{"id":1801,"date":"2011-12-08T17:48:15","date_gmt":"2011-12-08T22:48:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/faithandjustice\/?p=1801"},"modified":"2011-12-08T17:50:12","modified_gmt":"2011-12-08T22:50:12","slug":"jay-sekulow-ag-holder-refuses-to-take-responsibility-for-fast-furious","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithandjustice\/2011\/12\/jay-sekulow-ag-holder-refuses-to-take-responsibility-for-fast-furious.html","title":{"rendered":"Jay Sekulow: AG Holder Refuses to Take Responsibility for Fast & Furious"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>Attorney General Eric Holder had an opportunity today before the House Judiciary Committee to set the record straight – to come clean about the ill-conceived law enforcement program called Operation Fast & Furious. But instead of taking responsibility for a tragic program that took the life of a U.S. border patrol agent, the Attorney General refused to go down that road. He accepted no blame. Instead, he accused his critics<\/a> of attempting to “score political points” – pointing fingers instead of providing testimony that was transparent.<\/p>\n

Amazing.<\/p>\n

Holder admitted<\/a> the program that placed weapons into the hands of Mexico’s drug cartels will continue to show up at crime scenes in the U.S. and Mexico “for years to come.” What’s even more troubling is that the Attorney General denied that anyone at the Department of Justice lied to Congress about the operation, despite the fact that the DOJ just admitted that a letter sent to Congress about the failed operation months ago had to be withdrawn because it contained false information<\/a>. Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner of Wisconsin told Holder “heads should roll”<\/a> and even suggested possible impeachment for Holder. All of this as Holder denied that anyone from DOJ lied about Operation Fast & Furious in this exchange<\/a> with Sensenbrenner.<\/p>\n

The fact is no one at the Department of Justice is taking responsibility for Fast & Furious. Not the Attorney General. Not his chief criminal deputy who claims<\/a> he never reviewed the letter containing false information despite congratulating the authors of the memo and forwarding it repeatedly to his personal email account.<\/p>\n

As I pointed out in an interview today with Megyn Kelly on FOX News, time may be running out for the Attorney General. This debacle clearly shows a lack of governance and leadership at the Justice Department. You can watch the interview here.<\/p>\nhttp:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=Drj73IptY0I&feature=player_embedded<\/a>\n

Sen. Charles Grassley of Iowa already has called for the resignation of Holder’s chief deputy<\/a>\u00a0in the criminal division. And more than 50 members of Congress <\/a>are calling on the Attorney General to resign.<\/p>\n

And, now in the House, there’s a ‘no confidence’ resolution aimed squarely at the Attorney General being introduced by Arizona Rep. Paul Gosar.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>The resolution<\/a> contends that Holder’s actions have proven the nation’s “top law enforcement official” is not “competent, trustworthy and beyond reproach” and that he has sought to “cover up” mistakes when they are made rather than cooperating with Congress “in disclosing the events and circumstances and transparently addressing the issues.”<\/p>\n

We believe this ‘no confidence’ resolution will be telling. With the growing discontent about the Attorney General’s leadership on this issue, we expect this resolution to get a lot of support. A move is now underway to get it before the full House for a vote.<\/p>\n

A growing number of Americans are also expressing ‘no confidence’ in the Attorney General. In fact, nearly 30,000 people already have signed on to our petition demanding that Holder and President Obama take responsibility for Fast & Furious. If you haven’t done so already, take a moment and add your name to this important petition<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The American people deserve the truth about Operation Fast & Furious. Today’s testimony by Attorney General Holder did little to get to the bottom of what happened and why, and underscored what we already knew – that no one is taking responsibility for this fiasco.<\/p>\n

