Congressman Gregory Meeks Congratulates Eric Holder on his Confirmation and Swearing In as U.S. Attorney General for the Department of Justice

(WASHINGTON, DC)–Congressman Gregory Meeks applauds the confirmation and swearing in of Eric Holder as U.S. Attorney General. Attorney General Holder, who recently came from the firm Covington and Burling LLP, will oversee the U.S. Department of Justice. He has served in several key positions in the legal field as a public corruption prosecutor, U.S. attorney in the District and as a Superior Court Judge. Additionally, he has also held the position as second in command at the Justice Department during the later years of the Clinton administration. Holder has been very adamant in vowing to revitalize the department's civil rights division, which is supposed to enforce voting and employment laws for minorities. He will face a number of extremely pertinent issues immediately such as the deliberation of where to send nearly 250 terrorism suspects detained at the U.S. military base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba and in developing legal guidelines for interrogation practices.

“U.S. Attorney General, Eric Holder, is extremely qualified for the position and I am delighted of his confirmation and swearing in. He has an extensive legal background that I believe will provide the much needed resources that the Department of Justice needs and will be a great asset to the Obama administration,” said Congressman Gregory Meeks.

Now serving in his sixth full-term, Meeks was elected to the House on February 3, 1998. Representing New York's Sixth Congressional District in the United States House of Representatives, Meeks' district covers all towns of Southeast Queens, Far Rockaway and Howard Beach. He is a member of the House Committee on Financial Services and the Committee on Foreign Affairs. Meeks became Chairman of the International Monetary Policy Subcommittee in 2009 under the House Financial Services Committee. Meeks is a Member of the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC), New Democrats Caucus and the Democratic Leadership Council (DLC). He serves as the Co-chair of the Malaysia Caucus, Services Caucus, Dialogue Caucus and the Middle East Economic Partnership Caucus.