ERIC HOLDER STILL IN HOT WATER

On February 2, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder will appear before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee to answer questions about the Department of Justice’s role in the botched “Fast and Furious” gun scandal.

During the last hearing on December 8, Holder refused to take any responsibility, or even publicly apologize to the family of slain U.S. Border Patrol Agent Brian A. Terry.

Instead, he arrogantly accused the House Judiciary Committee of playing “political games” with the issue.

·        Attorney General Eric Holder admitted on Thursday that e-mails from his computer were withheld from a congressional investigation into Operation Fast and Furious, angering lawmakers who threatened the nation’s top cop with impeachment and contempt charges.
 
“These are materials we have not and will not produce,” Holder testified during the combative day-long hearing before the House Judiciary Committee.
 
Rep. Darrell Issa (R.-Calif.) compared Holder to disgraced Attorney General John Mitchell of Watergate infamy, as he threatened to bring contempt charges against him for refusing to divulge the documents.
 
“Have you no shame?” Holder snapped at Issa, likening the questioning to Sen. Joe McCarthy’s hearings held to expose Communists in the '50s.
 
Issa criticized Holder for dodging any blame in the operation’s failure, and demanded that everyone implicated in the matter be terminated.
 
“I have no confidence in a President who has full confidence in an attorney general who has in fact not terminated,” or reprimanded, department officials involved, Issa said.
 

In a written statement, Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA), the Chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee expressed deep concern and frustration over the DOJ’s stonewalling tactics in the investigation...

“The Department of Justice’s conduct in the investigation of Operation Fast and Furious has been nothing short of shameful. From its initial denials that nothing improper occurred, to efforts to silence whistleblowers … to its continuing refusal to discuss or share documents related to this cover-up, the Justice Department has fought tooth and nail to hide the full truth about what occurred and what senior officials knew.”

Although Holder has agreed to appear on February 2, a letter from December 2011 from the DOJ informed the Committee that it would not deliver subpoenaed documents relating to the botched gun-walking scandal as requested. Department of Justice officials who had responsibilities in case also have refused to cooperate in the investigation.

However, unlike the earlier hearing, there is a buzz on Capitol Hill that Congress may move forward with contempt of Congress proceedings if Holder fails to produce requested documents -- documents the DOJ has already thumbed their collective noses at.

Does Eric Holder believe he’s above the law, and doesn’t owe the American people, or the family of the slain Border Agent the facts about “Fast and Furious.”

And this isn’t Holder’s first brush with scandal.

Throughout his tenure he has often used strong-arming and intimidation tactics to make very questionable decisions that affect the security of our nation.

In fact, The American Center for Law and Justice reports that only a few months ago, the DOJ outrageously tried in vain to put into place a procedure that would permit officials to lie when responding to public requests for sensitive documents involving the Freedom of Information Act...

Is this someone who should be the U.S. Attorney General?