Inside Merrick Garland’s Rocky First Year

New York Times: “By most accounts, becoming attorney general was a tough adjustment for a former appeals judge who had last worked at the Justice Department in the late 1990s. But more than a year into his tenure, colleagues say that a cautious leader has found some footing, more a prosecutor now than a deliberator.”

“In interviews, a dozen administration officials and federal prosecutors, all of whom spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe internal discussions, said Mr. Garland, 69, initially ran his office like a judge’s chambers, peppering even Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco and Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta with the kind of granular questions that clerks might expect while writing his opinions. But the slow pace that characterized Mr. Garland’s early months has somewhat quickened. Decisions that took weeks at the outset can now take a day. And with more top officials confirmed, he can be less directly involved in the department’s day-to-day work.”

Whether he likes it or not, Merrick Garland’s legacy will be defined by how he handles Donald Trump.