US Senate Judiciary Committee Approves Loretta Lynch as Attorney General

US Senate Judiciary Committee voted for the nomination of Loretta Lynch to serve as Attorney General. If confirmed by the US Senate, Lynch will be the first African-American woman to hold the position of US Attorney General.

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) —US Senate Judiciary Committee voted their approval on Thursday for the nomination of Loretta Lynch to serve as US Attorney General, Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley said.

“Miss Lynch will be reported to the [US Senate] floor,” Grassley said in executive session.

The Committee voted 12 to 8 in favor of Lynch becoming the next Attorney General. During the hearing, the senators who voted against Lynch’s appointment disagreed with the nominee’s understanding of the US Constitution, since she had said there was no executive overreach in US President Barack Obama’s action on immigration.

Lynch’s nomination has pended longer than any other modern US Attorney General nominee, according to US Senator Sherrod Brown’s statement on Wednesday.

Lynch currently serves as US Attorney for the Eastern District of New York. She was nominated for the Attorney General position by Obama on November 8.

If confirmed by the US Senate, Lynch will be the first African-American woman to hold the position of US Attorney General. She would replace Eric Holder, whose tenure as Attorney General was marked by several controversies that made him a target of Republican criticism.