There are many ways to describe the disturbing and heartbreaking events at the U.S. Capitol building Wednesday a riot, an insurrection, a tragedy, an attempted coup but one thing that cannot honestly be said is that they were a surprise.
Desperate to retain power, President Trump and his feckless Republican allies have spent weeks planting and nurturing doubts about what may be the most important American institution, its system of elections. Their baseless allegations of widespread fraud and unconstitutional voting procedures, combined with Trump’s call for his followers to take their grievances to Washington, practically pushed his extremist base over the Capitol Police barricades and through the Capitol doors.
President-elect Joe Biden has introduced Merrick Garland as his pick for attorney general along with three others he has selected for senior Justice Department positions.
Senate Republicans spurned him four years ago, refusing even to hold hearings when President Barack Obama nominated him for the Supreme Court. His confirmation prospects as attorney general were all but ensured when Democrats scored control of the Senate majority by winning both Georgia Senate seats.
Biden also introduced three others for senior Justice Department leadership posts on Thursday, including Obama administration homeland security adviser Lisa Monaco as deputy attorney general and former Justice Department civil rights chief Vanita Gupta as associate attorney general, the No. 3 official. He also named an assistant attorney general for civil rights, Kristen Clarke, now the president of Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, an advocacy group.
Joe Biden to introduce Judge Merrick Garland as attorney general
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Last Updated: Jan 07, 2021, 05:06 PM IST
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The four lawyers are to be introduced by Biden at an event Thursday afternoon in Wilmington, Delaware.
Reuters
WASHINGTON: President-elect Joe Biden has announced Merrick Garland as his pick for attorney general, saying the federal appeals court judge and three others he has selected for senior Justice Department positions will restore the independence of the agency and faith in the rule of law. The four lawyers are to be introduced by Biden at an event Thursday afternoon in Wilmington, Delaware. In picking Garland, Biden is turning to an experienced judge who held senior positions at the Justice Department decades ago, including as a supervisor of the prosecution of the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing.