GOP sues to force Obama, Holder compliance on Fast and Furious

Executive privilege at issue

A civil lawsuit filed Monday by House Republicans asks a federal court to enforce a congressional subpoena of Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr.in his refusal to turn over documents sought in an investigation by aHouse committee into the failed Fast and Furious gunrunning operation.

House Speaker John A. Boehner said in a statement the lawsuit seeks to overturn the Obama administration’s “frivolous executives privilege claims,” forcing the Justice Department to make public documents theHouse Oversight and Government Reform Committee claims could show who at the department was aware of the botched investigation and what they did about it.

Mr. Boehner said President Obama and his team were ignoring an Oct. 11 congressional subpoena — something the courts have long recognized as valid — and that lawmakers were left with no choice but to ask the U.S. District Court in Washington to referee.

“By stonewalling Congress and ignoring a contempt order, the Justice Department has left the House no choice but to take legal action so we can get to the bottom of the Fast and Furious operation that cost border Agent Brian Terry his life,” Mr. Boehner said.

“After providing — then retracting — inaccurate information to Congress, Attorney General Holder has gone to extraordinary lengths to block access to subpoenaed documents and deny the efforts of the Terry family to get the truth,” he said.

“The White House has been complicit in this effort to hide the truth by making executive privilege claims that have no merit, which is why today’s action is necessary,” the Ohio Republican said, adding that a bipartisan vote by the House to hold Mr. Holder in contempt “made clear that theObama administration owes the Terry family and the American people the truth.”

He said the House would continue to hold the administration accountable until it provides the documents and answers the questions sought by thecommittee “to ensure that a tragedy like this never happens again.”

The House voted a contempt of Congress citation against Mr. Holder on June 28 in a 255-67 vote for his refusal to turn over subpoenaed documents in the Fast and Furious investigation.

The committee inquiry began in December 2010 after the death of Terry. Two AK-47 semiautomatic weapons purchased by straw buyers as part of Fast and Furious were found at the site of the Terry killing.

More than 2,000 weapons were purchased from Arizona gun shops during the lengthy operation, about 1,000 of which....more >