US attorney-general Eric Holder to step down

US attorney-general Eric Holder plans to step down from his post after almost six tumultuous years of leading the Department of Justice in the aftermath of the financial crisis and amid heightened racial tensions.

Mr Holder's departure was announced at an emotional White House event on Thursday afternoon, though he has agreed to remain in his post until his successor is confirmed. Mr Holder, who was a litigation partner at Covington & Burling, does not have immediate plans on his next steps.

"He believes, as I do, that justice is not just an abstract theory," President Barack Obama said of Mr Holder, the first African-American to hold the attorney-general post. "It's a living and breathing principle."

Mr Obama, the first African-American US president who became close to Mr Holder as black men breaking racial barriers, hugged Mr Holder after the president spoke. Mr Holder wiped away tears during Mr Obama's speech and his own remarks.

"We have been great colleagues, but the bonds between us are much deeper than that," said Mr Holder, nodding to Mr Obama standing by him during times of political heat. "In good times and bad, in things personal and professional, you have been there for me".

It is unclear how long it will take for his successor to be named given that the closely fought midterm elections in November could put the Senate in Republican control, which would make the confirmation process much tougher.

Among possible successors to Mr Holder are Don Verrilli, the solicitor-general who represents the US government in Supreme Court cases, Preet Bharara, the US attorney for the southern district of New York who has led a crackdown against Wall Street and insider trading, and Mary Jo White, the Securities and Exchange Commission chairman. Former White House counsel Kathryn Ruemmler and Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick are also possibilities.

Mr Holder, 63, discussed his future with the president on multiple occasions in recent months and finalised those plans during an hour-long conversation with Mr Obama during Labor Day weekend earlier this month, a DoJ official said.

Mr Holder had been criticised for being too lenient on banks that were accused of wrongdoing during the financial crisis, particularly after telling Congress in March 2013 that prosecuting certain large financial institutions could hurt the US economy.

But the DoJ has recently stepped up its enforcement actions against banks, resulting in multibillion-dollar settlements. In August, a record $16.65bn agreement with Bank of America was secured related to the mis-selling of mortgage securities.

Still, lawmakers such as senator Elizabeth Warren criticised the DoJ for not holding any executives personally accountable for the alleged misdeeds.

Mr Holder's departure comes shortly after one of his top officials, Tony West, left the department for the private sector. Mr West became feared by the biggest banks for demanding unprecedented sums to resolve claims they misled investors over the quality of mortgage-backed securities.

Mr Holder also has had a testy relationship with Republican members of Congress, particularly over the DoJ's mishandled Fast and Furious operation aimed at arresting Mexican drug lords. The botched sting ended up handing thousands of firearms to those cartels.

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"I welcome the news that Eric Holder will step down," said House judiciary committee chairman Bob Goodlatte. "Mr Holder has consistently played partisan politics with many of the important issues facing the justice department."

People close to Mr Holder said he hoped his tenure will be remembered for civil rights advances and reforms to the criminal justice system. On Tuesday, he announced that the annual federal prison population dropped for the first time since 1982.

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Mr Holder has spoken often about his own experiences as a black man in America. Last month, when tensions flared in Ferguson, Missouri over the police shooting of an unarmed black teenager, Mr Obama dispatched Mr Holder to the small town, where he told a crowd how he had been targeted by police.

"I remember how humiliating [being pulled over and searched without cause was] and how angry I was, and the impact it had on me," Mr Holder said.

After his recent visit to Ferguson, he has spoken with friends and associates about his wish to find a way to restore trust between law enforcement and minority communities, a DoJ official said.

His comments on race have also caused controversy. One month into the Obama administration's first term in 2009, he delivered a Black History Month speech to the DoJ which drew fire from conservatives.

"Though this nation has proudly thought of itself as an ethnic melting pot, in things racial we have always been and continue to be, in too many ways, essentially a nation of cowards," he said then.

Additional reporting by Richard McGregor

. . .

Eric Holder's legacy

Hits

* Ferguson: In August, Holder visited Ferguson, Missouri, where protests had broken out over the fatal shooting of an unarmed black teenager by a police officer. He was praised for his calm handling of a tense situation.

* Gay marriage: Holder, one of the leading liberal voices of the Obama administration, announced in 2011 that the DoJ would no longer defend cases involving a federal law that refused to recognise same-sex marriages. The law was deemed unconstitutional by the Supreme Court in 2013.

* Bank settlements: After stalling on enforcement actions against banks, the DoJ netted multiple multibillion-dollar bank settlements stemming from the financial crisis in the last year. In August, the agency obtained a record $16.65bn settlement with Bank of America.

* Antitrust: After years of being seen as soft on antitrust issues during the Bush administration, the DoJ came out swinging in 2011 against the proposed tie up between AT&T and T-Mobile, which was dropped because of government opposition. In 2013, it won concessions in Anheuser-Busch InBev's takeover of Corona owner Grupo Modelo.

* Voting rights: Holder has been a staunch defender of voting rights and has successfully fought efforts to require additional identification documents in order to vote in several local jurisdictions. Critics of the additional requirements said that criteria would disenfranchise minorities.

Misses

* Terror trials: Holder made a push to prosecute terror suspects, including 9/11 architect Khaled Sheikh Mohammed in civilian trials. Congress fought his efforts and Holder was forced to announce in 2011 that terror suspects would be tried by military commissions.

* Leak crackdown: Holder's DoJ has prosecuted more cases against current or former government employees suspected of leaks than any other administration. Journalists have also been ensnared in the leak crackdown.

* Fast & Furious: In 2012, Holder was held in contempt of Congress for what is known as Operation Fast and Furious, a mishandled sting that permitted the sale of firearms to catch Mexican drug lords. But the weapons ended up in the hands of drug cartels.

* Too big to jail: In 2013, Holder told Congress that it could hurt the economy to prosecute some large banks, prompting criticisms of his views that some financial institutions were "too big to jail". Since then the DoJ has stepped up it actions against banks.

* Guantanamo Bay: It was up to Holder to fulfil President Obama's promise to close Guantanamo Bay. But the controversial prison remains open, partly because of the slow pace of transferring detainees elsewhere. Holder has blamed Congressional restrictions.

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