WASHINGTON (AP) — The Senate Judiciary Committee has approved President Donald Trump's pick for attorney general.

William Barr's nomination was approved along party lines Thursday. It now heads to the Senate floor, where Barr is expected to be confirmed.

Barr, who served as attorney general between 1991 and 1993, would succeed Attorney General Jeff Sessions, who was pushed out by Trump last year.

Democrats have largely opposed Barr's nomination, saying they want a stronger commitment from him to fully release special counsel Robert Mueller's final report. Barr says he will release as much as he can under the law.

Opponents have also cited a memo Barr wrote to the Justice Department before his nomination in which he criticized Mueller's investigation for the way it was presumably looking into whether Trump had obstructed justice.