Opinion: Breaking News: Two Dem senators vote yea on Mukasey

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Two influential Democratic senators on the powerful Judiciary Committee have just announced their decision to vote in favor of confirming Judge Michael Mukasey as the Bush administration’s new attorney general.

The decision by Dianne Feinstein of California and Charles Schumer of New York virtually assures the full Senate’s ultimate approval despite a simmering controversy over Mukasey’s answers to some questions on torture policy.

And their decisions come despite the announcement earlier today by Judiciary Chairman Patrick Leahy of Vermont that he would vote against the nomination of the nation’s top law enforcement officer when the committee convenes next week. The Times’ Richard B. Schmitt already has the full story here and in Saturday’s print editions.

--Andrew Malcolm