Post | 01/08/2009 1:00 pm

Will Potential AG Eric Holder Fight for Women?

By The Staff at wowOwow.com
© AP

Some women’s groups are coming to Eric Holder’s aid!

Holder may have a tough time with Republicans when he heads to Congress for confirmation as our next attorney general. They likely will complain about his role in granting several last-minute pardons during President Clinton’s last days in office – including financier Marc Rich. They want to be sure that, unlike the Bush administration, the person at the helm of the Justice Department has the guts to say "no" to the president when necessary.

So far there hasn’t been too much noise in opposition to Holder, but just in case, several Democrats and groups are taking to the microphones to voice their support, including The National Women’s Law Center, which works to expand opportunities for women and girls in the United States.

NWLC Co-President Marcia Greenberger joined Sens. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-RI, Benjamin Cardin, D-MD, and civil-rights leaders Wednesday to push for a Senatorial confirmation. One of her main arguments was that Holder has worked to advance the rights and protections of women and minorities.

"He has a strong record with regard to combating violence against women, protecting victims of bias-motivated crimes targeting gender or sexual orientation, enforcing civil-rights protections and increasing diversity in the legal profession," Greenberger said. And that includes making the fight against domestic violence a priority when he was the U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia, helping form a nonprofit organization to increase diversity within the legal profession, and supporting legislation that would add bias of gender and sexual orientation to federal hate-crime laws.

"Mr. Holder’s nomination could not come at a more crucial time. Over the past eight years the Department of Justice has failed to fulfill its mission of protecting and enforcing the legal rights of all Americans, and women and their families have suffered mightily as a result." Let’s hope Greenberger’s right on the money.

Read more about: Attorney General, Barack Obama, Cabinet, Civil rights, Confirmation, Eric Holder, Justice Department, News, Obama Administration, senate, US, Women's Right

9 Reader Comments (so far…) Sign In or Register to comment

Frannie Em
Sorry, Holder has got a lot of baggage. He and Panetta are the two appointments that make me wonder what PE Obama is thinking?
By Frannie Em on 01/08/2009 3:14 pm
Bonnie Oliver
Frannie Em - I cannot help but agree….about Eric Holder. He carries too much suspicious baggage. And the rather blase way with which the author of his article swept the astonishing, undeserved and shocking pardon of Marc Rich away without a qualm is also slightly shocking. Holder is the only cabinet nominee that I hope gets the boot! As for Leon Panetta, I just don’t know. He is no dummy that’s for certain and it has been announced that a few key officials at the CIA appointed by President Bush, including the second in command, have agreed to stay on; that is comforting to some of us who have worries about the dismantlement of an agency which is finally able to do what it was created to do …. watch out for and subvert foreign terrorists.
By Bonnie Oliver on 01/08/2009 5:18 pm
Bonnie Oliver
oops - another typo.. should be ..”this article” not “his”. Sorry.
By Bonnie Oliver on 01/08/2009 6:16 pm
Frannie Em
Bonnie Another thing that worries me about Eric Holder is that while in the Justice Department under Janet Reno, they are the ones initiated the practice that the CIA and FBI could not share information. After 9/11 that was one of the most astounding revelations - the CIA and FBI each had pieces of the puzzle, and if they had been shared we could have avoided the attack. Speaks of very poor judgement. I am very concerned about how he interprets the letter of the law to comply with what he wants to do, or what one of his cronies wants done. What is Obama thinking? It is going to have to come out in the hearings. I wonder if it will.
By Frannie Em on 01/08/2009 6:27 pm
Bonnie Oliver
Frannie - From earlier commentary made by several TV pundits, I thought the Eric Holder nomination would pass rather easily after a bit of huffing and puffing from the opposition. Now, I think the chances are 50/50 whether he gets confirmed. That bit about the FBI/CIA is, indeed, a damaging fact. The agencies do communicate now - and, hopefully, Leon Panetta will not stop that practice in the name of civil liberties.
By Bonnie Oliver on 01/08/2009 7:58 pm
Ms. Dee
Well, this is refreshing. I’ve always said, the war on terror should’ve begun with full-on offensive against domesic violence.
By Ms. Dee on 01/08/2009 3:17 pm
Belinda Joy
Indeed….let’s hope Greenberger is right about Holder. My biggest fear is that we will have a White House filled with “yes men and women” As much as I know our new President is bright, smart and surrounding himself with bright, smart people; it remains to be seen if they really will be comfortable enough to disagree or voice their objections openly and honestly. I really hope they will. I don’t know why, but all my enthusiasm about our new administration is starting to wane, and he hasn’t even taken office yet! :-)
By Belinda Joy on 01/08/2009 3:54 pm
Frannie Em
There are a few things that concern me about Holder. Arlen Spector the moderate republican senator on the Judicial committee likens Holder to Alberto Gonzalez. You seldom hear Spector come out with anything like that. I believe he was involved with the 1996 campaign violations of Al Gore. He and Janet Reno managed or mismanaged the Elian Gonzales saga with the swat team raiding the house. There is another forgotten controversy of actions taken by him under Reno that I can’t remember all the facts, so until I can back them up I won’t put them here. Then of course the 2001 pardon of Marc Rich. He actively worked to have it done, while he worked for the justice department, thereby undermining the agency he worked for. I understand he is a very good lawyer and well liked, but there are certain actions that seem to override this appointment. Here are a couple of links, the first article has links to pro and con articles http://washingtonindependent.com/22858/eric-holder-the-2-million-plus-ag… http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1108/15805.html He has been a lawyer/lobbyist for some major corporations, the pharmaceutical Merck for one. He also worked to get Obama elected, so it seems to me, as Alberto Gonzalez was too “close” to Bush, so is Eric Holder too “close” to Obama. The Attorney General has to work for the people first and the president second. When Holder engineered Rich’s pardon, he was working for Rich and President Clinton, who got money for his library. What is Obama thinking? I don’t get it. Maybe there is not much of a talent pool in Washington that is not untainted.
By Frannie Em on 01/08/2009 4:27 pm
Brooklyn Gal
We know that the Obama team did not vet Richardson and Richardson admitted not telling the Obama team about the investigation. (that was reported and not an opinion statement). But I for one am glad he is out. His Education pick is more in the line of personal friendship rather than actual caring for education. It’s not teacher unions that are against this appointment, it’s teachers. Improvement in schools that are based on test scores because of the practice of total test prep should not be the determining factor in education. I agree that Holder is a Yes man, and wish Obama would have picked someone without his baggage. As for Panetta, I but hope he will do the job that needs to be done to protect this country. He was not Obama’s first choice.
By Brooklyn Gal on 01/09/2009 10:02 am