Merrick Garland, who was President Barack Obama’s pick for the Supreme Court but was never confirmed by the Senate, will be selected by President-elect Joe Biden for his administration’s Attorney General.
Garland held senior positions at the Justice Department decades ago, including the prosecutorial supervision of the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing. The pick will force GOP members in the Senate to contend with the nomination of a federal appeals court judge they snubbed in 2016 for a seat on the Supreme Court. The vacancy arose following the death of Justice Antonin Scalia, but Republicans refused to hold hearings in the final year of Obama’s term.
One year later, after the firing of FBI Director James Comey, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell actually floated Garland’s name around as a replacement for that position, although Garland was reportedly not interested in the recommendation. Read more…