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July 5, 2012

Attorney General Eric Holder
Attorney General Eric Holder says he is a
political target in an election year.

Attorney General Eric Holder: Contempt Vote Was Politically Motivated

Attorney General Eric Holder, who was held in contempt during a vote by the Republican-led U. S. House of Representatives that prompted Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) members to march out in protest, called the vote misguided and politically motivated during an election year.

The U.S. House of Representatives voted to hold Holder in contempt for withholding documents about a flawed operation conducted by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. During the operation, illegal guns were allowed to flow into Mexico.  Some of the weapons fell into the hands of drug dealers.  The operation was called “Operation Fast and Furious.”

Once Holder learned about the “operation,” which began under President George W. Bush, he stopped it. The Justice Department turned over 7,000 documents to the House Oversight Committee chaired by Darryl Issa, a Republican congressman from California. Issa, however, wanted more documents. The committee and Justice Department could not reach an agreement, partly because President Barack Obama claimed executive privilege over some of the papers.

Last Thursday, the House of Representatives voted 255 in favor of holding Holder, the first African-American Attorney General, in contempt. Seventeen Democrats sided with Republicans. Another 67 Democrats voted no, and 149 refused to vote.  Holder is the first sitting U.S. Attorney to be held in contempt.

The walkout led by the CBC was joined by the Hispanic Caucus, the Asia-Pacific Caucus and the Progressive Caucus.

U.S. Rep. Emanuel Cleaver, chairman of the CBC, said the vote shows the lengths Republican leadership will go to discredit the attorney general and the President Obama.

African Methodist Episcopal Church Logo
African Methodist Episcopal Church Logo
At its 49th Quadrennial General Convention in Nashville, Tenn., the African Methodist Episcopal Church passed a resolution alleging that Congress is employing strategies similar to ones used after Reconstruction. The strategies are designed to "suppress the votes of those who might change the balance of political power in Congress and in the White House."

"We stand by and will pray for Attorney General Eric Holder to continue to fulfill the responsibilities of his office and call upon elected officials of good will to continue to stand against this contemptible action and to demand fairness and civility in government and in the political area," church members voted on June 28.

Holder called the contempt citation pure politics.

“Today's vote is the regrettable culmination of what became a misguided---and politically motivated—investigation during an election year,” Holder said. “By advancing it over the past year and a half, Congressman Issa and others have focused on politics over public safety.”

In an interview with the Washington Post, Holder charged that Republicans and in particular Issa, have been trying to get back at the Justice Department for its actions on voting rights, gay marriage and immigration.

“I've become a symbol of what they don't like about positions this Justice Department has taken,” Holder told the Post. “I am a proxy for the president in an election year.”

Following the vote in the House, the Justice Department was required to investigate Holder. But in a letter to Speaker of the House John Boehner, Holder's deputy wrote that the department would not investigate the attorney general because he properly withheld documents under executive privilege.

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