Attorney General Holder Held in Contempt of Congress

Press Release

Yesterday, U.S. Rep. Tom Marino joined with a bipartisan majority of Congress and voted to hold U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder in contempt of Congress for his continued refusal to cooperate with a congressional investigation.

Attorney General Holder has refused to turn over thousands of documents related to the Department of Justice's failed Operation Fast and Furious, which allegedly led to the death of border patrol agent Brian Terry.

"I have long hoped it would not come to this, but I can no longer tolerate the continued refusal to produce congressionally subpoenaed documents by our nation's top law enforcement agent," Marino said. "A constituent brought this failed operation to my attention in early 2010 and, as a member of the House Judiciary Committee, I began asking questions of the Attorney General. Almost a year and a half later, I only have more questions and no answers. The Attorney General and the Administration have had ample time to turn over the subpoenaed materials and shed light on this operation, not just for the family of Border Agent Terry, but for all Americans."

In January of 2009, President Obama pledged that "transparency and the rule of law will be the touchstones of this presidency." Marino added, "the President's actions, and those of the Attorney General, indicate that this is just another Obama Administration broken promise. It is time for Attorney General Holder and President Obama to come clean with the American people and tell us what they know about Operation Fast and Furious and the death of Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry and when they learned of that information."

The House agreed to the civil contempt resolution by a 258 to 95 margin and to the criminal contempt resolution by a 255 to 67 margin. The U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia must now decide whether to file charges against the Attorney General.

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