained, "I'd rather put them out of their misery and just go ahead and do it."

Inhofe said his primary concern is Kagan's refusal as dean of Harvard Law School to allow military recruiting on the campus due to the military's "Don't Ask Don't Tell Policy" on gays. His disagreement with Kagan on that issue alone is sufficient to rule out backing her, he said.