Five Things To Know About The Republican Witchhunt Against Attorney General Holder

[Galraedia]

In 2006, during the presidency of George W. Bush, the Justice Department launched the first of a series of misguided “gunrunning” schemes that eventually led to the death of federal Agent Brian Terry. Rather than look to ways to prevent such a tragedy from happening again, however, House Oversight Chair Darrell Issa’s (R-CA) spent his tenure as a committee chair trying unsuccessfully to embarrass Attorney General Eric Holder.

Next week, Issa plans to escalate this witchhunt by holding an committee vote on a resolution to hold the Attorney General in contempt of Congress. Here’s what you need to know about this vote:

1. Issa Has No Case: Issa’s uncovered no evidence showing Holder bears any blame for the botched operations begun under George W. Bush, even though the Justice Department turned over thousands of pages of documents concerning the operations. Instead of accepting this fact, Issa has requested many more documents containing confidential information regarding ongoing law enforcement investigations, and is now threatening to hold Holder in contempt if these documents are not turned over. Holder is entirely correct to withhold these documents, however, because Justice Department documents are not subject to congressional subpoena if they would reveal “strategies and procedures that could be used by individuals seeking to evade [DOJ's] law enforcement efforts.”

2. Reagan’s Justice Department Agreed With Holder: President Reagan’s Justice Department warned in the 1980s that the Constitution’s separation of powers prevents the kind of documents Issa is seeking from being revealed to Congress because of the risk that the legislature could “exert pressure or attempt to influence the prosecution of criminal cases.”

Read more: http://thinkprogress.org/justice/2012/06/13/498521/five-things-to-know-about-the-house-oversight-chairs-witchhunt-against-attorney-general-holder/

[HowHasItComeToThis]

1. ISSA IS A THUG FROM CLEVELAND NOW REPRESENTING THE MILITARY INDUSTRIAL COMPLEX

THEY WILL DESTROY AMERICA TO GET CONTRACTS

[Woody Woodpecker]

2. The car thief belongs in prison

not in Congress.

Arrest the man, sentence him to 20 years to life, and placed him in a solitary wing of the worst prison in California.

[Drale]

3. Of course Issa doesn't have case

he never does. He is probably the biggest waist of time and money in Congrees and possible ever in Congress. He should be thrown out on his ass just under those terms alone.

[EC]

4. Ever since he downed Grey Davis by starting that recall

he's been nothing but a hitman for the repubs.

[freshwest]

5. I prefer Holder to the Bush appointees, like John Ashcroft and Alberto Gonzales. n/t

[DCKit]

6. But why? It's not as if Holder has done anything.... like anything, at all.

Maybe this will piss him off enough to start doing his job.

The FBI and DOJ haven't gone after anyone, for anything, (domestically) since W* stole the WH.

[roguevalley]

7. really. start with don siegelman. this putz is a lost cause, our Eric

I don't have words to say how disappointing and cowardly I feel him to be.

[yortsed snacilbuper]

8. Why don't we go after dumbya,

he's a war criminal for xhrists sakes!