The Senate Judiciary committee has posted Eric Holder's nomination questionnaire on their website. A quick perusal reveals little in the way of detail but rather a broad survey of Holder's legal career, from his prosecution of a corrupt cop who sold confiscated drugs to drug dealers to his corporate work at Covington and Burling. One item sure to be brought up by Republicans at the Senate Confirmation hearing -- and conspiracy theorists in general -- is this amicus brief (PDF) he signed (and presumably helped prepare) arguing in favor of the city's gun ban during the Supreme Court's consideration of D.C. vs. Heller. Holder is also on a number of different boards of directors -- wonder how he keeps track of all them? -- and, of course, his compensation at C & B is impressive, amounting to more than a cool $2 million per year. (It sounds like a lot to me, of course, but that's money that CEOs scoff at ...).
For now, it seems clear that Senator Arlen Specter, the ranking Republican on the Judiciary Committee, has delayed Holder's nomination hearings until January 15, much to the displeasure of Chairman Patrick Leahy, who last week released a letter demanding quick attention to the nomination and pointing out the relative speed with which previous AGs from both Democratic and Republican administrations have been appointed.
--Tim Fernholz
