Boehner pressures Holder over "Fast and Furious"

Attorney General Eric Holder

/ File,AP Photo/Danny Johnston

(CBS News) House Speaker John Boehner is ratcheting up the pressure on Attorney General Eric Holder in conjunction with an investigation into the government's role in letting thousands of weapons fall into the hands of Mexican drug cartels.

Boehner and his top two deputies, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor and House Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy, joined Rep. Darrell Issa in their pursuit of documents related to the case, known as "Fast and Furious." Issa, who heads the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, has been aggressively investigating the situation.

"We write to express our concerns with the lack of full cooperation from the Department of Justice with the ongoing Congressional investigation into the operation known as 'Fast & Furious' and the related death of Border Agent Brian Terry," the lawmakers wrote in letter to Holder dated May 18.

The lawmakers acknowledged that Holder had provided documents related to the case to Issa's panel, but they said they wanted answers to two key questions."First, who on your leadership team was informed of the reckless tactics used in Fast & Furious prior to Agent Terry's murder; and, second, did your leadership team mislead or misinform Congress in response to a Congressional subpoena?" the lawmakers asked Holder.

Issa last month sent a 48-page long draft to Boehner that would have accused Holder of contempt of Congress as part of Issa's high-profile probe of matter, now in its second year.

A Republican leadership aide told CBS News last month that the leadership was still deciding whether or not to issue the contempt citation.

The May 18 letter suggests Boehner and Republican leaders are now backing Issa's threat to cite Holder for contempt.

"If necessary, the House will act to fulfill our constitutional obligations in the coming weeks. It is our hope that, with your cooperation, this sad chapter in the history of American law enforcement can be put behind us," they wrote.

[fuwed]

Last time I checked it was a federal felony to sell OR transfer a firearm to anyone disqualified from legal ownership of same. I believe this law applies to law enforcement as well as the general citizens, yet here you have agents not only transfering arms to known traffickers but also extorting legal federal firearms license holders to approve illegal transfers under threat of revocation of their licenses. Highly immoral in my book!

[rshawk]

The wiretap applications and the in house review could be sent over very quickly. I can't see the OIG producing and signing any report at this point and then have to answer questions. The DOJ has stonewalled this into the present and Boehner let them do it, like they were working together.

[marychgo]

"Fast and Furious" lost track of 1,400 of the 2,000 guns it was trying to track. During the same period, some 68,000 guns made their way from the U.S. to Mexican drug cartels. So the F&F guns represented just over 2% of the American guns in the cartels' hands.

If this is the most serious "scandal" you can find in the federal government over the past 3-1/2 years, it sounds like Barack Obama (and his Attorney General Eric Holder) are doing a pretty good job!

[ihavemydoubts]

Wrong! ATF did not "lose track of 1,400 guns, they never attempted to track ANY, some 600 were recovered by police, 1400 still missing.
Over the past decade the State Department under both Bush and Obama has approved direct commercial sale of over 200,000 weapons to Mexico, ostensibly for military and police but it is known that over 25% of them end up in cartel hands. That accounts for nearly ALL of the "U.S.sourced" weapons in Mexico. I do agree that the AFT guns are a drop in the bucket but that doesn't make the crime any less criminal. Try that defense in court "Hey, I'm not the only guy who ever robbed a bank, I didn't rob ALL of the banks" see if that works for ya. And don't forget it was a crime against Mexico, our neighbor and ally. Holder and his whole staff should already be rotting in a Mexican prison for crimes against Mexico and if they survive there then the should be tried for treason against the U.S. It just blows my mind that anyone would try to excuse this on the basis of political party affiliation, I don't give a damn what party he belongs to nor what color his skin may be, he is an accessory to countless acts of murder!

[fuwed]

Bush is a ******, but "wide receiver" was a surveillance operation only,conducted with the knowledge and assistance of the Mexican government. "Fast and Furious" however actually put firearms into the hands of the traffickers, violating both US federal law AND international law. All of you seem to excuse your chosen parties criminal activities because you perceive them as having some righteousness, well they don't. Give it up you worthless marionettes.

