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Attorney General nominee Loretta Lynch says she will carry on her predecessor Eric Holder's commitment to civil rights issues.

President Barack Obamas nominee to head the Justice Department appeared poised for Senate confirmation after two days of hearings in which Loretta Lynch earned the confidence of top Republicans on the Judiciary Committee sometimes by distancing herself from outgoing Attorney General Eric Holder.

But, to the relief of civil rights advocates, Lynch also pointed to areas of Holder's legacy particularly involving race that she plans to continue.

There's no doubt that voting rights and criminal justice reform have to be at the forefront of the Department of Justices agenda, says Leslie Proll, director of the Washington, D.C., office of the NAACP Legal Defense Fund.

Holder made civil rights a priority during his nearly six-year tenure, the third longest of any attorney general. His office vehemently challenged, with some success, state laws that restricted the right to vote, particularly for minorities and lower income people. Even before the deaths last year of Eric Garner and Michael Brown focused the country on police treatment of minorities, Holder's Justice Department opened investigations into misuse of force and racial profiling by officers and agencies.

The first African-American attorney general, Holder was also a polarizing figure among Republicans and even some Democrats. He prompted controversy early in his term when he said the United States was essentially a nation of cowards with regard to race. A longtime Holder friend said one of his tacitly approved roles in the administration was to act as "race man.

[ALSO: Loretta Lynch Confirmation Serves as Immigration Proxy War]

Hes gone farther and deeper into some issues of race than the White House would like, but I know he has the presidents well-wishes," Charles Ogletree, a Harvard Law School professor who once taught Obama, told Politico last year.

Those who know Lynch have suggested she has displayed a more pragmatic approach to the law in her career as a federal prosecutor. If approved by Congress, she will be the first U.S. attorney to become attorney general since the early 19th century. In a November profile in the New York Times, Lynchs associates described her as someone who prioritizes substance over style.

And that attitude was evident in her testimony Wednesday during which she deftly maneuvered Republican grilling over Obamas executive orders on immigration. Lynch also stressed her desire to embark on a "new and improved" relationship with Congress, if confirmed.

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Loretta Lynch Embraces Eric Holder's Legacy on Civil ...

The shadow of outgoing Attorney General Eric Holder loomed over Loretta Lynchs attorney general confirmation hearing underway before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Wednesday.

Offering her tentative praise, Republicans repeatedly aired their biggest complaints with Mr. Holders Justice Department from its handling of the IRS political targeting scandal to its backing of the presidents immigration actions while seeking to know if she would tread a different path.

Youre not Eric Holder are you? asked Sen. John Cornyn, a Republican from Texas, asked her, provoking some laughter in the room. No, Im not sir, replied Ms. Lynch, who is currently the U.S. attorney in Brooklyn, N.Y. and the first Obama cabinet nominee to go before the Senate since Republicans took control in the November election.

Heres WSJsdispatch from the hearing:

The first question from Sen. Judiciary Committee chairman Charles Grassley (R., Iowa) related to the White Houses use of executive authority to make changes to immigration policy, with Mr. Grassley asking Ms. Lynch for her views on whether that was allowed.

Ms. Lynch said she had reviewed a Justice Department memo giving legal advice on immigration policy, and said, I dont see any reason to doubt the reasonableness of those views.

Ms. Lynch highlighted her resume and upbringing in North Carolina where she watched her parents fight segregation. She pledged to fairly apply federal law without letting bias influence her decisions and said she would uphold the U.S. Constitution.

I believe in the promise of America because I have lived the promise of America, she said.

She also said she would work to improve relations between police and minority groups, an issue shell have to confront if confirmed. Ms. Lynch will likely have to decide whether to charge police officers with civil rights violations in the killings of two unarmed young black men, Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo., and Eric Garner in New York City.

Few things have pained me more than the recent reports of tension and division between law enforcement and the communities we serve, she said. If confirmed as Attorney General, one of my key priorities would be to work to strengthen the vital relationships between our courageous law enforcement personnel and all the communities we serve.

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I Am Not Holder, Lynch Tells Senate at AG Confirmation Hearing

Are You Eric Holder? | Whats Up With Polygamy? - AG Nominee Faces WEIRD Questions
"Loretta E. Lynch, the nominee to become attorney general, on Wednesday defended the legality of President Obama #39;s immigration policy during a daylong confirmation hearing Republicans used...

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Loretta Lynch says she #39;s no Eric Holder
On the first day of her confirmation hearing, Loretta Lynch told members of the Senate Judiciary Committee she would approach the job of attorney general differently than current AG Eric Holder.

By: CBS News

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Loretta Lynch says she's no Eric Holder - Video

Dobbs: Eric Holder #39;s Conduct Has Been Scandalous
FBN #39;s Lou Dobbs on Attorney General Eric Holder and the confirmation hearing of Attorney General nominee Loretta Lynch. Fox Business: Lou Dobbs Tonight ...

By: yazchat

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Dobbs: Eric Holder's Conduct Has Been Scandalous - Video