A Senate Judiciary Committee Republican staffer told The Daily Caller that Attorney General Eric Holder’s use of racial politics as a weapon to attack his critics is not appropriate behavior for America’s top law enforcement official.
“The only person bringing up race in relation to oversight of the Justice Department, and in particular the illegal gun-walking program, is the attorney general himself,” the staffer said. “These race-baiting accusations serve no purpose and the president should call upon the attorney general to stop.” (RELATED: Full coverage of Eric Holder)
Iowa Sen. Chuck Grassley, the ranking member on the Senate Judiciary Committee, has led the investigation into Operation Fast and Furious with House oversight committee chairman Rep. Darrell Issa. Both are Republicans.
In a front-page Sunday New York Times story, Holder said he thinks his critics are motivated by his race. Holder said some unspecified faction — what he refers to as the “more extreme segment” on the political right — is driven to criticize both him and President Barack Obama due to the color of their skin.
“This is a way to get at the president because of the way I can be identified with him,” Holder said, according to the Times. “Both due to the nature of our relationship and, you know, the fact that we’re both African-American.”
White House spokesman Eric Schultz confirmed that he received The Daily Caller’s questions about whether President Obama agrees with Holder’s characterization of his critics as racists. Schultz promised to answer the question on Monday, but he had not responded at press time.