WASHINGTON – The Senate Judiciary Committee on Monday brought forward Merrick Garland’s appointment to serve as attorney general for President Joe Biden.
Garland’s nomination was released by the Democratic-led committee along two-party lines in a 15 to 7 vote.
Republican senators Chuck Grassley of Iowa, the senior committee member, as well as Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, John Cornyn of Texas and Thom Tillis of North Carolina, joined all Democrats on the panel in support of the nomination.
The seven Republicans who voted against Garland were Sens. Ben Sasse from Nebraska, Mike Lee from Utah, Josh Hawley from Missouri, Tom Cotton from Arkansas, John Kennedy from Louisiana, Ted Cruz from Texas and Marsha Blackburn from Tennessee.
The committee’s action comes a week after Garland testified before the panel about how he would lead the Department of Justice if confirmed by the Senate, assuring senators that he would protect the department’s independence and would not allow the policy to interfere with work.
In comments prior to the vote, committee chairman Dick Durbin, D-Ill., Said of the nominee that “America will be better off with this type of person leading the Department of Justice.”
Grassley, announcing his intention to support Garland, said a moment later: “I intend to vote for him, I hope my confidence is not lost.”
Other Republicans were tougher. Cruz, meanwhile, said that Garland “refused to answer virtually anything” during his confirmation hearings – a statement that Durbin contested.
Committee member John Cornyn, R-Texas, told reporters last week that Garland is “a direct marksman when it comes to legal issues”. He said “he had an incredible career” and “he looks like a fundamentally decent human being”.
Other Republicans on the committee, including some potential presidential candidates in 2024 such as Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., Were less enthusiastic and expressed strong reservations about Garland.
Garland emphasized in his testimony that, if confirmed, he “would oversee the prosecution of white supremacists and others who invaded the Capitol on January 6 – a heinous attack that sought to break a cornerstone of our democracy: the peaceful transfer of power to a newly -elected government. “
Garland, who helped investigate and prosecute Oklahoma City suicide bombers in the 1990s, said the Justice Department must do everything in its power to ensure that Americans and democratic institutions are protected from such extremists.
In response to. Asked by Senator Sheldon Whitehouse, DR.I., Garland said he would not rule out investigating those who funded, organized, led and otherwise aided the attack.
“We start with people on the ground and move on to those who are involved and even more involved, and we will look for those leads wherever they lead,” said Garland.
During his confirmation hearing last week, Garland emphasized that he would protect the Department of Justice’s independence from the White House’s political interference in the investigations. The attorney general of former President Donald Trump, William Barr, was often accused by federal judges and others of putting Trump’s interests ahead of those of the department.
When his appointment was announced in January, Garland said he would endeavor to ensure that “similar cases are treated the same, that there is no one rule for Democrats and another for Republicans, one rule for friends and another for enemies” .
Garland’s confirmation, 68, comes after Republicans chose not to consider his appointment by former President Barack Obama to the Supreme Court in 2016. Garland has served as a judge on the DC Circuit Court of Appeals since 1997 and was its chief judge. in 2013 to 2020.
