‘Cause you Can’t. Touch. This.

He is resilient, and I think one of the reasons why Eric Holder continues to have the president’s full confidence and respect is that Eric never loses sight of what he’s there for. He’s there to be the chief lawyer for the United States of America, to make sure all our rights are protected, and to defend our country, to make sure that he is an advocate for those whose civil rights have been infringed upon, anyone whose rights have been infringed upon, and there are people all around the country who are counting on him to be the attorney general. And so, yes he is resistant, and he is tough, and he is strong, and he is perfectly capable of defending himself, and he is an outstanding attorney general, who enjoys the full confidence of the president of the United States. … One of the things you learn in this business is, don’t listen to rumors. You can take it from me. Obviously, I know the president pretty well, and I know the attorney general very well, and he will be in his position for quite awhile.

Jarrett is never out of step with President Obama, of course, and the White House is maintaining their calm, above-the-fray, mistakes-were-made-but-there’s-no-there-there demeanor amongst the onslaught of Scandalmania, which got even worse today with the revelation that the NSA is gathering millions of Americans’ phone records. Interesting, though, that it sounds like Jarrett is sometimes Eric Holder’s champion inside the inner ranks as well, as the New York Times suggested last weekend:

But that does not mitigate the frustration of some presidential aides. “The White House is apoplectic about him, and has been for a long time,” said a Democratic former government official who did not want to be identified while talking about friends.

Some advisers to Mr. Obama believe that Mr. Holder does not manage or foresee problems, the former official said. “How hard would it be to anticipate that The A.P. would be unhappy?” the former official said. “And then they haven’t defended their position.” …

His saving grace through years of controversies has been the friendship of two women close to Mr. Obama. Valerie Jarrett, the president’s senior adviser, grew close to Mr. Holder during the 2008 campaign and, as one former Obama adviser put it, “was always his protector” inside the White House. …