House lawmakers began final debate Thursday afternoon ahead of the vote on whether to hold Attorney General Eric Holder in contempt of Congress, with Speaker John Boehner and other chamber leaders summarizing their cases on the House floor.
“It’s important to remember how we got here,” Boehner, R-Ohio, said during a floor speech ahead of the vote. “The Justice Department has not provided the facts and information we requested. … It’s our constitutional duty to find out.”
The GOP-led House wants to hold the attorney general in contempt for failing to provide additional information about a failed gun-running sting known as Fast and Furious that was run by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, a division of the Justice Department led by Holder.
“What is happening here is shameful," said Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., who argued House Republicans are more politically motivated in attacking Holder than getting to the bottom of the failed operation, in which at least two of the guns were connected to the fatal shooting of U.S. border agent Brian Terry.
The House is expected to vote on two contempt orders -- a criminal and a civil order – but not before some Democrats have vowed walk out.