Jeb Bush urges the Senate to confirm Loretta Lynch as attorney general

President Obama nominated Loretta Lynch for attorney general five months ago, making her's the longest-stalled cabinet nomination since at least the George H.W. Bush administration. Democrats and Republicans are getting in an increasingly testy fight over Senate Republicans' refusal to hold a vote on Lynch until the Senate passes an unrelated human trafficking bill, which Democrats are holding up because of a provision dealing with abortion. Lynch has the support of at least five Senate Republicans.

On Thursday, probable GOP presidential candidate Jeb Bush urged Senate Republicans to confirm Lynch. Speaking in Concord, New Hampshire, Bush said that presidents should be able to pick their own cabinet, and "whether you agree with them or not, there should be some deference to the executive.... It should not always be partisan," he added, noting that confirming Lynch would at least end the tenure of Attorney General Eric Holder, unpopular with the GOP.

Regarding his possible run for the White House, Bush said he's "on a journey to kind of measure support," and isn't worried about jumping into the race late. "Other people's processes are not really that relevant to me," he added. "I'll make up my mind in relatively short order."

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up