Judge Merrick Garland has been confirmed by the Senate to become President Joe Biden's Attorney General, Axios reports. Trump’s pressure on officials, including on Barr and former Attorney General Jeff Sessions over the department’s probe into his campaign’s ties to Russia, prompted abundant criticism from Democrats over what they saw as the politicizing of the nation’s top law enforcement agencies. A boost for Joe Biden’s drive against racial discrimination in the criminal justice system . At one point in the hearing, he held back tears when speaking about his grandparents, who fled Russia for the U.S. amid antisemitism and persecution. “The country took us in, and protected us, and I feel an obligation to the country to pay back, and this is the highest, best use of my own set of skills to pay back,” Garland said. Judge Garland will also confront the rise of domestic extremism as law enforcement officials continue investigating the Jan. 6 assault on the Capitol. Garland takes over as the head of the Department of Justice, which is central to President Biden's domestic policy agenda. Garland will have to decide how to handle it and what to make public. THE US Senate confirmed Merrick Garland as attorney general on March 10, 2021.The vote was split by a 70-30 decision after hours of debate.Who voted a "Merrick Garland, a longtime federal appeals court judge whose nomination to the Supreme Court Republicans famously refused to consider, was confirmed as President Biden’s attorney general," the Washington Post reports.The Senate vote was 70 to 30. Garland was confirmed with a vote of 70 to 30, and received broad bipartisan support for his confirmation, with 20 out of 50 Senate Republicans joining their Democrat colleagues on Garland's nomination. Senators voted 70-30 to approve Garland’s nomination. Twenty GOP senators joined all 50 Democrats in voting for Garland, including Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, the Kentucky Republican who spearheaded the infamous effort to block his ascension to the Supreme Court in 2016. Garland inherits a Justice Department thrown into disarray by Trump, who pressured his AGs, from Jeff Sessions to William Barr, to maintain absolute loyalty to him and investigate issues he deemed important, such as his false claims of voter fraud in the 2020 election. In a strong bipartisan 70-30 vote, the Senate confirmed judge Merrick Garland, 68, as attorney general. Garland will now inherit a Justice Department embattled by a turbulent era under Trump, who insisted that the attorney general must be loyal to him personally, a position that battered the department’s reputation. The former D.C. The attorney generalship isn’t Garland’s first rodeo at the Justice Department. Merrick Garland confirmed as U.S. attorney general with bipartisan support Chris Sommerfeldt 7 hrs ago 12 female employees allege sex discrimination by Alabama sheriff's office in … Part of HuffPost Politics. ©2021 BuzzFeed, Inc. All rights reserved. Separately, Garland will also be responsible for overseeing a special counsel investigation into the origins of the Russia probe, which shadowed Trump’s presidency for more than two years. Garland, who is expected to be confirmed by the Senate on Wednesday, will inherit a … Democrats have praised Garland, a federal appeals court judge who was snubbed by Republicans for a seat on the Supreme Court in 2016, as a highly qualified and honorable jurist who is uniquely qualified to lead the department after a tumultuous four years under former President Donald Trump. Judge and former prosecutor Merrick Garland is confirmed as attorney general. Tap here to turn on desktop notifications to get the news sent straight to you. Circuit judge to lead the Justice Department with a 70-30 vote. Merrick Garland, the soft-spoken federal judge whose Supreme Court nomination was railroaded by Republicans five years ago, finally earned Senate confirmation on Wednesday to become President Biden’s attorney general, putting him in charge of the largest law enforcement agency in the world. Washington — The Senate on Wednesday confirmed Judge Merrick Garland as attorney general on Wednesday, five years after he was blocked from … The Senate confirmed Merrick Garland as President Biden’s attorney general, putting a respected jurist and experienced former prosecutor in charge of the Justice Department. As a senior Justice Department in the 1990s, Garland investigated the Oklahoma City bombing, an experience he told senators taught him how to investigate domestic terrorism and one that will help him oversee prosecutions of the Jan. 6 Capitol attack. “So I very much want to be the kind of attorney general that you’re saying I could become, and I’ll do my best to become that kind of attorney general.”. The vote was 70-30 in favor, meaning 20 Republicans voted with the Democrats. Sign up for membership to become a founding member and help shape HuffPost's next chapter. "Merrick Garland, a longtime federal appeals court judge whose nomination to the Supreme Court Republicans famously refused to consider, was confirmed as President Biden’s attorney general," the Washington Post reports.The Senate vote was 70 to 30. Many Republicans praised him as well, saying he has the right record and temperament for the moment. WASHINGTON (AP) — The Senate has confirmed Merrick Garland to be the next U.S. attorney general with a strong bipartisan vote, placing the widely-respected, veteran judge in the post as President Joe Biden has vowed to restore the Justice Department’s reputation for independence. On Wednesday, the U.S. Senate confirmed Judge Merrick Garland to the role of U.S. attorney general. Circuit judge will oversee the Department of Justice in cooperation with the Biden administration. McConnell claimed at the time that he wouldn’t consider Garland because Supreme Court vacancies shouldn’t be filled in an election year.