My Congressman, Raul Labrador, Kicking Eric Holder #39;s Butt Over Fast and Furious!
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By: Santo Lippo
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My Congressman, Raul Labrador, Kicking Eric Holder's Butt Over Fast and Furious! - Video
Published October 30, 2014
Oct. 29, 2014: Attorney General Eric Holder speaks at the 'Washington Ideas Forum' in Washington.(AP)
Attorney General Eric Holder says he has one regret: his department's court order for Fox News reporter James Rosen's emails labeling him a criminal "co-conspirator."
The outgoing attorney general, who recently announced his retirement, addressed the controversial episode during the "Washington Ideas Forum" on Wednesday. Asked what decision he wishes he could do over, Holder said: "I think about the subpoena to the Fox reporter, Rosen."
Holder was referring to a 2010 search warrant application seeking Rosen's emails. The Justice Department at the time was investigating who leaked information contained in a series of reports by Rosen in 2009 about North Korea's nuclear weapons program.
In the course of seeking Rosen's emails, an FBI agent submitted an affidavit claiming there was evidence that Rosen broke the law, "at the very least, either as an aider, abettor and/or co-conspirator." The affidavit went so far as to invoke the Espionage Act -- pertaining to the unauthorized gathering and transmitting of defense information.
On Wednesday, Holder said that application could have been done "differently" and "better."
"I think that I could have been a little more careful looking at the language that was contained in the filing that we made with the court -- that he was labeled as a co-conspirator," Holder said, while claiming they did that "as a result of the statute."
Rosen, who serves as chief Washington correspondent for Fox News, said in response that the attorney general's comments "scarcely address" his role in the case.
"Throughout this ordeal for my family and me, I have tried to keep my head down and continue covering -- and breaking -- the news. I consider myself blessed to have an employer in Fox News, and a boss in Roger Ailes, who have stood by me and enabled me to remain focused on what matters most to me in professional terms: first-rate journalism," Rosen said in a statement. "At some later point, I may have more to say about this entire controversy, which -- as commentators from across the ideological spectrum have noted -- does indeed raise serious concerns about the state of press freedoms under the present administration. Suffice to say for now that the attorney general's latest comments about my case, like his previous remarks, scarcely address the relevant facts of his conduct."
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Holder regrets subpoena to Fox News reporter
Former vice president Dick Cheney in 2007. (Gerald Herbert/AP)
Outgoing Attorney General Eric Holder thinks that of the current hit television shows about Washington, theone that gets this town mostly right is, depending on the administration, Id say House of Cards. (Yes, that would be the one with murder, adultery, drug addicts )
Holder, speaking Wednesday at a WashingtonIdeas Forum moderated by our colleague, Jonathan Capehart, added: There was a pretty bad vice president in House of Cards, but Ill leave it at that. As the audience laughed, he noted, AndI like Joe Biden, so Im not talking about him.
I know who youre talking about, Capehart said. Our money is on former vice president Dick Cheney. (Unless he was maybe talking about Al Gore or John Nance Garner? )
Asked about his guilty pleasure, Holder said: I like to binge watch not-too-serious televisionlike Boardwalk Empire Im going to be working on that pretty soon Homeland, these are the things I just like to sit down and, you know, just go for many hours.
Where does he find the time? Hillary Clinton also admitted to binge watching House of Cards, but she did so after she was secretary of state and suddenly found herself with time on her hands.
Other light-hearted questions, which came at the end after a series of serious topics, included who Holder would want to play him in a movie.
Theres only one person, Holder quickly answered: Denzel. (Has anyone ever answered that question and not picked a good-looking A-lister?)
Capehart also asked Holder, who has been a Republican target over numerous White House scandals, what he hopes to be remembered for.
As a person who . . . used the power of his office to raiseissues that too often were not addressed, Holder said, And who ultimately moved the country in a direction that it should always move. A country that I left maybe a little more fair, with a greater sense of the urgency to make sure that all people are treated equally.
Original post:
In the Loop: Holder sees Frank Underwood but thinks Dick Cheney
Attorney General Eric Holder speaks at the sixth annual Washington Ideas Forum in Washington, Wednesday, Oct. 29, 2014. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta) more >
Attorney General Eric Holder said in a somewhat shocker of a statement given the White Houses reputed animosity with Fox News that in the end, he wished he had handled the subpoena for the cable outlets journalist, James Rosen, a bit differently.
Mr. Holder made the statement while replying to a question at the Washington Ideas Forum from Atlantic magazine about his one do-over wish, the New York Post reported.
I think about the subpoena to the Fox reporter, Rosen, Mr. Holder said, the New York Post reported. I think that I could have been a little more careful looking at the language that was contained in the filing that we made with the court that he was labeled as a co-conspirator.
SEE ALSO: Holder: Ferguson police need wholesale change
The label set off a firestorm among the media world and among First Amendment supporters. The Justice Department used that court filing to obtain a search warrant and go through Mr. Rosens emails to find his source about a story he broke regarding North Koreas nuclear plans in 2009.
The Justice Department did back off the co-conspirator label eventually. But Mr. Holder was put in the position of meeting one-on-one with various news outlets in order to do damage control, the New York Post reported.
Mr. Rosen is hardly appeased by Mr. Holders latest claim and said the outgoing attorney generals remarks scarcely address the relevant facts of his conduct, the New York Post said.
Mr. Rosen, in a statement to Fox News, also said Mr. Holders actions raise[d] serious concerns about the state of press freedoms under the present administration.
See the rest here:
Eric Holder: I'm sorry about the subpoena to Fox News reporter
Bankers may yet face federal prosecution for their roles in the 2008 financial crisis, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder said today.
We have ongoing investigations that may perhaps produce individual prosecutions, Holder said, defending the Justice Departments handling of probes that have resulted in large financial settlements but few criminal prosecutions.
Holder announced his retirement last month, saying he would remain in the job until a new attorney general is nominated by President Barack Obama and confirmed by the Senate. He said he expects that process to take until the beginning of next year.
My hope would be the Senate would take up that nomination the same way that mine was and, by early February, we have a new attorney general, he said.
Obamas preferred candidate, former White House Counsel Kathryn Ruemmler, has taken herself out of the running, in part because shed face a difficult confirmation process. Other possible picks include U.S. Solicitor General Don Verrilli, Labor Secretary Tom Perez, and Loretta Lynch, the U.S. Attorney based in Brooklyn, New York. That list might grow after Nov. 4 if a qualified lawmaker loses his or her re-election campaign.
White House spokesman Josh Earnest told reporters today that the door does continue to be open to the possibility that this person could be nominated shortly after the election and we would call on the Senate to act on that quickly.
Holders comments came in a question-and-answer session in Washington, sponsored by the Atlantic and the Aspen Institute, that delved into his almost six-year tenure as attorney general, racial strife, national security matters and even the movies: the 63-year-old would like Denzel Washington to play him in a film.
Some of Holders strongest comments came in response to a question by Jonathan Capehart of the Washington Post about whether he had been tough enough on banks and why there had not been any criminal prosecutions of bankers involved in the financial collapse.
The attorney general cited record settlements -- at least $37 billion in the last year -- that were used to help homeowners who were hurt in the 2008 financial collapse.
Holders Justice Department is still fighting criticism it didnt do enough to punish Wall Street executives who helped fuel the 2008 financial crisis. While regulators and prosecutors have repeatedly cited the need to sanction individuals, executives have been largely absent from recent major cases.
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Holder Says Bankers May Yet Face Prosecution for 2008