Speaker of the House John Boehner escalated the battle between the House of Representatives and the Executive Branch today over documents relating to the botched "Fast and Furious" gun trafficking operation, accusing the White House of possibly being complicit in a cover-up.
"Until now, everyone believed that the decisions regarding ‘Fast and Furious’ were confined to the Department of Justice," said Boehner spokesman Michael Steel. "The White House decision to invoke executive privilege implies that White House officials were either involved in the ‘Fast and Furious’ operation or the cover-up that followed. The Administration has always insisted that wasn't the case. Were they lying, or are they now bending the law to hide the truth?”
The House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform is voting today on whether to hold Attorney General Eric Holder in contempt of Congress for his failure to turn over some documents relating to the investigation into the gun-walking operation, which resulted in the death of a U.S. Border Patrol agent and many more Mexican citizens. Holder requested that the White House claim executive privilege over some of the documents early today.