[tyf2012]

Neither President Bush nor President Calderon violated International laws by the orders to allow persons back across illegal entry points at the US/Mexican border: there was mutual agreement between the two... The whole issue about Fast and Furious is everyone blaming the USDOJ and ATF agents for not disallowing the executive (essentially military) orders of
their Commanders in Chief (it's like trying to evict a person for paying rent...) For Calderon and Bush it--allowing the the gun smugglers a clearance--was a no brainer decision: those guys are going to get shot and robbed when trying to sneak guns into Mexico regardless of walk/no walk. Would Mexicans be able to get as many guns if those buying the guns US are prevented from handing them off to a smuggler for illegal entrance into Mexico: if a smuggler steals the guns from the US gun buyer--even if it is a staged theft--the guns can still be confiscated from a smuggler prior any attempt to crossing an illegal entrance at the border. But it seems unclear if the Mexican military or Calderon is unhappy with the mass murdering results of more US guns on Mexican soil: if (IF)there are more guns now because of allowing smuggler to go into Mexico at an illegal entrance... There might not be any more guns nor less than at previous non-walk times: but the shootings have become more blatant (not as covert) and more media attention has been paid to the assaults because of the mutual agreement of allowing the smugglers to get across the border. And the reason
is what everyone is now reading about: blame, scandal, media circus with Eric Holder (scapegoated) to look like a whipped schoolboy. 90 lashes with a wet noodle.

[fuwed]

Where and when did I state that I had ANY love for Bush or the Republican party either? My political opinions are not represented by the false dicotomy of the two party system. I thought this was a discussion on the AGe complicity in illegal activities taken under his supervisory role. You Partsan idiots are welcome to "*** for tat" but your not doing the American people a bit of good supporting this nonsense and behaving like people Joseph Goebels would gladly buy lunch for. Sheesh the intelligent citizens have moved on to the thought of "how can we put them all behind bars!" Have fun blowing smoke up each others behinds though....

[fuwed]

Bush is a ******, but "wide receiver was a surveillance operation only conducted with the knowledge and assistance of the Mexican government. "Fast and Furious" however actually put firearms onto the hands of the traffickers, violating both US federal law AND international. All of you seem to excuse your chosen parties criminal activities because you perceive them as having some righteousness, well they don't. Give it up you worthless marionettes.

[RDriftwood]

W. Bush's gunwalking operation "Wide Receiver" was run by the ATF's Tucson office and the U.S. Attorney for Arizona, started in 2006 - when George W. Bush's Attorney General Alberto Gonzales was running the show. No charges were filed. Guess it's ok during a republican administration. But when gop policies spill over into a democrat's administration, it's an excuse to blame Obama. Just like adding to the debt, TARP, wars, etc. etc..

[aigkbrlies]

Holder; We have already gave Mountains of Documents! Well give them the REST of THEM and be DONE WITH IT!!

[rainbowroosie]

What has Holder done to protect whites??? NOTHING. Yes, his blackness is obvious.

[hypnotoad72]

Damn unions and how they made his childhood a living hell... no wonder he wants to get rid of them...

http://www.heraldsun.com/view/full_story/8707878/article-Growing-up-in-Boehner-s-America

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/michaeltomasky/2010/jul/01/usa-republicans-john-boehners-childhood

Let's pressure Boehner over his childhood that was so bad he wants to tear it all down and ruin it for future generations because he's easily bought and paid for, though I thought that sort of activity was illegal... oh well...

[Red_Beagle]

The Repugnicans are real worried about the guy accidentally killed by a botched job, but not at all about the thousands killed by gun violence to uphold the NRA's "rights."

[Carlo319]

IMPEACH, prosecute, and imprison obama, who has committed FRAUD by the very act of having himself put on the ballot.
African Press International - 6/27/2004
"Kenyan-born Obama all set for US Senate "
http://web.archive.org/web/20040627142700/eastandard.net/headlines/news26060403.htm
http://obama-ultimablogspotcom.blogspot.com/2012/05/dee-perez-scott-heres-your-illegitimate.html
http://www.westernjournalism.com/obama-literary-agent-obama-born-in-kenya/
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