What does Senator John Cornyn’s hold on James Cole for Deputy Attorney General have to do with the Voting Section at the Department of Justice?  Lots.

Yesterday, on the floor of the Senate, Cole’s nomination was blocked yet again because of the failure of the Voting Section at the Department of Justice to aggressively enforce military voting rights.  More specifically, Cornyn blocked the nomination because a United States Senator could not get straight answers in August and September from the Civil Rights Division at the Justice Department.  He wanted to know which states were in compliance with the new MOVE Act, and which were not.  Problem was, the Voting Section didn’t know themselves, so Cornyn blocked the Cole nomination until he got answers – answers he never got.  Cornyn wanted to see aggressive and swift enforcement of the law to protect military voters, something that never happened.

Then to rub salt in the wound, the Voting Section badly bungled military voting rights enforcement during the run up to the election, something extensively reported at Fox News and Pajamas Media.  Cole’s fate was sealed.  It would not be an easy path to nomination.

Democrats in the Senate are desperate to see Cole confirmed.  Maybe they should call the Office of Legislative Affairs at DOJ and tell them to start getting Senator Cornyn the answers he wants, and start enforcing the law without cutting corners to states.  Maybe they should tell Eric Holder to hold people accountable who bungled military voting 2010.  Maybe then the hold will come off.

Cole’s hold doesn’t have anything to do with AIG, it has to do with the Voting Section at the Department of Justice not aggressively enforcing military voting rights in 2010. 

Whether or not the people responsible will be held accountable remains to be seen.

UPDATE:  A Senate staffer tells ELC that the Cole nomination is DEAD.  James Cole will not be confirmed as the Deputy Attorney General this session.  Had only the DOJ responded to information requests about military voting and filed some cases when violations were well known, Cole might well have been confirmed months ago.