Eric Holder has been a disastrous attorney general. “Classic 101 Boobery” was how one Democratic operative memorably called his decision, now on hold, to try Khalid Sheikh Mohammed in a civilian court in lower Manhattan. Other blunders have piled up and the White House has been repeatedly embarrassed by his string of ill-considered decisions and gaffes. With the midterm elections approaching, it would not be surprising if Holder soon finds himself under the Obama bus, lying next to former Director of National Intelligence Dennis Blair. An interesting question is, then, who would be tapped as the next attorney general?

My choice would be David Kris, currently running the Justice Department’s national security division, who also served as a senior official at Justice from 2000 to 2003 under both Clinton and Bush. “Obama Picks Critic of Warrantless Wiretapping for Slot at Justice Dept.,” was the headline in the New York Times when Kris was named for his current job in January 2009. Having disclosed the NSA’s ultra-secret Terrorist Surveillance Program—and thereby compromising its effectiveness—the Times has tried hard to portray Kris as someone who believed the wiretapping was illegal, a violation of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA).