Sessions Combative in First Confirmation Hearing

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Sen. Jeff Sessions is settling in as the top Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee, asking difficult questions today of two nominees at his first confirmation hearing in his new role.

Sessions (R-Ala.) pressed a nominee for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit about a decision on jury instructions in a pornography case, and he asked the nominee to head the Justice Department’s Tax Division whether she has enough relevant experience for the job.

Still, both nominees are expected to win confirmation. Significant opposition has not appeared for either one, and Sessions said he was keeping an open mind, even as he took up the responsibility of leading the opposition...

U.S. District Judge Gerard Lynch, nominated for the 2nd Circuit, faced similarly tough questions from Sessions, a former U.S. attorney. Now sitting in the Southern District of New York, Lynch has a diverse résumé that includes time as a tenured law professor at Columbia, counsel at Covington & Burling, chief of the criminal division in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, and associate counsel in two independent counsel investigations.

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