Newsweek's Michael Isikoff says that Barack Obama has chosen Eric Holder, a former justice department official under Bill Clinton, to be his attorney general.
Holder is well liked in official Washington, although during his confirmation hearings Republicans may dredge up his role in Clinton's 11th-hour pardon of Marc Rich, a fugitive financier. Holder was on the team that signed off on the pardon. If is confirmed, as is likely, he'll be the first African-American attorney general.
In his job as the nation's top law enforcement official, Holder will be tasked with cleaning up a justice department that has seen its reputation tarnished during the tenure of Bush AG Alberto Gonzalez. Under Gonzalez, the department canned at least eight US attorneys (the top federal prosecutor in a state) for apparently political reasons. Democrats say the department also inappropriately politicised hiring for career positions.
Mike Tomasky writes that this is a good idea:
But if Holder it be, he will need Herculean fortitude to clean out the sewage that has polluted the Justice Department in the Bush years. God bless him.
