Should Eric Holder Lose His Job?
Wednesday, the House of Representatives Oversight Committee subpoenaed the Justice Department in its ongoing investigation of “Operation Fast and Furious,” a sting operation coordinated by the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) between 2009 and 2010. The operation, which falls under the jurisdiction of Attorney General Eric Holder, was planned to investigate illegal gun trafficking across the U.S.-Mexico border in which guns were sold to straw purchasers with the hope the firearms could be tracked back to Mexican criminal organizations. The operation ended after Brian Terry, a U.S. Border Patrol Agent, was killed in a shootout in Arizona during a period when senior ATF officials had ordered that gun smugglers be allowed to pass over the border into Mexico. Since then, guns known to have been sold through the botched operation have been traced back to multiple violent crimes.
The subpoena intensified the conflict between the House Oversight Committee and Attorney General Holder, who testified in May 2011 that he first heard about Operation Fast and Furious “probably a few weeks ago.” Here is the Debate Club’s take on whether or not the Attorney General should lose his job:
The Arguments
Yes — Holder has not been honest about his involvement in 'Fast and Furious'
RAUL LABRADOR, U.S. Representative Comment (6)
Yes — Holder needs to be held to a high standard
JUDSON PHILLIPS, Founder of Tea Party Nation Comment (7)
No — There is no need for a resignation, but Obama should not try to cover up an investigation
LARA BROWN, Professor at Villanova University Comment (4)
No — Attorney General Holder is not to blame
LANNY DAVIS, Crisis Management Attorney Comment (11)
No — Congress, not Holder, creates the real problem by bending to the will of the gun lobby
DENNIS A. HENIGAN, Acting President of the Brady Campaign Comment (29)
