Another Self-Inflicted Wound for Eric Holder
White House stubbornness has forced the House to file suit against Eric Holder to force him to turn over documents related to the Fast and Furious investigation. Nancy Pelosi's claims that the lawsuit takes money away from growing the economy and enforcing voting laws is truly laughable. If the administration were truly interested in those noble goals, all it would have to do is turn over the documents. But perhaps forcing the House to spend money on lawyers to pursue these civil contempt charges is another failed Obama Administration effort at a stimulus program.
This inanity should not obscure the fact that there are important, conflicting issues here. Congress has every right, as part of its oversight powers, to find out who is responsible for the bizarre DOJ gun-running program that resulted in the death of a U.S. law enforcement official. The Justice Department should try to keep confidential any information that is directly related to sensitive law enforcement programs -- for example, we do not want to publicly reveal the names of drug cartel informants.
The usual way to resolve this conflict is for DOJ to show the documents to the committee staff in a closed meeting -- that is what often happened during the congressional investigations into the Clinton Whitewater scandals (in which I participated as general counsel to Senator Orrin Hatch).
It is extraordinary that the DOJ has dug in its heels so deeply that the House has to file a suit, rather than reach some negotiated compromise. That the DOJ won't provide the documents in a closed setting to Darrell Issa and his staff demonstrates that it is the Obama administration, rather than the House, that is really the one willing to risk a conflict between the branches in the midst of an election year. It is yet another self-inflicted wound for Attorney General Holder.
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Comments:
May '10
Re: Another Self-Inflicted Wound for Eric Holder
Moving soooo slooooooowly. It will be 2012 before it gets resolved if ever.
Dec '10
Re: Another Self-Inflicted Wound for Eric Holder
If DOJ can stall until after Obama is put on the street is the matter dropped, or will the inquiries continue?
May '10
Re: Another Self-Inflicted Wound for Eric Holder
What wound?
Apr '11
Re: Another Self-Inflicted Wound for Eric Holder
I believe Aaron, John is speaking of a wound to his credibility and to that there have been several.
May '10
Re: Another Self-Inflicted Wound for Eric Holder
He doesn't need credibility. He has power. And Republicans either can't or won't take that power from him anytime soon.
Oct '10
Re: Another Self-Inflicted Wound for Eric Holder
Old fashioned this, get the Sgt. at Arms to arrest Holder and put him in the old Congressional jail cell that was ready for folk of his ilk long ago.
Then watch the media and Obama go bughouse.
Jul '11
Re: Another Self-Inflicted Wound for Eric Holder
Pelosi knows where this is. Just ask her. She'll threaten ya.
wilber forge: Old fashioned this, get the Sgt. at Arms to arrest Holder and put him in the old Congressional jail cell that was ready for folk of his ilk long ago.
Then watch the media and Obama go bughouse. · 1 minute ago
Jul '11
Re: Another Self-Inflicted Wound for Eric Holder
I hate to say this, because an unwillingness to disclose does not, by itself, imply that you're hiding something - but it sure as hell looks that way, doesn't it? It looks completely like stonewalling the House's request was a way to push the inevitable until 2013, just like Pres. Barry did regarding the tax impacts to all his wonderful policies.
So bitterly cynical. This is what constitutes leadership in the Democratic president, and his AG. I'm pretty sure they both swore to uphold something, once, and not that long ago. Turns out its easy to take oaths, to make promises - it's much harder to live up to them.
Oct '10
Re: Another Self-Inflicted Wound for Eric Holder
Chris Campion: Pelosi knows where this is. Just ask her. She'll threaten ya.
wilber forge: Old fashioned this, get the Sgt. at Arms to arrest Holder and put him in the old Congressional jail cell that was ready for folk of his ilk long ago.
Then watch the media and Obama go bughouse. · 1 minute ago
5 minutes ago
Go ahead Nancy, Bet the cell is far too small for all the deserving souls upstairs.
Edited on August 14, 2012 at 3:39amRe: Another Self-Inflicted Wound for Eric Holder
"Nancy Pelosi's claims that the lawsuit takes money away from growing the economy and enforcing voting laws is truly laughable."
Money to enforce voting laws? How much does it cost to hire the New Black Panthers these days anyway?
Oct '10
Re: Another Self-Inflicted Wound for Eric Holder
Dave Carter:"Nancy Pelosi's claims that the lawsuit takes money away from growing the economy and enforcing voting laws is truly laughable."
Money to enforce voting laws? How much does it cost to hire the New Black Panthers these days anyway? · 1 minute ago
On enforcing those horrible voter I.D's. If the poor get free cell phones why not a free I.D. just for appearing ?
Mar '11
Re: Another Self-Inflicted Wound for Eric Holder
Without control of the Senate, the repubs in Congress really have no power here. Valuable gesture, but toothless.
Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?
We're out of luck when the chief of federal law enforcement is himself corrupt.
Jun '10
Re: Another Self-Inflicted Wound for Eric Holder
One of the real horrors of F & F is that it may well be one of these very drug cartel informants who killed Agent Brian Terry.
Dec '10
Re: Another Self-Inflicted Wound for Eric Holder
John and everybody, read this story and then think of the Obama Team pouring thousands of untracked guns into the mix:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/aug/13/mexican-drug-war-innocent-victims
And then read this disaster of a story, where a southern New Mexico family business gun store went along with the program, and then were rewarded with a SWAT operation to arrest them, when this F&F thing first started busting open... This greatly upset the regional folk, who are starting to realize that the border region in the wild west, with the govt people as the wild ones. Fortunately, the jury acquitted the Deming family of the gun-running-to-cartels charges, although a couple got snagged in the statement crosscheck, like Scooter.
http://www.therepublic.com/view/story/a9bf7fcaad024d6199001c9b0e3c7201/NM--New-Mexico-Gun-Raid
So who should actually be in court? And how will families out here on both sides of the border stay safe over the next years? The guns are still everywhere.