Citing her qualifications as a U.S. attorney in New York, Obama said in his weekly radio address that the Senate's Republican leadership has engineered "the longest confirmation process for an attorney general in three decades."
Lynch's stalled nomination — Obama tapped her in November — has become the latest dispute between the president and Senate Republicans, this one carrying racial overtones. Lynch would be the nation's first African-American woman to serve as attorney general, if the Senate confirms her.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., has said Lynch will receive a vote after Democrats end their filibuster of the human trafficking bill. Because of the Senate's recess schedule, Lynch may not get a confirmation vote until mid-April.
"The only thing holding up that vote is the Democrats' filibuster of a bill that would help prevent kids from being sold into sex slavery," said McConnell spokesman Don Stewart. "The president has yet to lift a finger to get that bill passed
Democrats said they oppose the human trafficking bill because it includes an unrelated anti-abortion provision, and that Lynch deserves an up-or-down vote in any case.
As the debate over Lynch's nomination drags on, race has become something of a factor.
Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., said this week that Republicans have put Lynch "at the back of the bus" in delaying her nomination. Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., called Durbin's remarks "offensive and unnecessary
It's unclear whether Lynch has enough votes to win confirmation in the Republican-run chamber. McCain said he would fight the nomination because Lynch supports Obama's executive actions on immigration that would defer deportations for millions of migrants. Those orders are currently the subject of legal challenges.
In his radio speech, Obama noted that, as of Monday, Lynch would have waited longer for a confirmation vote than the seven previous attorney general nominees combined.
Saying that "this is purely about politics," Obama said Republicans are delaying the vote "until they can figure out how to pass a bill on a completely unrelated issue. But they could bring her up for a yes-or-no vote at any time
The president also said: "Republicans promised that Congress would function smoothly with them in charge. Here's a small chance for them to prove it."
Congressional Republicans have criticized current Attorney General Eric Holder, who will stay on the job until a successor is confirmed.
Also criticizing the delay of a vote on Lynch, Holder joked this week that "it's almost as if the Republicans in Congress have discovered a new fondness for me. Where was all this affection the last six years?"
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