Republicans Take Aim at Holder

When even McCain praises Obama for the quality of the people in his new administration, what is a Republican to do? GOP senators believe they have found a chink in Obama’s armor in the shape of his good friend Eric Holder, nominated to be attorney general. Not only did Holder, as Bill Clinton’s deputy attorney general, recommend pardoning the fraudster Marc Rich, but, more rashly, he advised a group of 16 Puerto Rican terrorists on how best to win a pardon. And they did. Leading the charge against Holder is maverick GOP Senator Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania, the top Republican on the Judiciary Committee, which must approve Holder’s appointment. Specter met with Holder for more than an hour Monday to discuss his decisions made when Clinton’s deputy attorney general. He has asked that the hearing be delayed for two weeks while he awaits more information. “By analogy to the Gonzales tenure, I think it is imperative we be sure the attorney general of the United States does not bend his views to accommodate his appointer; that the attorney general does not bend his views in any way which is partisan or political, to serve any interest other than the interests of justice,” Specter told the Senate.