Updated: February 28, 2021
The Justice Department under President Donald J. Trump is “a mess” but Judge Merrick Garland is the right person top fix it, the Washington Post Editorial Board said on Friday.
According to the influential newspaper, Garland would ensure the Justice Department works for the American people, and not as the president’s personal attorney.
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“That is because he is a brilliant jurist of near-universal acclaim. His nomination to lead the Justice Department sends an emphatic message that Mr. Biden does not want what President Trump desired in an attorney general: a lackey who will serve as the president’s personal attorney. Instead, Mr. Biden chose an apolitical judge who will serve with the independence and credibility befitting the nation’s top lawyer,” The Post wrote.
It added: “Judge Garland has the best chance of any to turn the ship. He has deep roots in the Justice Department, serving as a line prosecutor during the George H.W. Bush administration and leading the Oklahoma City bombing investigation during the Bill Clinton years. Most importantly, he has earned a reputation for being a fair, honest, open-minded judge through more than two decades on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, the second-most-powerful court in the land. His opinions rarely drew dissents, he pushed to forge unanimous rulings, and he meticulously avoided grandiose judicial pronouncements.”
“Mr. Biden’s choices for other top Justice Department positions were also exemplary. He tapped Lisa Monaco to be Judge Garland’s deputy attorney general. Ms. Monaco brings widely recognized expertise in the department’s crucial national security mission, having previously served at the top levels of the FBI and run the Justice Department’s National Security Division.”
“Mr. Biden, by contrast, is surrounding himself with a historically diverse group of capable, experienced individuals dedicated to public service.”
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