Eric Holder on Law and Politics

Holder has been a controversial figure. He reversed plans to hold terror trials in New York City, and House Republicans held him in contempt over the Fast and Furious scandal. He speaks with Elizabeth Dwoskin about the collision of law and politics.

You’ve spent a long time at the Justice Department in one position or another.
I’ve worked in a variety of jobs here over the last 36 years. This place formed me as a lawyer, probably personally as well, and influences a great deal of who I am. One of the things I learned is that you’ve got to deal with the underlying social problems if you want to have an impact on crime—that it’s not a coincidence that you see the greatest amount of violent crime where you see the greatest amount of social dysfunction. Where schools don’t educate. Where we see high levels of unemployment. We see men not involved in the raising of their children, and specifically, you know, their sons.