Who Will -- And Who Should -- Replace Eric Holder As Attorney General?
Who are some of the legal luminaries being suggested as possible AG picks?
Now that Eric Holder has announced his departure as attorney general, talk has turned to who his successor will be — and should be. Early buzz has centered around Solicitor General Donald Verrilli, but there are other compelling candidates as well, including lots of legal luminaries that Above the Law readers will recognize.
Who will be our nation’s next AG? And who should be the next AG? Let’s discuss….
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Shortly after Holder’s announcement, the New York Times floated these names:
Frequently mentioned candidates to replace Mr. Holder include Kathryn Ruemmler, the former White House counsel who remains close to Mr. Obama; Gov. Deval Patrick of Massachusetts; Solicitor General Donald B. Verrilli Jr.; former Gov. Jennifer M. Granholm of Michigan; Senator Sheldon Whitehouse, Democrat of Rhode Island, a former prosecutor; Preet Bharara, the United States attorney for the Southern District of New York; and Loretta E. Lynch, the United States attorney in Brooklyn. Mr. Patrick on Thursday said that it was not the right time for him to take such a job.
Since then, a few folks have bowed out, including Senator Whitehouse and Kamala Harris, California’s controversially attractive attorney general.
The Huffington Post, after taking Whitehouse and Harris out of the mix, mentions several of the names cited by the Times — Don Verrilli, Kathy Ruemmler, Preet Bharara, Loretta Lynch — and a few new ones: Jenny Durkan, the openly gay U.S. Attorney for Seattle; Janet Napolitano, current University of California president and former Secretary of Homeland Security; Labor Secretary Tom Perez; Deputy Attorney General James Cole; and FBI Director James Comey.
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I like the idea of Jim Comey. Why? Because I think Glenn Reynolds makes an excellent point in his USA Today column:
Writing in Above The Law, Tamara Tabo notes that Holder’s stonewalling, which led him to be the first attorney general ever found in contempt of Congress, has poisoned relations between the Justice Department and legislators, ensuring a rocky reception for whoever Obama names next.
But maybe not. Perhaps President Obama — and, for that matter, future presidents — should take a lesson from the way we handle the Department of Defense, and apply it to the Department of Justice: Consider naming someone outside his own party as attorney general.
Jim Comey is a Republican — but one that even Democrats can like, due to his independence and integrity in dealing with fellow Republicans.
Judge Richard G. Kopf, over at Hercules and the Umpire, similarly argues against Obama appointing a pal to the post:
I think I know who should replace Holder, but I don’t know the name. That person is buried deep in the bowels of the DOJ. He or she knows where the bodies are buried, he or she has been at DOJ forever, he or she is apolitical, and he or she is universally respected for wisdom, fairness, experience and guts. Importantly, he or she does not want to be President Obama’s friend. Rather, he or she is reluctantly willing to undertake the awesome responsibility of becoming the chief lawyer for the United States of America.
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Hmm…. How about Patrick Fitzgerald, former U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois (Chicago)? He was appointed to serve as U.S. Attorney by a Republican president (George W. Bush) on the recommendation of a Republican senator (Peter Fitzgerald, no relation), but Pat Fitzgerald is fairly apolitical. He’s neither a Republican nor a Democrat, and he has prosecuted political figures on both sides of the aisle — Democrats like Rod Blagojevich and Republicans like George Ryan and Lewis “Scooter” Libby. When President Obama took office, he actually kept Fitzgerald on as U.S. Attorney (instead of replacing him, which is usually the case for U.S. Attorneys).
Pat Fitzgerald is already generating some buzz as a possible AG nominee. Right now he’s profitably ensconced in the Chicago office of Skadden. But as he previously declared, “Public service is in my blood.”
Could the call of Main Justice lure Fitzgerald away from Skadden and its millions for one final run at government service? We can only hope.
P.S. Disclosure: I’m rooting for Fitzgerald because we share an alma mater, Regis High School (which celebrates its centennial this year).
For next attorney general, reach across aisle [USA Today]
I know who should replace Eric Holder as Attorney General, I just don’t know his or her name [Hercules and the Umpire]
Eric Holder’s Successor Could Be One Of These People [Huffington Post]
Eric Holder Resigns, Setting Up Fight Over Successor [New York Times]
Earlier: When The Confirmation Of The Next Attorney General Gets Political, Thank Eric Holder
Sources Say Eric Holder Will Step Down
