House committee schedules contempt vote against Holder

[sirjohn]

House committee schedules contempt  vote against Holder

By Sharyl Attkisson

6/11/ CBS News has learned the House Oversight Committee  will vote next week on whether to hold Attorney General Eric Holder in contempt  of Congress. It's the fourth time in 30 years that Congress has launched a  contempt action against an executive branch member.

Issa 'TRASHED' Eric Holder  



This time, the dispute stems from Holder failing to turn over  documents subpoenaed on October 12, 2011 in the Fast and Furious "gunwalking"  investigation.

The Justice Department has maintained it has cooperated fully  with the congressional investigation, turning over tens of thousands of  documents and having Holder testify to Congress on the topic at least eight  times.

However, Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., says the Justice  Department has refused to turn over tens of thousands of pages of documents.  Those include materials created after Feb. 4, 2011, when the Justice Department  wrote a letter to Congress saying no gunwalking had occurred. The Justice  Department later retracted the denial.

"The Obama Administration has not asserted Executive Privilege  or any other valid privilege over these materials and it is unacceptable that  the Department of Justice refuses to produce them. These documents pertain to  Operation Fast and Furious, the claims of whistleblowers, and why it took the  Department nearly a year to retract false denials of reckless tactics," Issa  wrote in an announcement of the vote to be released shortly. It will reveal the  vote is scheduled for Wednesday, June 20.

Read the memo and draft version of contempt  report (PDF) Gov't answers CBS News "Fast and Furious" records  requests with blank pages Republicans prep contempt citation against Holder  over Fast and Furious ATF let "gunwalking" suspect go after  arrest

Issa says the Justice Department can still put a stop to the  contempt process at any time by turning over the subpoenaed  documents.

If the House Oversight Committee approves the contempt  citation, the matter would likely be scheduled for a full House vote.

For several weeks, there has been closed-door discussions and  debate among House Republicans as to whether to move forward with contempt. Some  have expressed concern that it could distract from the Republican's focus on the  economy in this election year.

Led by Republicans Senator Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, and Issa,  Congress' investigation into Fast and Furious is now in its second year. In the  ATF operation, agents allowed thousands of weapons to "walk" into the hands of  Mexican drug cartels in the hope it would somehow help ATF take down a major  cartel. Some of the weapons were used in the murder of Border Patrol Agent Brian  Terry at the hands of illegal immigrants crossing into Arizona. Mexican press  reports say hundreds of Mexicans have died at the hands of the trafficked  weapons. The story was exposed nationally for the first time by CBS News in  February 2011.

Democrats on the House Oversight Committee have called the  Republicans' move to find Holder in contempt a politically-motivated "witch  hunt."

In 1983, Congress found EPA administrator Anne Gorsuch Burford  in contempt for failing to produce subpoenaed documents.

In 1998, the GOP-controlled House Oversight committee found  Attorney General Janet Reno in contempt for failing to comply with a subpoena on  campaign finance law violations.

In 2008, the Democratic-led House Oversight Committee found  former White House counsel Harriet Miers and Chief of Staff John Bolton in  contempt for failing to cooperate with an inquiry into whether a purge of  federal prosecutors by the Bush administration was politically  motivated.

Congress went to federal court to seek enforcement of that  contempt action, but a compromise was reached with the Executive Branch before  any court decision was final.

Update 11:30 a.m. ET: On Monday morning, Issa  formally announced the committee vote on contempt, set for Wednesday, June 20.  House Speaker John Boehner also released a statement supporting the move, saying  "the Justice Department is out of excuses."

"Congress has given Attorney General Holder more than enough  time to fully cooperate with its investigation into 'Fast and Furious,' and to  help uncover the circumstances regarding the death of Border Agent Brian Terry,"  Boehner added. "Either the Justice Department turns over the information requested, or Congress will have no choice but to move forward with holding the  Attorney General in contempt for obstructing an ongoing  investigation.

