Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. emerged unhurt from the session on Wednesday where he was challenged by the Senators over the Obama administration's delay in the closing of the Guantanamo Bay prison and its plans to try alleged 9/11 co-conspirators.
Holder has been constantly questioned for months over his handling of terrorism cases.
Holder snapped to House Republicans around four weeks ago, that Osama bin Laden would never appear in a U.S. courtroom and that authorities "will be reading Miranda rights to a corpse" which heightened the expectation that Holder would be grilled by the Senate Judiciary Committee on Wednesday.
The attorney general held his ground and could waive off most hostile questions from Republicans, managing in a controlled, cautious appearance without much damage to his political standing on Capitol Hill or with the White House, aides said.
He used his first-ever 3 1/2 -hour testimony, before the committee since the collapse of his plan to try Khalid Sheik Mohammed and four other alleged 9/11 plotters in federal court in New York City, to drag himself out of the recent controversies.
He claimed that the United States still hopes to capture Bin Laden, but added that it was "highly unlikely" that the al-Qaeda leader would be taken alive.
Holder further defended the decision to bring civilian criminal charges against Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, accused of attempting to bomb an airliner on Christmas. He claims the decision "to be the right one," according to the information provided by the Nigerian who began cooperating with the federal government after his arrest.
Senior administration officials have privately expressed dismay about Holder's job performance, based in his decision-making and his public remarks. That eventually lead to predictions to his early departure from his position, but Holder has shown no signs as such, and he remains a close friend of President Obama's, advisers said. And, his careful statements on Wednesday suggest his adaptability to the White House's desire, making less news.
Holder said it would be a "number of weeks" before the White House-led review of his decision to try Sept. 11 suspects is concluded. He also insisted that officials have not ruled out New York as a site for the trials.
"New York is not off the table," Holder said. "The Southern District of New York, for instance, is a much larger place than simply Manhattan."
The remark prompted exasperation even from Democrats.
