NEW YORK—President-elect Barack Obama has selected Washington lawyer and senior legal advisor Eric Holder for the Justice Department’s top job, Newsweek reported on Tuesday.
The magazine cited “two legal sources” with connections to the Obama transition team and said that Holder still needs to “undergo a formal vetting review by the Obama transition team” before his selection is officially and publicly announced.
A New York City native, Holder attended Obama’s alma mater Columbia University and received his law degree from Columbia Law School. He quickly rose to prominent positions, serving as Associate Judge of the Superior Court of the District of Columbia under President Reagan and United States Attorney for the District of Columbia under President Clinton.
If Holder passes the vetting process, he would be the first African-American to lead the Justice Department. Holder has come close to becoming Attorney General in the past, twice serving in positions similar to the one he will hold under an Obama administration. In 2001, Holder served as Acting Attorney General for President Bush in the beginning days of President George W. Bush’s first term in office, and from 1997 to 2001, Holder was the Justice Department’s Deputy Attorney General.
Currently, Holder is a partner at the D.C. law firm Covington & Burling LLP. According to the firm’s website, Holder is a “litigation partner who handles, among other matters, complex civil and criminal cases, domestic and international advisory matters and internal corporate investigations.” The firm also mentions that Holder is featured in The Best Lawyers in America 2007 and is recognized as one of “The Most 50 Influential Minority Lawyers in America” by The American Lawyer.
Holder will succeed Michale Mukasey as the country’s top lawyer, taking the helm of a Justice Department marred by civil liberties abuse accusations and politically-motivated firings in 2006, when the department was headed by Alberto Gonzales. Gonzales, after intense Congressional scrutiny and pressure, resigned in April of 2007.
A close confidante to the President-elect and top legal consultant, Holder also served as co-chief of Obama’s vice-presidential selection process. Obama’s choice of Joe Biden was widely regarded as a solid choice for running mate by the public and political analysts alike.
Newsweek said that despite Holder accepting the position of Attorney General, a formal announcement was “not likely until Obama announces his choices to lead the Treasury and State departments.” Neither Holder nor Obama have any comment to this matter at this moment.
