Congressional Black Caucus Honors Eric Holder

Attorney General Eric Holder was awarded the Congressional Black Caucus’s Chair Award last Saturday at the Phoenix Awards Dinner in Washington, DC. In her keynote speech for the event, First Lady Michelle Obama gushed over Mr. Holder’s “outstanding contributions to our nation.”

Contributions? Does that include Operation Fast & Furious, the government gun walking scheme that allowed 2,000 guns to land into the hands of already dangerous Mexican drug cartels? These guns are linked to the deaths of Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry and over 300 Mexican citizens. Hundreds are still missing and have recently been found in Colombia. Mr. Holder has not held anyone in the Department of Justice accountable.

The inspector general’s report on Fast & Furious said Mr. Holder did not have previous knowledge of the operation, but even if that is true, it suggests complete incompetence on his part. Mr. Holder and the Old Media claimed it vindicated him, but IG Michael Horowitz said over and over in his hearing that his report did not vindicate Mr. Holder. If anything, it shows he should not be the attorney general.

For example, when it came to Agent Terry’s death, Mr. Holder told Mr. Horowitz, “he would not have expected to be informed about the link between weapons found at Terry’s murder scene and Operation Fast & Furious absent some knowledge that ‘inappropriate tactics’ were used in the investigation.” However, Mr. Holder’s own Chief of Staff Kevin Ohlson said if he received any kind of information regarding Agent Terry’s death, then Mr. Holder should have been informed.

Then again, it’s not surprising the black caucus didn’t take Fast & Furious into consideration. They chose to walk out during the House of Representative’s vote on contempt charges against Mr. Holder.

According to the event’s brochure, Mr. Holder’s award “is presented to an individual whose work and accomplishments stand as a role model for the African-American community and the African Diaspora.”

Fast & Furious is only one example of Holder’s abysmal record. There’s also the New Black Panther Party voter intimidation case, harassing states for passing voter ID laws, and the reactionary lawsuit against Arizona’s attempt to enforce immigration laws. Mr. Holder has made the least political arm of the federal government into its most political one. 

There cannot be a decent explanation how these situations qualify Mr. Holder as a role model for the African-American community.