Patrick Leahy: “I noted yesterday my concern that the Senate is failing to proceed to confirm the four judicial nominees and the nominee…”

“I noted yesterday my concern that the Senate is failing to proceed to confirm the four judicial nominees and the nominee to be Deputy Attorney General of the United States. The Republican leader had indicated that today he intended to take up the nomination of Mr. Holder to be the Deputy Attorney General, the second highest ranking official in the Department of Justice. Now it appears that the Republican leadership has decided not to proceed to that nomination but to hold it hostage to the confirmation of the Acting Assistant Attorney General for Antitrust. I urge the majority leader to abandon this brinkmanship. There is no need to tie up a noncontroversial and consensus nominee for the important position of Deputy Attorney General. In my view we could have proceeded to that matter before the last recess. In any event, there clearly is no justification for tying confirmation of the Deputy to any other nominee. Likewise, I again urge the Republican leadership to proceed to consideration of the four judicial nominees favorably reported by the Judiciary Committee over the last 7 weeks.”