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Eric Holder Defends His Legacy

Attorney General Eric Holder says his Justice Department has not been politicized.

During Loretta Lynch's Senate confirmation hearings to replace outgoing Attorney General Eric Holder, the federal prosecutor's questioners often seemed more interested in talking about him than her.

“If confirmed as attorney general, I will be myself. I will be Loretta Lynch,” she said when asked whether she would simply be another Holder.

At a Tuesday press conference, Holder coyly referenced the hearing when he stepped up to the podium and said, "For the record, I am Eric Holder."

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ERIC HOLDER TALKS ABOUT 10 HOT TOPICS |

The attorney general, who will step down as soon as his successor has been confirmed, defended his legacy and called charges by Republicans that the Justice Department has become a political arm of the White House under his watch "irresponsible" and "totally inconsistent with the facts,” particularly when compared to the agency he inherited.

"I think it's a little irresponsible for people on the Hill to say that policy differences that we have with them or that decisions that we have made that are not consistent with how they view the world can be characterized as political," Holder said. "There's no politicization of this Justice Department. I'm proud of the work that we've done over the past six years, the historic things that we've done and I would hope that the American people would not fall prey to interesting sound bites that simply are inconsistent with the facts."

Before he leaves office, Holder is expected to make major announcements about federal civil rights investigations of George Zimmerman and former Ferguson police officer Darren Wilson, whose actions led to the deaths of unarmed teenagers Trayvon Martin and Michael Brown.

Follow Joyce Jones on Twitter: @BETpolitichick.

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(Photo: Alex Wong/Getty Images)

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