Its hard to envision a more compelling candidate for congressional oversight. The protracted, obstinacy and delay by the DOJ is obvious.

The DOJ must fess up and deliver all material even remotely relevant to this investigation. They have lost the public trust.

The underlying facts of this case are certainly more relevant to most Americans  than the question of what lawyer/ client communications are privileged as in the case of Harriet Myers where there was no underlying crime.

The contempt citation was required and overdue.

Just release the documents the committee requires and the problem goes away.

The civil contempt allows the Committee to file suit forcing Holder to turn over the documents and a privilege log.

Just like they make bad choices when they get to appoint federal judges and Supreme Court Justices.

House Democrats said Mr. Holder talked to Democrats at a White House picnic on Wednesday to hold Democratic yes votes to a minimum.

The other thought I have is that I have never seen the Dems so riled up at the Republicans. This action, holding Holder in contempt, has their heads exploding in righteous indignation.

Other actions by the Republicans, such as the former President's criminal activities, not so much. Let's move on, they say.

The ongoing existence of Gitmo, blamed on the Repubs, not so much.

The sinking of the public option, blamed on the Repubs, not so much.

All I can suppose is what gets the Dems afussin and afeudin has to do with politics. Pelosi thinks that since she and the Dems let Karl Rove off the hook, the Repubs owe them something in return. She's miffed.

But the Republican policies of suppression of civil and human rights, detention without charge or trial, throwing people in jail for smoking a weed, etc. -- that stuff doesn't disturb 'em. All I can suppose is that the Dems identify with these atrocious policies. From top to bottom.

I am an LEO, work the border quite a bit, have almost two decades of specialized surveillance experiance and have done too many buy walk ops to count.

The fact that something was rotten in Denmark was apparent to ANY experienced LEO who works contraband cases with a major agency against the Cartels.

If this had been a one time op, consisting of all rookies, one might have been able to excuse it as the stupidest buy walk ever conceived. It could ONLY fail by conventional metrics.   But I got suspicious for the exact same reason some of the whistle blowers did.  The people in charge were highly experianced.  They had to know EXACTLY how seriously flawed this program was.  It could not be a mistake or an accident.

And inspite of what would normally be considered "complete failure" as the results, they kept doing it for many, many months... That means they wanted the results they were getting.... The level of failure they got on almost every single buy walk purchase of Fast and Furious would normally lead to administrative disipline in most agencies.... "Say what, you lost the guns, AND the perps again???".  

Because the results were so predictable, the continuing outcomes were obviously desired.  The next question you ask is, "Why on God's green earth would they want that?".  Why didn't they tell Govt of Mexico?  Why didn't they tell State?   Why didn't they even at least tell ATF leadership in Mexico?

It was absolutely apparent that Mexican cops would die if they didn't work with one or all of those agencies.  As surely as giving missiles to the Afghan Mujahdeen in the 80s brought down Russian helicopters....

Calderon would be jumping up and down on Pres Obama's desk if he had known.  Hillary would do a beat down on Holder.  Pinetta would have held Holder down for her.  

*Federal Law Enforcement does not like scandals.  We had a few hookers in Columbia and 6 federal agents were fired within a week.*

While an AUSA has retired, and another ATF upper level has been reassigned at the same pay grade, NOBODY has been fired at ATF in the year and a half since this came to light with the death of a CBP agent.

Two federal agents have been killed and scores are dead on the other side of the border.

GoM has asked for extradition of some of the ATF agents involved.

If I was head of an agency, and some of my people did something that ill advised that was linked to the death of two federal agents and scores of citizens of another country including their law enforcement officers, heads would be rolling and getting punted, far worse than they would for a couple of hookers complaining....

The secret service fired more people in one week over a hooker than DOJ/ATF has in a year and a half over dead bodies of fellow agents.

If you, as an attorney, asked for documents and got 2% of what you asked for and they were highly redacted, in some cases more black then while on the paper, how long would it take you to compose a motion to compel?

Under the theory of some people here, Watergate would just have been an obscure footnote in history about a petty burglary because RM Nixon had every right under executive privledge to protect his inner circle from their criminal acts.  He didn't, and that is where this too will go.  

I don't know if Eric Holder is involved.  But radical operations like this get signed off pretty high.  Anyone who goes off the reservation that far on their own is looking at getting fired in federal law enforcement.  And these guys were career ATF so they weren't going to jeopardize their jobs without operating with high cover.

If there were agents being fired and leadership forced to retire in the last year, I might buy it.   But one could theorize they can't fire people up high because they will flip when prosecuted.  

And and there aren't a whole lot of theories left to explain why everybody still has a job....  

2% of the documents turned over, dead bodies stacked up like cordwood, and nobody is fired?  Not even for incompetence.

But sexually harrass women in air force recruit training and they charge Sgts criminally and fire the Colonel who was the commander of thousands in the Training command.  

THAT is how it normally works.

The only people the ATF has gone after has been the whistle blowers....