With the departure of Paul Clement as solicitor general June 2, two of his deputies are making moves.
Gregory Garre, formerly the principal deputy in the office, was named acting solicitor general by President George W. Bush on June 2. Bush also announced he would submit Garre's name to the Senate for confirmation as solicitor general. That additional step of nominating him for the full, not acting, position appears fairly standard, even though time is running out in the administration and the Democrat-led Senate may be loath to act on the nomination. Garre is a familiar face at the Court and once worked with John Roberts Jr. at Hogan & Hartson before Roberts became chief justice. Roberts also once held the same deputy position that Garre has had since 2005.
Thomas Hungar, one of the career deputies in the office, announced recently that he is leaving the office after five years. Hungar was at Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher before taking the post, but there's no word on Hungar's next job. That leaves Michael Dreeben and Edwin Kneedler as the office's longest-running deputies -- and its institutional memories. Kneedler became a deputy in 1993 and Dreeben in 1995.
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