Loretta Lynch confirmed as attorney general

Loretta Lynch was confirmed Thursday as attorney general, the first black woman in American history to hold the country's top law enforcement post.

The Senate approved Lynch, a federal prosecutor from New York, after an unusually long confirmation delay, fraught with partisan bickering. President Barack Obama nominated her as the successor to Eric Holder in November.

Lynch, 55, faced staunch Republican objection to her support of the president's use of executive action on immigration policies, including the deferred deportation of up to 5 million undocumented immigrants.