Finally!

Courtesy of the New York Times:  

After one of the nation’s most protracted cabinet-level confirmation delays, the Senate Thursday approved Loretta E. Lynch to be attorney general. She is the first African-American woman to hold the position. 

Ms. Lynch, the United States attorney for the Eastern District of New York, was confirmed 56 to 43, with 10 Republicans voting for her. 

Her confirmation took longer than that for all but two other nominees for the office: Edwin Meese III, who was nominated by President Ronald Reagan, and A. Mitchell Palmer, who was picked by President Woodrow Wilson, according to the Congressional Research Service. 

Republicans have found themselves in a quandary for months. They longed to replace Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr., and they agreed that Ms. Lynch was qualified for the job. But they opposed her because Ms. Lynch defended President Obama’s executive actions on immigration. 

What’s more, Senator Mitch McConnell, Republican of Kentucky and majority leader, had held up the nomination until the Senate voted on a human trafficking bill, a process that dragged on for weeks. The measure passed on Wednesday by a vote of 99 to 0.

I think the Republicans really showed their ass on this one.

The idea that they opposed her simply because she agreed with Obama's use of executive orders on immigration does not pass the smell test.

And the fact that she is the first African American woman nominated to the post, and they drug their heels this long, isn't going to do them any favors either.

Update: I forgot to mention that the Senate vote to confirm Lynch was 56 to 43, with only one Senator missing the vote.

That Senator? Ted Cruz.

And that was after he gave this impassioned speech accusing Former Attorney General Eric Holder of "lawlessness" and suggesting that Loretta Lynch represents more of the same.

Yep he was so worried about the "lawlessness" that he missed the vote and flew off to attend a fundraiser instead.