Will there be any federal sentencing or mass incarceration talk at the Holder hearings?

I will be on the road and off-line for much of today, but the President-elect and the Senate were kind enough to ensure sentencing fans will have something else to follow while this blog is quiet.  Specifically, the Senate confirmation hearings for Eric Holder, whom Barack Obama has nominated to be the next Attorney General of the United States, are scheduled to begin this morning at 9:30 am.  The hearings can be followed via webcast through this official webpage of the Senate Judiciary Committee, where one can also find lots and lots of documents and letters concerning AG-nominee Holder’s background and professional history.

As regular readers know, I have done a lot of Holder-related posts in recent weeks (some of which are linked below).  These posts spotlight some of the sentencing-related issues that may (or may not) arise during the confirmation hearings.  I will be grateful to any readers who use the comments to note and discuss any sentencing topics that arise during the Holder hearings.

Some posts on the Holder pick for Attorney General:

• How much will guns and drugs come up during the Holder hearings?
• Headaches on the path to Holder’s AG confirmation
• Real headaches or just hiccups on nominee Holder’s path to AG?
• Any early federal sentencing thoughts on Eric Holder, the next U.S. Attorney General?
• Three late afternoon thoughts on the Holder pick: race, tough and tech
• President-Elect Obama officially names Eric Holder as his AG pick
• Pardons, politics, race and justice: why Holder should come out swinging
• Interesting reflections on Obama appointees from drug policy reformers