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Senate Judiciary ranking member Jeff Sessions, R-Ala., called his meeting this afternoon with Elena Kagan "delightful" and said she "grasped" his concerns about adherence to the Constitution, as Kagan continues meeting with senior senators.

Senators offered predictable reactions to the courtesy calls, but Kagan appeared at least to have avoided missteps. Asked if his impression of his conversation with Kagan mattered, Sessions said it did, calling it a "good" development.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., said he emerged from his meeting with Kagan "confident that she's the right choice." Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., was more circumspect, saying through a spokesman that he had warned Kagan "this will be a challenging process to go through."

Senate Judiciary Chairman Patrick Leahy of Vermont said, "I found our private meeting to be helpful and hope she did, as well. We discussed a number of things, and I expect many of those issues will be raised during her confirmation hearing."

Sessions also said he discussed with Kagan her lack of judicial and litigation experience. She made the case that she is qualified, he said. Sessions added that he had also raised the fact that confirmation of Kagan would put four New Yorkers on the court, with Antonin Scalia, Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Sonia Sotomayor. That may be "too many," he joked.