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The Attorney General on Protecting the American People
This morning at the Department of Justice, Attorney General Eric Holder delivered a speech outlining four key priorities for how the Department will strengthen its work to protect the American people.
The Attorney General also commended the recent progress in fulfilling the Department’s critical responsibilities:
“Just over two years ago, together, we launched a new chapter in the Department’s extraordinary history. And I was honored that – on that February day – so many of you welcomed me home. That day, as I stood before you – and swore the oath of office for the last job I will ever hold here – I laid out three priorities that would guide our work.
“First, and most importantly, I promised that the Department’s top priority – and our chief responsibility – would be protecting the security, rights, and interests of the American people. I also pledged to reinvigorate the Department’s traditional missions and breathe new life into important areas that had been overlooked in recent years. Finally, I promised to heal the Department – by rebuilding morale and restoring credibility.”
After acknowledging the hard work of Justice Department employees around the world, the Attorney General praised the success that’s been achieved in fulfilling each of these commitments. Not only has the Department thwarted numerous potentially devastating terrorist plots, more terrorists have been prosecuted over the last two years than in any other similar period in history. The Department’s leadership and employees also have reformed and strengthened the Department operations by finding innovative ways to foster transparency, accountability and professionalism across every component – especially in the Civil Rights Division, which, as the Attorney General indicated, “is once again, open for business.”
As a result of these efforts, the last two years have been marked by historic progress. The Attorney General pointed out that:
“Over the past two years, we’ve filed a record number of civil rights criminal cases, and secured an all-time high in civil recoveries for taxpayers and victims. We’ve led government-wide efforts to respond to the largest oil spill in our nation’s history, and made certain that taxpayers do not foot the bill for its cleanup. And just last week, we secured a conviction – in the biggest bank fraud prosecution of this generation – against the former chairman of a private mortgage lending company for his role in a nearly $3 billion-fraud scheme.”
Yet this work is far from over.
To continue moving the Department forward in meeting its key goals and responsibilities, the Attorney General laid out four priorities to guide and focus our future work:
- Protecting Americans from terrorism;
- Protecting Americans from violent crime;
- Protecting Americans from financial fraud; and
- Protecting the most vulnerable members of our society.
“Our challenges are significant, and our tasks numerous, but our capacity to do great things is evident…So let us begin.”
Read the Attorney General’s full remarks and find out more about the four priorities he outlined today.Updated April 7, 2017
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