Video: Valerie Jarrett will not defend Eric Holder as DOJ IG prepares for Hearing

At the Democratic National Convention, Washington Times reporter Kerry Pickett confronted Obama senior advisor Valerie Jarrett and asked her several times if she thought Attorney General Eric Holder should resign. Perhaps what was communicated most was what Jarrett didn't say; she refused to say no.

Via the Daily Caller:



Eric Holder is sure to make news on September 11th because that's the day that the Justice Department's Inspector General (DOJ IG) will be in front of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, which is chaired by Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA).

Here is the hearing announcement that was sent out by Issa's office one day prior to Pickett's attempt to get Jarrett to take a position on Holder:

DOJ Inspector General to Testify Next Week Following Release of Investigative Report on Operation Fast and Furious

WASHINGTON – House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman Darrell Issa today announced that Department of Justice Inspector General Michael Horowitz, following the release of his report of the investigation into reckless conduct in Operation Fast and Furious, will testify before the Full Oversight Committee on Tuesday, September 11, 2012.   In Operation Fast and Furious, agents failed to interdict firearms destined for Mexican drug cartels while hoping the guns, once recovered at crime scenes in Mexico, would lead them to higher ranking cartel officials.  Guns from the reckless Justice Department program, however, contributed to the deaths of U.S. Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry and an unknown number of Mexican citizens.  It also created an ongoing public safety hazard on both sides of the border.

“For a year and a half, Attorney General Eric Holder has cited the ongoing Inspector General investigation as his reason for declining to hold those responsible for reckless conduct in Operation Fast and Furious to account.  Next week, this excuse for delaying action ends,” said Chairman Darrell Issa.  “Although I am concerned that the Justice Department has not given the Inspector General full and unfettered access to all relevant information, Inspector General Horowitz’s report and testimony should add to the understanding of the operation and numerous related management failures at the Department.”

It looks like Horowitz might be attempting to engage Issa in a game of one-upsmanship. When it was announced that the IG Report was completed and would be released in four weeks, Issa wrote to Horowitz and said it's customary for the release to take place within two weeks. The Oversight committee chairman then proceeded to schedule Horowitz to appear before the committee after three weeks, which would be September 11th.

Earlier this week, the Los Angeles Times reported that Horowitz has written a letter to Issa, in which he appears to be hedging his bets about being ready on Tuesday, the 11th.

Based on how thin Issa's patience has been getting when it comes to this Fast and Furious investigation, Horowitz may be engaging in some ill-advised, petty gamesmanship; there could be a lot more downside than he thinks.

All through this investigation, individuals who have faced tough questions from committee members have chosen to defer to the as yet, unreleased IG Report. Now that the man responsible for it - Horowitz - will be bringing it to the Committee hearing with him, he won't be able to do what those before him have done - defer to the report that isn't released.

In Horowitz's case, he won't be able to defer to the report; he will have to defend it. The buck will stop with him. It might not be a good idea for him to needle Issa at this point. Then again, Horowitz may just need every waking minute to nail his talking points.