Posted on 05/18/2012 5:22:29 AM PDT by marktwain
Six freshman members of the House Judiciary Committee on Thursday called on GOP leadership to bring a contempt of Congress resolution against Attorney General Eric Holder to the House floor, charging he has thwarted and obstructed Congress efforts to conduct Congressional oversight of the "Operation Fast and Furious" gun-running program.
In a letter to Speaker John Boehner (Ohio), Majority Leader Eric Cantor (Va.) and Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy (Calif.); Reps. Sandy Adams (Fla.), Ben Quayle (Ariz.), Tim Griffin (Ark.), Dennis Ross (Fla.), Tom Marino (Pa.) and Trey Gowdy (S.C.) argued that the House of Representatives has seen its proper oversight function thwarted and obstructed. It's time for the House to formally recognize the obvious that Attorney General Holder has not and will not cooperate with the legitimate investigation launched by the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee and is therefore in contempt of Congress.
For weeks, Oversight and Government Reform Chairman Darrell Issa (Calif.) has unsuccessfully lobbied leadership to allow contempt proceedings to begin against Holder.
At issue is Issas investigation of Operation Fast and Furious, a 2010 gun-smuggling investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. In the operation, ATF agents allowed guns to walk, which meant ending surveillance on high-powered weapons suspected to be en route to Mexican drug cartels.
In their letter, the freshmen complain that Holder has not cooperated enough, arguing that Attorney General Holder has continually failed to produce thousands of valuable documents that have been requested by both the Judiciary Committee and House Oversight and Government Reform Committee. When documents are produced, many are heavily redacted beyond recognition.
"We should not allow Attorney General Holders failure to do his job prevent us from doing ours. We have a duty to the American people that must be fulfilled, the freshmen added.
The display of support from the freshmen could boost Issas negotiating position with leadership, which has thus far resisted his demands to have his draft resolution brought to the floor.
Although sympathetic to Issa's demands, leadership is wary of forcing the issue at this point with the Obama administration, and sources familiar with the situation said Boehner and his team are sensitive to any appearance that they are launching a partisan witch hunt or might be adversely affecting ongoing criminal investigations.
A request for comment from Boehner's office was not immediatley returned.
More like terrified of being called a racist by the MSM...
Mike
As far as I’m concerned, the leadership of the House Republicans AND the Senate are just as big an enemy as are the Democrats and the leadership of this government.
They are a BIGGER enemy than the dems because they are IN our Party and in CONTROL!
We all know it's not feasible to have absolutely no rinos in the republican party, but FCOL conservatives AT THE VERY LEAST have to stand up and fight allowing ANY rinos to be in a position of POWER and CONTROL!
This is why many conservatives are adamantly against Mitt and the GOPe! You just can't keep voting for this scum JUST BECAUSE they have a (R) by their name! Someone has got to wrest control away from rinos or the republican party is going to become the new Democrat Party...For all intent and purpose the GOPe already is!
More like being terrified of having his past gone over with a microscope by the MSM if he crosses the Dems. This is what happens in DC: you play nice, and you get left alone, otherwise a parade of women and boys come forward saying they were sexually harassed by you.
So, at what "point" would it be appropriate to do so???
Politicians must have some kind of secret book that they reference when anything gets sticky. This book must contain over a billion reasons not to do something.
As an engineer by trade, I learned long ago that it's quite easy to come up with reasons not to do something; the successful ones come up with ways to make things work.
I thank it’s too late for Cantor to face an opponent in this primary season but there’s always next time.
For the MURDER of over 200+ Mexicans citizens, and at least one BP agent?
Holders just killing the Mexicans that Americans are too lazy to kill.
Anyone in congress who is not pushing hard to put Holder and BamBam in jail is not worthy of one cent of support. They should well join Dick Lugar in retirement only without funding, but that’s another problem with our mercenary congress.
He’s not up to handling the massive hate that will come at him from the Left. They would do to him what they did to Newt and Sarah. He knows GOPe will not have his back because they could care less about the rule of law and the constitution.
I think it’s gonna happen (the contempt citation). It’s just a matter of timing it to maximize the impact. If you can get Obama to cut loose his A-G, then you get Holder to start talking. As long as Obama has his back that wasn’t going to happen. In the middle of the presidential campaign I think that Obama starts re-evaluating.
BTTT
Now that's a big surprise! < /S >
Portable mattresses, portable red lights and sacks of quarters, each and every one.
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