By Steve Neavling
ticklethewire.com
Democratic leaders of the California Legislature have a new weapon against legal fights with President-elect Donald Trump – former Attorney General Eric Holder.
Holder, who was severing as a Washington lawyer, is expected to be used on issues like the environment, immigration and criminal justice, the New York Times reports.
“Having the former attorney general of the United States brings us a lot of firepower in order to prepare to safeguard the values of the people of California,” Kevin de León, the Democratic leader of the Senate, said in an interview. “This means we are very, very serious.”
The decision to hire Holder came after California Democrats watched in surprise as Trump selected his controversial cabinet.
“It was very clear that it wasn’t just campaign rhetoric,” Mr. de León said of Mr. Trump’s proposals over the past year. “He was surrounding himself with people who are a very clear and present danger to the economic prosperity of California.”
Holder served as attorney general under President Obama from 2009 to 2015.
“I am honored that the Legislature chose Covington to serve as its legal adviser as it considers how to respond to potential changes in federal law that could impact California’s residents and policy priorities,”Holder said in a statement. “I am confident that our expertise across a wide array of federal legal and regulatory issues will be a great resource to the Legislature.”
