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The Justice Department moved Friday to shield Attorney General Eric Holder from prosecution after the House voted to hold him in contempt of Congress.
The contempt vote technically opens the door for the House to call on the U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia to bring the case against Holder before a grand jury. But because U.S. Attorney Ronald Machen works for Holder and because President Obama has already asserted executive privilege over the documents in question, it was expected Holder's Justice Department would not take that step.
It was THERE FUCKING JOB THEN TOO!!!!A department official told Fox News the letter was "pro forma" -- or a formality -- considering that ex-Attorney General Michael Mukasey in 2008 also refused to refer two Bush White House aides to a grand jury after they were held in contempt.
Attorney General Eric Holder demanded answers from his staff on the Fast and Furious operation in February and March last year, according to email exchanges reported on by the Associated Press. We need answers on this. Not defensive BS. Real answers, Holder said on Feb. 23, 2011, in response to a CBS report on the operation, according to the AP, citing two people who have seen the emails.
The emails by Holder and one by Deputy Attorney General James Cole were included in the documents the Justice Department had shown Republican staffers in hopes of avoiding a contempt vote in the House Oversight Committee last week. The two sides couldnt come to an agreement and the committee, led by Chairman Darrell Issa (R-Calif.), voted to cite Holder for contempt. The full House of Representatives will vote on contempt Thursday afternoon. The emails apparently show that neither Holder nor Cole were aware of the gun-walking tactic employed by the ATF. We obviously need to get to the bottom of this, said Cole on Mar. 3, 2011.
Told on March 10 by an ATF official official that we did not allow guns to walk, Holder remained doubtful, responding, Do they really, really know that there was no gun-walking? Through the Fast and Furious gun-walking operation, the ATF allowed over a thousand firearms to cross the border into Mexico in hopes that they could track down weapons traffickers and drug cartels.
Two firearms linked to the program were found at the scene of U.S. Border Patrol Agent Brian Terrys shooting death in Dec. 2010. The House of Representatives will vote Thursday on whether to hold the attorney general in contempt of Congress over withholding certain Justice Department documents related to Fast and Furious. The Justice Department maintains that traditionally internal deliberations within the DOJ have been withheld.
Read more: Fast and Furious: Eric Holder said no 'BS' on guns, report says - POLITICO.com
I would expect the House to anticipate the refusal of Holder's DC-DA to prosecute Holder. They ought to already have a special prosecutor in mind.
Indeed, 53 percent of respondents looked favorably upon the rebuke of Holders unwillingness to hand over documents related to the Fast and Furious gun-walking program, while 33 percent disapproved of the vote. 13 percent had no opinion. The vote was held, Republicans say, because Holder was not fully compliant with a House subpoena requesting documents related to the Fast and Furious operation. Democrats and the Justice Department counter that the documents withheld are internal deliberations that have, by tradition, been kept private throughout past administrations of both parties.
Though most Americans approve of the contempt vote, they are suspicious of GOP motives. Only 34 percent think that congressional Republicans are investigating Holder because they have real ethical concerns. Most respondents, 69 percent, said that the president should stop invoking executive privilege over the documents and answer all questions. Sixty-one percent said that they considered the vote political that Republicans are investigating Holder and the Fast and Furious operation because they want a political advantage. Less than a third, 27 percent, say that the president should continue using the privilege.
Meanwhile, Holders approval rating has not changed dramatically over his tenure as attorney general: 25 percent have a favorable opinion of him, up from 23 percent in Dec. 2009; while 31 percent have an unfavorable opinion of him, up from 24 percent. The poll was conducted June 28 to July 1, with a sample size of 1,390 registered voters and a sampling error of plus or minus 2.5 percentage points.
Read more: Eric Holder contempt vote supported by most Americans, poll says - Tim Mak - POLITICO.com
