Merrick Garland
U.S. Attorney General
Merrick Brian Garland was born in November 1952 in Chicago, Illinois. He earned an undergraduate degree and Juris Doctor from Harvard University. He spent two years as a law clerk at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, and then for Justice William Brennan at the U.S. Supreme Court. He served as a special assistant to the U.S. Attorney General during President Carter’s administration, then entered private practice.
Returning to public service, he became an Assistant U.S. Attorney in the District of Columbia, working as a prosecutor. He briefly returned to private practice, then joined President Clinton’s administration as deputy assistant attorney general in the Criminal Division of the U.S. Department of Justice.
President Clinton nominated Garland to a seat on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia. His nomination expired without action from the Senate, but President Clinton renominated him, and he won Senate confirmation in a 76-23 vote. He assumed his seat in March 1997. He was that court’s Chief Judge for 17 years.
After the death of Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, Garland was appointed by President Obama to fill that vacancy. That nomination expired with the ending of the 114th Congress.
President Joe Biden nominated him to the position of U.S. Attorney General. Garland retired from judicial service and the Senate confirmed his appointment in a 70-30 vote. He assumed his position in March 2021.
Garland is married to Lynn and they have two daughters. He is Jewish.
In the News…
Attorney General Merrick Garland said that he supports efforts to allow some of the proceeds from assets the Justice Department seizes from Russian oligarchs to go “directly to Ukraine.”
“The government—we would support legislation that would allow some of that money to go directly to Ukraine,” he told the Senate Appropriations Committee in response to a question about how the department handles proceeds from recovered Russian assets. “That’s not the current circumstance with respect to the fund,” he added.
The Justice Department launched a special unit earlier this year to help enforce sanctions against Russian government officials and oligarchs, targeting their yachts, jets, real estate, and other assets. The unit, called KleptoCapture, includes prosecutors and federal agents, and experts in money laundering, tax enforcement, and national security investigations from the FBI, the IRS, the U.S. Marshals Service, and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service.
He also condemned Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, decrying the “horrible atrocities” that are being seen in videos and photos from the country. “All of those pictures are just horrific, and are the kinds of things anybody growing up in the 20th Century never expected to see in the 21st again.”
Contact this Leader…
Did you pray for Attorney General Garland today? You can let him know at:
The Honorable Merrick Garland
Attorney General
Department of Justice
950 Pennsylvania Ave NW
Washington, DC 20530
