House GOP to distribute draft contempt citation against Eric Holder over "gunwalking"

[maddezmom]

Source: CBS

(CBS News) Republicans on the House Oversight Committee were to take the first formal step Thursday toward contempt proceedings against Attorney General Eric Holder over the Fast and Furious "gunwalking" operation, CBS News has learned.

¬snip¬

The documents allege that the Justice Department has issued, "false denials, given answers intended to misdirect investigators, sought to intimidate witnesses, unlawfully withheld subpoenaed documents, and waited to be confronted with indisputable evidence before acknowledging uncomfortable facts."

¬snip¬
For its part, the Justice Department says it has complied with the congressional investigations, led by Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA) and Sen. Charles Grassley (R-Iowa).


"We've done twice-a-month (document) productions since last year, and the Attorney General has testified about this matter no less than seven times," a Justice official tells CBS News.


There have been at least three House contempt actions against the Executive Branch in the past 30 years.


Read more: http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-503544_162-57426710-503544/house-gop-to-distribute-draft-contempt-citation-against-eric-holder-over-gunwalking/

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some background links

Documents Suggest Bush Administration Used 'Fast And Furious' Tactics
http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2012/01/05/144761413/documents-suggest-bush-administration-used-fast-and-furious-tactics

Documents Highlight Bush-Era Incident Pre-Dating ‘Fast and Furious’
http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2011/10/new-documents-reveal-previous-problems-with-atf-phoenix-cases/

[tularetom]

1. This a can of worms they don't want to open IMO

Eric Holder hasn't really handled this well and he probably deserves to have his weenie wacked over it.

But this screwed up mess did not originate with the Obama Justice Dept., it was initiated in 2005 or 2006 by ATF during the Bush administration and although it was well known by the justice dept that gunwalking was going on, they made no arrests or indictments during the years from 2006-2009.

[hack89]

8. This is simple political pay back

There were two separate operations Operation Wide Receiver was Bush's and ended in 2007. Operation Fast and Furious was started in 2009.

There were indictments and arrests when the Obama DOJ investigated Operation Wide Receiver starting in 2009. The Republicans want a similar investigation into Fast and Furious

[appal_jack]

22. Let the worms crawl where they will

I despise Issa, and am sure he will exhibit utmost hypocrisy during any further investigations. But the fact remains that the BATFE broke the law, and Holder may very well have helped them cover it up.

Holder has displayed an awful disregard for the Constitution, not only with respect to guns, but also his drug-warrior bullshit too. Were he to fall on the gunwalking sword, I would shed no tears.

-app

[goclark]

2. Here we go again

Rethugs in action.

[jwirr]

6. Yes, more of the same. We have all seen the list of accomplishments that Obama has gained over

the years - why is there no list of gop obstruction events? We here at DU need to compile a list of all the NO Party's accomplishments at obstruction in order to destroy our president. This is just another in a long line. Once compiled the list of obstructions should be sent along the internet in the same way the gop sends their hate messages. To eveyone and anyone.

[goclark]

13. As I recall

the list was looooooooooooooooog for all the absolute "needing jail time" things done by the Bush Administration and there were always crickets.

[jwirr]

15. Actually I was thinking of our present day gop congress.

[cin63]

3. I thought the GOP

started this program under Bush? Am I wrong on this?

[bayareaboy]

4. I think you have your ...

finger pointing in the right direction!

[hack89]

7. Kind of wrong - there were two separate programs.

Operation Wide Receiver was Bush's and ended in 2007. Operation Fast and Furious was started in 2009.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ATF_gunwalking_scandal

[groundloop]

5. My take - they can't find any dirt on President Obama....

and the House repubs are desperate for anything to to discredit the administration in an election year.

[bemildred]

9. I just don't know who to side with here. nt

[Iliyah]

10. This shit started

with Bushies

Where are the effing jobs!

[Jester Messiah]

11. Still with this crap?

Note to GOP: Nobody cares.

[lsewpershad]

12. When is this creep

Issa up for re-election??????

[onehandle]

14. The GOP loves anything that diverts attention away from the real problem. Guns themselves. nt

[Johnny Rico]

16. If guns are the problem, what's your legislative solution?

[hack89]

17. And there I was thinking it was criminals and drug cartels.

silly me.

[MicaelS]

18. Bullshit..."The Real Problem" is the War on Drugs..

Just like Alcohol Prohibition gave rise to a new class of criminals who used guns to further their trade, the same thing has happened with Drug Prohibition. Full automatic weapons (machine guns) were legal to own before Prohibition, and people weren't slaughtering one another.

So this country has had TWO failed attempts at Prohibition, and you want to try a THIRD with Gun Prohibition?

[friendly_iconoclast]

19. "Prohibition 3: Firearms- THIS time, it's sure to work!"

[onehandle]

20. Heh. Gungeoneers get touchy and come out of their hidey-hole.

See above this post.

'My precious.'

[MicaelS]

21. I notice you're dodging our responses, too n/t