[sirjohn]

OBAMA AND THE MASSIVE THEFT OF PUBLIC MONEY

Obama Gives Half a $BILLION of Our Money to ACORN  Crony

moonbattery.com ^ | 06/11/2012 | Dave Blount

La corrupta mafia de Obama que lo  puso en la Casa Blanca por medio del fraude electoral, recibe de Obama  billones  por sus servicios,un escandaloso robo de los dineros del  pueblo que perpetran con plena impunidad.

Obama’s alma mater has been revealed as the most  profoundly corrupt institution conceivable. But that isn’t stopping the nuts  behind ACORN from receiving massive amounts of our money, compliments of the  Manchurian Moonbat.

[An] ACORN official (Joe  McGavin) will go from operating a corrupt leftist community group that’s banned  by Congress from receiving federal funding to controlling over $445 million in  U.S. taxpayer funds. The money is  part of a $7.6 billion Treasury Department program to help the “unemployed or  substantially underemployed” make their mortgage  payments.

McGavin is director of the Illinois Hardest Hit Program, which  funnels our money to Obama’s homies back in Chicago.

Before that he was director of counseling for ACORN Housing in  Chicago and operations manager for a Chicago ACORN offshoot called Affordable  Housing Centers of America (AHCOA). His strong ties to ACORN make him a suspect  candidate to handle such a huge amount of taxpayer dollars.

That’s putting it mildly. But then, the same goes  double for Obama himself.

The Obama-tied community organization supposedly shut  down after a series of exposés about its illegal activities, including  fraudulent voter registration drives and involvement in the housing market  meltdown. Read all about it in Judicial Watch’s special report, “The Rebranding  of ACORN.” The legal scandals led Congress to pass a 2009 law banning federal  funding for ACORN, which for years enjoyed a huge flow of taxpayer dollars to  promote its various leftwing causes.

However, the Obama Regime has  ignored the ban. This constitutes the massive theft of public money. If the media establishment were the least bit responsible, the  Moonbat Messiah would be on his way to prison in the familiar Illinois political  tradition, rather than possible reelection.



If we had a responsible media  establishment and rule of law.

[sirjohn]

Obama Gives Half a $BILLION of Our Money to ACORN  Crony

moonbattery.com ^ | 06/11/2012 | Dave Blount

La corrupta mafia de Obama que lo  puso en la Casa Blanca por medio del fraude electoral, recibe de Obama  billones  por sus servicios,un escandaloso robo de los dineros del  pueblo que perpetran con plena impunidad.

Obama’s alma mater has been revealed as the most  profoundly corrupt institution conceivable. But that isn’t stopping the nuts  behind ACORN from receiving massive amounts of our money, compliments of the  Manchurian Moonbat.

[An] ACORN official (Joe  McGavin) will go from operating a corrupt leftist community group that’s banned  by Congress from receiving federal funding to controlling over $445 million in  U.S. taxpayer funds. The money is  part of a $7.6 billion Treasury Department program to help the “unemployed or  substantially underemployed” make their mortgage  payments.

McGavin is director of the Illinois Hardest Hit Program, which  funnels our money to Obama’s homies back in Chicago.

Before that he was director of counseling for ACORN Housing in  Chicago and operations manager for a Chicago ACORN offshoot called Affordable  Housing Centers of America (AHCOA). His strong ties to ACORN make him a suspect  candidate to handle such a huge amount of taxpayer dollars.

That’s putting it mildly. But then, the same goes  double for Obama himself.

The Obama-tied community organization supposedly shut  down after a series of exposés about its illegal activities, including  fraudulent voter registration drives and involvement in the housing market  meltdown. Read all about it in Judicial Watch’s special report, “The Rebranding  of ACORN.” The legal scandals led Congress to pass a 2009 law banning federal  funding for ACORN, which for years enjoyed a huge flow of taxpayer dollars to  promote its various leftwing causes.

However, the Obama Regime has  ignored the ban. This constitutes the massive theft of public money. If the media establishment were the least bit responsible, the  Moonbat Messiah would be on his way to prison in the familiar Illinois political  tradition, rather than possible reelection.



If we had a responsible media  establishment and rule of law.