Jay Sekulow<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Attorney General Eric Holder had an opportunity today before the House Judiciary Committee to set the record straight – to come clean about the ill-conceived law enforcement program called Operation Fast & Furious. But instead of taking responsibility for a tragic program that took the life of a U.S. border patrol agent, the Attorney General…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":401,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[467,66,302,1],"tags":[743,494,468,495,791,445],"class_list":["post-1801","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-attorney-general-eric-holder","category-u-s-constitution","category-u-s-department-of-justice","category-uncategorized","tag-aclj","tag-attorney-general-holder","tag-fast-and-furious","tag-house-judiciary-committee","tag-jay-sekulow","tag-justice-department"],"yoast_head":"\nJay Sekulow: AG Holder Refuses to Take Responsibility for Fast & Furious - Faith & Justice<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithandjustice\/2011\/12\/jay-sekulow-ag-holder-refuses-to-take-responsibility-for-fast-furious.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Jay Sekulow: AG Holder Refuses to Take Responsibility for Fast & Furious - Faith & Justice\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Attorney General Eric Holder had an opportunity today before the House Judiciary Committee to set the record straight – to come clean about the ill-conceived law enforcement program called Operation Fast & Furious. 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He is also Chief Counsel of the European Centre for Law and Justice (ECLJ). Jay Sekulow is one of the leading defenders of constitutional rights and religious liberties in the United States. Over the past 25 years, Jay Sekulow has amassed an unparalleled record of accomplishment, arguing before the U.S. Supreme Court on 12 occasions. His aggressive litigation strategy before the Supreme Court has led to many landmark First Amendment victories. In his first case before the Supreme Court, Jews for Jesus, Jay Sekulow secured the right of religious groups to pass out tracks in airports. In Mergens, Jay Sekulow successfully protected the right of students to form Bible clubs and prayer groups on public school campuses. In Lamb\u2019s Chapel, Jay Sekulow cleared the way for churches to have equal access to public facilities in the same way that other groups are permitted to utilize those facilities. In the Bray and Operation Rescue cases, Jay Sekulow protected the free speech rights of pro-life advocates to be free from criminal prosecution for conveying their pro-life message. In McConnell v. FEC, Jay Sekulow protected the right of young people to engage in the political process by donating to the campaign of their choice. In Pleasant Grove, Jay Sekulow paved the way for governments to be able to display Ten Commandments monuments, and other monuments of their choosing, in public parks. Through the ACLJ, Jay Sekulow engages the political, legal, and cultural battles facing America today. He routinely works with Members of Congress, advising them on proposed legislation and representing them in critical legal matters. Jay Sekulow has also testified before Congress on the constitutionality of proposed legislation. Also, in addition to being a successful Supreme Court advocate, Jay Sekulow is a highly respected broadcaster. Jay Sekulow is the host of Jay Sekulow Live! which airs each weekday on over 850 radio stations nationwide, in addition Sirius and XM satellite radio. He brings insight and education to listeners daily through this national call-in radio program. He is also the host of the ACLJ This Week, the ACLJ\u2019s weekly television program. Jay Sekulow regularly appears on major media outlets, including FOX News, CNN, ABC, CBS, and NBC, where he is sought out for his vast experience in constitutional law and his unique insight into many of the pressing legal and political issues facing America today. He is frequently quoted in the nation's leading newspapers and often contributes opinion editorials to national publications. Jay Sekulow has also published numerous law review and other scholarly articles. Jay Sekulow has received numerous honors for his groundbreaking legal work in the area of free speech and religious liberties. The Legal Times has named Sekulow one of \u201cThe 90 Greatest Washington Lawyers of the Last 30 Years\u201d and the National Law Journal has twice named Sekulow one of the \u201c100 Most Influential Lawyers\u201d in the United States. In addition, TIME Magazine listed Jay Sekulow as one of the \"25 Most Influential Evangelicals\" in America. Jay Sekulow\u2019s legal work in defense of religious liberties and human rights extends beyond the United States, having founded the ECLJ in Strasbourg, France, which maintains consultative status with the United Nations. He has also opened offices in Pakistan, Africa, and Jerusalem, Israel. Jay Sekulow is a staunch defender of Israel, presenting arguments before the International Criminal Court at the Hague. His efforts in support of Israel\u2019s right to defend itself from terrorist attacks have been commended by Israeli government officials, one official stating, \"Jay was instrumentally-involved in projects that the President of Israel and the Prime Minister put on our national agenda.\" Jay Sekulow also has a passion for educating the next generation of religious liberty advocates. He is a member of the Regent University Law School Faculty as a Distinguished Professor of Law and routinely teaches courses on constitutional law and presents guest lectures. Jay Sekulow has also started educational programs in international human rights law in Strasbourg, France and at Handong University in South Korea. Jay Sekulow is a graduate of Mercer University, earning both a bachelor\u2019s degree and doctor of jurisprudence. Sekulow served on the editorial staff of the Mercer Law Review and graduated cum laude. He later earned a Ph.D. from Regent University, writing his dissertation on American Legal History. Jay Sekulow also serves on the Board of Trustees for The Supreme Court Historical Society in Washington, D.C. Jay Sekulow, ACLJ Chief Counsels full biography and video. Jay Sekulow on Facebook. Jay Sekulow on Twitter. Jay Sekulow on YouTube.","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithandjustice\/author\/jay_sekulow"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithandjustice\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1801","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithandjustice\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithandjustice\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithandjustice\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/401"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithandjustice\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1801"}],"version-history":[{"count":15,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithandjustice\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1801\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1817,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithandjustice\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1801\/revisions\/1817"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithandjustice\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1801"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithandjustice\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1801"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithandjustice\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1801"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}