WASHINGTON


—
U.S. Senator Benjamin L. Cardin
(D-MD), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, released the following statement in response to President Obama’s announcement that he will nominate James Cole to be Deputy Attorney General.

“I welcome President Obama’s announcement that he intends to nominate James Cole as Deputy Attorney General.
  The Deputy Attorney General is the second highest ranking official in the Department of Justice, and oversees the day-to-day operation and management of the





U.S.
Department of Justice.
  He also serves as the Acting Attorney General when the Attorney General is unavailable, and it is a crucial position in the Department that needs to be filled.
  I first met Mr. Cole when I served as a member of the House Ethics Committee panel that investigated former House Speaker Newt Gingrich in the late 1990s, when Mr. Cole was Special Counsel for the Committee.
  Mr. Cole earned bipartisan praise for his work on that investigation despite the intense partisan atmosphere that surrounded the probe.

“As a former public corruption and career prosecutor, Mr. Cole knows the Department well.
  I look forward to his confirmation hearing, as well as swift action by the Senate on other pending Executive Branch nominations.”
 

James Cole has been a partner with Bryan Cave LLP since 1995.  He was an official with the U.S. Department of Justice for 13 years before entering private practice in 1992, serving as the Deputy Chief of the Criminal Division's Public Integrity Section during his last three years.  In 1992, he was also appointed to be a member of President Clinton's Transition Team reviewing aspects of the Department of Justice.  He received his B.A. from the

University
of
Colorado
and his J.D. from the University of California-
Hastings
.