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Wednesday, June 27, 2012

Pierluisi Strongly Opposes House Vote to Hold Attorney General Eric Holder in Contempt of Congress

Washington, DC – Resident Commissioner Pedro Pierluisi today expressed his opposition to the decision by the Republican majority in the House of Representatives to hold Attorney General Eric Holder in contempt of Congress in connection with the Attorney General’s alleged failure to turn over to Congress certain documents regarding an operation conducted by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), known as “Fast and Furious.”

“By scheduling a vote tomorrow to hold Attorney General Holder in contempt of Congress, the House majority has crossed the line that separates acceptable oversight activities from improper conduct that ignores settled law, the established precedent governing the relationship between the legislative and executive branches, and the facts of this case,” said Pierluisi.

The Resident Commissioner made this statement during a press conference held in Washington, D.C., which was organized by Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA), a former federal prosecutor. Other Members in attendance included Rep. John Conyers, Jr. (D-MI), the senior Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee; Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX), a member of the Judiciary Committee; and Reps. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY), Gerry Connolly (D-VA), and Mike Quigley (D-IL), all members of the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, whose Republican members have led the effort against Attorney General Holder. All the participants at the press conference strongly criticized House Republicans for their decision to schedule the contempt vote.

“Fast and Furious” was a federal operation that allowed guns from the U.S. to pass into the hands of suspected gun smugglers so that the weapons could be traced to senior members of Mexican drug cartels. Several of these guns were found at a crime scene in Arizona where a U.S. Border Patrol agent, Brian Terry, lost his life at the hands of cartel members.

Attorney General Holder put an end to “Fast and Furious” when he learned of the tactics used in the operation and has cooperated extensively with the investigation conducted by the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, declining only to hand over documents that he cannot disclose under the law or need not disclose under longstanding practice followed by administrations of both parties. Nevertheless, House Republicans have taken the unprecedented step of holding the Attorney General, a member of President Obama’s cabinet, in contempt of Congress for his supposed lack of cooperation.

Referring to the Attorney General, Pierluisi said: “In Mr. Holder, the majority has chosen as its target an honorable and accomplished public servant who deserves far better treatment than he has received. For those of us who trust and respect the Attorney General, these sentiments have only grown deeper upon witnessing the way he has conducted himself in the face of this onslaught.”

“All of us recognize that the ‘Fast and Furious’ operation was fundamentally flawed in design and implementation. It allowed guns to reach the hands of dangerous criminals in Mexico, and several of those guns were found at the scene where Agent Terry lost his life,” Pierluisi said.

“But can any reasonable person contend that, if Fast and Furious never existed, Mexican drug cartels would have been unable to obtain the weapons they have used to kill tens of thousands of human beings? The fact is this: Mexico is flooded with guns, and most of those guns come from the United States,” the Resident Commissioner added.

“So, instead of proceeding with this unwarranted and ultimately pointless contempt vote, Congress should concentrate on the real problem, which is tightening our laws—in a manner consistent with the Second Amendment and Supreme Court case law—to keep guns out of the hands of criminals in this country and Mexico. There are some commonsense measures we can and should take. Because the majority is playing political games that do nothing to make us safer, I am here today to join the chorus of voices calling for responsible leadership and action,” Pierluisi stated in conclusion.