[giron61]

Politics Why Obama Will Lose in a Landslide

Blaze.com ^ | 5/31/2012 | Wayne Allyn Root

Most political predictions are made by biased pollsters, pundits, or prognosticators who are either rooting for Republicans or Democrats. I am neither. I am a former Libertarian Vice Presidential nominee, and a well-known Vegas oddsmaker with one of the most accurate records of predicting political races.

Neither Obama nor Romney are my horses in the race. I believe both Republicans and Democrats have destroyed the U.S. economy and brought us to the edge of economic disaster. My vote will go to Libertarian Presidential candidate Gary Johnson in November, whom I believe has the most fiscally conservative track record of any Governor in modern U.S. political history. Without the bold spending cuts of a Gary Johnson or Ron Paul, I don’t believe it’s possible to turnaround America.

But as an oddsmaker with a pretty remarkable track record of picking political races, I play no favorites. I simply use common sense to call them as I see them. Back in late December I released my New Years Predictions. I predicted back then- before a single GOP primary had been held, with Romney trailing for months to almost every GOP competitor from Rick Perry to Herman Cain to Newt- that Romney would easily rout his competition to win the GOP nomination by a landslide. I also predicted that the presidential race between Obama and Romney would be very close until election day. But on election day, Romney will win by a landslide similar to Reagan-Carter in 1980.

Understanding history, today I am even more convinced of a resounding Romney victory. Thirty-two years ago at this moment in time, Reagan was losing by 9 points to Carter. Romney is right now running even in polls. So why do most pollsters give Obama the edge?

First, most pollsters are missing one ingredient- common sense. Here is my gut instinct: not one American who voted for McCain four years ago will switch to Obama. Not one in all the land. But many millions of people who voted for an unknown Obama four years ago are angry, disillusioned, turned off, or scared about the future. Voters know Obama now- and that is a bad harbinger.

Now to an analysis of the voting blocks that matter in U.S. politics:

*Black voters. Obama has nowhere to go but down among this group. His endorsement of gay marriage has alienated many black church-going Christians. He may get 88% of their vote instead of the 96% he got in 2008. This is not good news for Obama.

*Hispanic voters. Obama has nowhere to go but down among this group. If Romney picks Rubio as his VP running-mate the GOP may pick up an extra 10% to 15% of Hispanic voters (plus lock down Florida). This is not good news for Obama.

*Jewish voters. Obama has been weak in his support of Israel. Many Jewish voters and big donors are angry and disappointed. I predict Obama’s Jewish support drops from 78% in 2008 to the low 60’s. This is not good news for Obama.

*Youth voters. Obama’s biggest and most enthusiastic believers from 4 years ago have graduated into a job market from hell. Young people are disillusioned, frightened, and broke- a bad combination. The enthusiasm is long gone. Turnout will be much lower among young voters, as will actual voting percentages. This not good news for Obama.

*Catholic voters. Obama won a majority of Catholics in 2008. That won’t happen again. Out of desperation to please women, Obama went to war with the Catholic Church over contraception. Now he is being sued by the Catholic Church. Majority lost. This is not good news for Obama.

*Small Business owners. Because I ran for Vice President last time around, and I’m a small businessman myself, I know literally thousands of small business owners. At least 40 percent of them in my circle of friends, fans and supporters voted for Obama 4 years ago to “give someone different a chance.” I warned them that he would pursue a war on capitalism and demonize anyone who owned a business…that he’d support unions over the private sector in a big way…that he’d overwhelm the economy with spending and debt. My friends didn’t listen. Four years later, I can’t find one person in my circle of small business owner friends voting for Obama. Not one. This is not good news for Obama.

*Blue collar working class whites. Do I need to say a thing? White working class voters are about as happy with Obama as Boston Red Sox fans feel about the New York Yankees. This is not good news for Obama.

*Suburban moms. The issue isn’t contraception…it’s having a job to pay for contraception. Obama’s economy frightens these moms. They are worried about putting food on the table. They fear for their children’s future. This is not good news for Obama.

