Franken and Klobuchar recommend Luger be named U.S. Attorney

File Photo from Greene Espel law firm.
Andy_Luger_BIO
File Photo from Greene Espel law firm.

DFL Sens. Amy Klobuchar and  Al Franken are recommending President Obama nominate attorney Andrew Luger to be the next U.S. Attorney for Minnesota. Luger, a partner at the Minneapolis law firm Greene Espel, is a former Assistant U.S. Attorney. He currently chairs the Minnesota Campaign Finance Board.

“The U.S. Attorney plays a critical role in ensuring justice for and protecting the safety of all Minnesotans, and I am honored to be recommended for this important post,” Luger said. “I look forward to continuing to work with local, state and federal law enforcement leaders in this new role and am committed to serving the state of Minnesota.”

Luger was unsuccessful in his bid to succeed Klobuchar as Hennepin County Attorney. He lost his bid for that position in 2006 to Mike Freeman.

The U.S. Attorney is the chief federal law enforcement official in the state. Luger will need to be formally nominated by President Obama and confirmed by the full Senate. Klobuchar and Franken’s office both say a president typically honors the recommendation of the state’s U.S. Senators.

If nominated and confirmed, Luger would succeed B. Todd Jones. Jones was nominated in January by Obama to serve as the director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. The Senate has not yet confirmed that nomination. While a top Republican Senator told the Star Tribune on Monday that he did not plan to block Jones’s nomination, many Republicans oppose him and it’s possible the nomination could be filibustered.

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