Lynch's mother: New AG will be 'best they've ever had'

Loretta Lynch will be sworn in Monday as U.S. attorney general, succeeding Eric Holder. She becomes the first black woman to hold the position.

Her mother recalled Friday that Loretta Lynch always had a love for learning.

"She read all the time. She really loved books. That did her well," Lorine Lynch said.

That bookish streak carried Loretta Lynch from Durham High School to Harvard University and a successful career in law. She has served as the top prosecutor since 2010 for a federal judicial district that includes Brooklyn, Queens, Staten Island and Long Island, a role she also held from 1999 to 2001.

Lorine Lynch said the attorney general post is simply a continuation of her daughter's life's work.

"I see her as an adult who is trying to make a difference still," she said.

The Republican-controlled U.S. Senate voted 56-43 on Thursday to confirm Lynch's nomination by President Barack Obama after one of the longest waiting periods for a cabinet appointee in U.S. history. The wait was frustrating for her mother.

"You knew it was partisan politics," Lorine Lynch said, adding that she never tired of watching the process. "Just seeing it on TV, you just feel good when you see it. I can watch it over and over."

She said she doesn't plan to attend her daughter's swearing in but will be at a ceremonial swearing in that will be held later.

With the confirmation complete, Lorine Lynch said she is eager to see her daughter carry out her new role.

"(She'll be) the best one they've ever had," she said. "She will make a great attorney general."