Congressional Republicans and Attorney General Eric Holder have had a very contentious relationship, which stems from Holder’s steadfast refusal to cooperate with any of the numerous Congressional investigations into various scandals plaguing the Obama administration.
Eric Holder stonewalled and covered up the Fast and Furious gun walking scandal and he has been implicated in the IRS targeting scandal. He also lied under oath to Congress, is pursuing stringent gun control measures, and has been racially divisive.
Congress has already held Holder in contempt, and are now moving towards impeaching him and removing him as head of the Justice Department.
A bill was also introduced back in April by Texas Rep. Blake Farenthold that would withhold the salaries of any government official that has been held in contempt of Congress, like Eric Holder and former IRS official Lois Lerner, according to The Hill.
“The American people should not be footing the bill for federal employees who stonewall Congress or rewarding government officials’ bad behavior. If the average American failed to do his or her job, he or she would hardly be rewarded,” Farenthold said.
Under Farenthold’s bill, a resolution holding an official in contempt would have to be adopted by either the House or Senate. Contempt resolutions would not have to be cleared by both chambers of Congress in order for a federal official to lose their pay.
Officials would remain unpaid until either the House or Senate passed a resolution specifically revoking the contempt charges that led to their pay being withheld.
This is a great way for Congress to hold government officials accountable for their actions. Eric Holder has proven to be President Obama’s henchman, and has gone out of his way to stop, block or otherwise impede any Congressional effort to look into the misdeeds that have occurred under Obama’s watch.
Holder has been held in contempt, yet he continues to receive his paycheck and work to spread injustice from his perch atop the Justice Department. Disgraced Lois Lerner continued to receive a paycheck for months after the IRS scandal broke, with her at the center of it.
Congress controls the purse strings of the government, and it is past time for them to start using that power more effectively. They need to withhold salaries of corrupt officials, cut budgets for corrupt departments and agencies, and completely defund the most egregious violators of the Constitution and the American people.
