Senate Democrats and Republicans announced a compromise Tuesday on a human trafficking bill, opening the way for a Thursday morning vote on the unrelated confirmation of President Obama's nominee to be attorney general, Loretta Lynch. Lynch, the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, would be the first black woman to hold the job, and at least five Republicans have said they will vote for her, making her eventual confirmation likely.
The Thursday morning vote depends on a stalled human trafficking law passing on Wednesday. The underlying bill has broad bipartisan support, but Democrats objected to an abortion-related provision Republicans added, and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said he wouldn't hold a vote on Lynch until the chamber passed the bill. The delay, and the fight of the trafficking bill, has embarrassed both parties. Lynch has been waiting for a confirmation vote for 164 days, longer than any cabinet nominee in at least three administrations.
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