With the Obama administration prosecuting more whistleblowers than all other administrations combined (including some who risked prosecution by exposing important facts about surveillance), Congress's abandonment of its oversight responsibilities on the PATRIOT Act bodes poorly for the future.
As a United States attorney, from 1968 to 1970, he established a remarkable conviction record in the fight against organized crime, successfully prosecuting more than 150 people.
Winkler said prosecuting more than 1,000 pirates and transferring them to Somali prisons, where conditions are grim, appeared to be having a preventive effect.
Mr. Holder, who has faced criticism by some who favor prosecuting more terror suspects before military tribunals, also repeated his defense of the civilian court system as "an invaluable weapon for disrupting plots and incapacitating terrorists".
Eric Lichtblau reported in The Times on Wednesday that during the last three years, the department has put off prosecuting more than 50 corporations on charges ranging from bribery to fraud.
In a major shift of policy, the Justice Department, once known for taking down giant corporations, including the accounting firm Arthur Andersen, has put off prosecuting more than 50 companies suspected of wrongdoing over the last three years.
