HOLDER WITHHOLDING DOCUMENTS FROM INVESTIGATION OF BOTCHED OPERATION FAST AND FURIOUS THAT RESULTED IN THE DEATH OF A U.S. BORDER AGENT

WASHINGTON, JUNE 28, 2012 --  “After numerous appeals for cooperation to Attorney General Holder to produce subpoenaed documents related to the reckless conduct behind Operation Fast and Furious, the House was forced today to find the Attorney General in contempt of Congress,” said Rep. Cliff Stearns (R-FL).  “In this misguided operation, the Obama Administration provided the Mexican drug cartels with weapons that these criminals used to kill hundreds of Mexican citizens and U.S. Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry.  Yet, the Department of Justice (DOJ) refuses to answer key questions about this operation.”

A House committee began an investigation in February 2011.  In a letter to the committee, DOJ officials denied involvement in the operation. In December of 2010, DOJ formally withdrew its denial and acknowledged that Operation Fast and Furious was  “fundamentally flawed.” In responding to Congress, however, the Justice Department has taken the position that it will not share its internal deliberations related to Operation Fast and Furious that occurred after it denied anything inappropriate occurred.  President Obama recently invoked executive privilege to block the subpoena for the record and documents, keeping the committee from finding out how this travesty occurred.