*Military Veterans. McCain won this group by 10 points. Romney is winning by 24 points. The more our military vets got to see of Obama, the more they disliked him. This is not good news for Obama.

Add it up. Is there one major group where Obama has gained since 2008? Will anyone in America wake up on election day saying “I didn’t vote for Obama four years ago. But he’s done such a fantastic job, I can’t wait to vote for him today.” Does anyone feel that a vote for Obama makes their job more **noallow**?

Forget the polls. My gut instincts as a Vegas oddsmaker and common sense small businessman tell me this will be a historic landslide and a world-class repudiation of Obama’s radical and risky socialist agenda. It’s Reagan-Carter all over again.

But I’ll give Obama credit for one thing- he is living proof that familiarity breeds contempt.

[giron61]

Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry’s mother and father released a statement today on President Obama’s executive privilege.  Attorney General Eric Holder’s refusal to fully disclose the documents associated with Operation Fast and Furious and President Obama’s assertion of executive privilege serves to compound this tragedy. It denies the Terry family and the American people the truth. Whose heart could no go out to these parents, Brian Terry's whole family, friends, and associates?  Well, I believe we are finding out aren't we. It is sad to see our nation dragged through something like this.  It is sadder still to see stonewalling, lies, obstruction, political maneuvers intended to quash this investigation. I took the time to watch the Democrats on the Issa Oversight Committee speak out in objection to the Contempt vote today.  I am a thinking man.  If I had doubt about Holder or Obama's involvement, and obstuction here, I would say so.  I have nothing to gain from harassing government figures who are doing a good job.  All I ask from the Democrats, is an open honest participation in these proceedings.  Not one Democrat showed more concern about the likely treachery, than they showed for trying to cover up what is going on.  The comments, the stories, the pathetic excuses, it is shameful what the Democrats are doing.  One even had the audacity to demand more gun control, what many poeple believe was the main drive behind 'Fast and Furious' in the first place. We constantly hear about the Left's caring for illegal immigrants more than law and order people do.  We constantly hear about how heartless we are, if we won't buy into rewarding illegal immigrants and thier children.  I come here to point out that hundreds of Mexicans were gunned down by 'Fast and Furious' weapons.  Those weapons were supplied by the Obama administration, through White House, Justice Department, and BATF personell. Nobody is more strident about demanding illegal immigrants be shown the door than I am.  That being said, I have also demanded that they be treated humanely here.  I do not want to see the women abused.  I do not want to see the children abused.  I don't want to see the men abused.  I want them rounded up, sent back to Mexico, and goods and services cut off for those who remain here.  I do not think of Mexicans as inferior.  They are humans.  They must be treated humanely.  We must have sorrow when their people are gunned down.  We must not act like Democrats. Guess what.  You and I deserve to be treated humanely too.  We do not deserve to have our money taken to support foreign nationals.  We do not deserve to have our communities around this nation over-run by foreign nationals.  Our children deserve a good education in schools that are modern and clean.  We deserve access to health care facilities that are not under stress because of the goods and services they provide that they don't get paid for. Our Second Amendment gun rights should not be infringed upon. What drives me nuts, is that the Mexican people killed by 'Fast and Furious' guns have all but been forgotten in all this.  I have a lot of sympathy for them. I sure wish the Left in the United States did.  I wish they wanted to find out who was responsible for the hundreds of dead Mexicans.  Sadly, they don't. They don't even give a damn who provided guns found at the place where Brian Terry lay dead. Not one Democrat voted for the Contempt charges today.  I'd be surprised if one votes for it in the full House. Brian Terry's parents, I am sorry.  I want the person who supplied those guns to be held responsible.  I want those who implemented the policy of sending guns to Mexico, and then not tracking them, to be held responsible.  If every Democrat in this nation disagrees with me, I want justice in this case. I want it for Terry and you.  I want it for the dead Mexican citizens. I want it, so that our nation will be seen as honest about our mistakes, a nation that tries to right it's own wrongs, a nation that truly does care about it's own citizens and the citizens of other nations. We are truly a nation of laws.  And that's why people like others and me do their damndest to make sure we enforce them.