McCain Cites Immigration as Reason to Oppose AG Nominee

Friday, March 13, 2015 02:58 PM
By: Jennifer G. Hickey

Sen. John McCain on Friday said he would vote against confirming Loretta Lynch to replace Attorney General Eric Holder when her nomination is put before the full Senate next week.

"No, he’s not voting for her, because she called the Obama executive action on immigration ‘reasonable,'" McCain spokesman Brian Rogers said in an email to Breitbart News.

By taking a stand against Lynch, McCain places himself at odds with his fellow Arizonan, Sen. Jeff Flake, who has said he would support the U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of New York.

Also expressing support for Lynch is McCain's close ally, South Carolina Republican Lindsey Graham, who was one of three Republican members of the Senate Judiciary Committee to vote in her favor when the committee approved her nomination on Feb. 26, according to The Huffington Post.

"It's time to turn the page on Eric Holder's tenure as attorney general. We need a fresh start in the position, and this is an opportunity for our nation to move forward," Graham said in a statement explaining his vote.

"Ms. Lynch is well-qualified and comes recommended by those who have dealt with her on both sides of the aisle. During her service as U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of New York, she dealt with high profile terrorism cases and I believe she understands the national security threats we face," he added.

Friday, the left-leaning advocacy group American Family Voices issued a statement opposing Lynch because she was not "tough" enough in pursuing prosecutions against financial executives on Wall Street, reports The Hill.

In refusing to come out against President Barack Obama's executive order to stop deportations of illegal immigrants and to grant some 5 million illegals work permits, Lynch has put herself in the middle of an extremely contentious immigration debate.

It is her stance on the Obama executive action which is of most concern to those senators who have yet to commit their vote.

"I think that’s a big issue. I think that’ll weigh in on the decision that I would make, too," said Sen. Shelley Moore Capito of West Virginia, according to Politico.

Ohio Republican Rob Portman expressed similar sentiments, saying that he has "concerns over what she said about the executive order, but I’d really like to meet with her."

Other undecided Republican senators include Kelly Ayotte of New Hampshire and Lamar Alexander and Bob Corker of Tennessee.

Only four Republicans have said they would definitely vote in her favor.

In addition to Graham, Flake and Utah Sen. Orrin Hatch, Maine's Susan Collins has publicly committed to backing Lynch.

"I found her very impressive and I think she deserves to be confirmed. For those in my caucus who have been upset with some of the decisions made by Attorney General Holder, as I have been, the sooner he can be replaced by a career prosecutor, the better off our country will be," Maine Republican Susan Collins told Bloomberg Politics.

While Lynch has passed through the Senate nomination twice, when she was tapped to be the U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of New York, Roll Call reported this week that Lynch's nomination, which at one point seemed secure, was likely to be the closest vote ever for an attorney general nominee.

She already has waited longer than any other attorney general nominee between her nomination and a Senate confirmation vote.

http://www.newsmax.com/Newsfront/Joh.../13/id/630047/