Senate Democrats leader balks at possible Olson AG nomination News
Senate Democrats leader balks at possible Olson AG nomination

[JURIST] US Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) [official website] told reporters Wednesday he would lead opposition to the nomination of former US Solicitor General Theodore Olson [firm profile; DOJ profile] to the post of US attorney general. Olson was mentioned as a potential candidate [JURIST report] on a short list floated by the White House earlier this week, but Senate Democrats consider Olson to be overly partisan. Reid threatened to invoke a procedural barrier that would require 60 votes to overcome if necessary to block Olson's confirmation. Reuters has more.

US Attorney General Alberto Gonzales [official profile; JURIST news archive] announced his resignation [letter, PDF; JURIST report] on August 27, saying that it will take effect on September 17 [JURIST report]. His resignation followed months of controversy over the Justice Department's handling of the firings of eight US Attorneys [JURIST news archive] and subsequent allegations that he may have perjured himself [JURIST report] in testimony before Congress. Current Solicitor General Paul Clement [official profile] will serve as acting attorney general until the Senate confirms a new permanent official.

THIS DAY @ LAW

UN General Assembly approves Palestine partition plan

The UN General Assembly approved UN Resolution Resolution 181 (II) on November 29, 1947, recommending that the British Mandate for Palestine be split into a Jewish state, an Arab state, and an international zone for Jerusalem. The vote in the assembly was 33 for to 13 against, with 10 abstentions. The resolution sparked a war between Palestinian Arabs and Jews in 1947 and a wider war after Egypt, Syria, Jordan, Iraq, and Lebanon invaded the new State of Israel in 1948. Read Resolution 181 (II).

UN divided Palestine between Arabs and Jews

On November 29, 1947, the UN General Assembly voted to partition Palestine into Jewish and Arab territories, leading to the establishment of a Jewish state the following year. Read UN General Assembly Resolution 181.

Defense Secretary Robert McNamara resigns during Vietnam Conflict

On November 29, 1967, Secretary of Defense Robert S. McNamara announced that he was resigning from his office to accept an appointment as head of the World Bank. The announcement came as the Vietnam Conflict was becoming increasingly unpopular in the United States and abroad.