US President Donald Trump used the swearing-in ceremony of Attorney General Jeff Sessions to sign three executive orders, including ones targeting transnational drug cartels and those who commit crimes against law enforcement.
"These dangerous times require a determined attorney general," Mr Trump said at an Oval Office ceremony for Mr Sessions.
He said rising crime is a "dangerous, permanent trend" in the United States and also promised to "end this lawlessness" of illegal immigration.
Mr Sessions was sworn-in as Attorney General after his confirmation in the US Senate, despite vitriolic debate over his civil rights record and whether he can serve as the nation's top law enforcement officer independent from President Trump.
Politicians approved Senator Sessions as the 84th US attorney general on a mostly party line vote of 52 to 47, with just one Democrat, Joe Manchin of West Virginia, joining the Republican majority.
Mr Sessions voted present, which is classed as abstaining, and when the tally was announced many senators broke into extended applause for their colleague.
President Trump has criticised Democrats for obstructing his nominees, blasting their unprecedented delays as a "disgrace".
It is a disgrace that my full Cabinet is still not in place, the longest such delay in the history of our country. Obstruction by Democrats!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 8, 2017
He appeared particularly angered by the delay on Mr Sessions, who as attorney general would wield enormous power regarding the administration of justice, including on the issue of voting rights.
Mr Sessions, widely seen as an inspiration for Mr Trump's anti-immigration policies, is just the sixth of 15 cabinet members to be confirmed, in addition to the cabinet-rank positions of CIA director and US ambassador to the United Nations.
A day earlier senators broke into fiercely personal debate, which saw theDemocrat Elizabeth Warren barred from speaking after she was deemed to have broken chamber rules on decorum.
If Jeff Sessions makes even the tiniest attempt to bring his racism, sexism & bigotry into @TheJusticeDept, he'll hear from all of us.
— Elizabeth Warren (@SenWarren) February 9, 2017
Mr Sessions takes charge of the Justice Department and its 113,000 employees, including the 93 US attorneys throughout the country.
Mr Sessions, who like the president is 70, was an early loyal Trump supporter who became a pivotal figure in his campaign and transition team.
Congratulations to our new Attorney General, @SenatorSessions! pic.twitter.com/e0buP1K83z
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 9, 2017
He was a US attorney for the southern district of Alabama from 1981 to 1993, before serving two years as the state's attorney general. He won a seat in the US Senate in 1996.
But in 1986 his career was almost derailed when a US Senate panel rejected his nomination for a judgeship amid concerns over past comments he made about black people, and over remarks that appeared sympathetic to the Ku Klux Klan.
