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On Monday, Republican Congressman Darrell Issa laid out the historical and legal justification for contempt charges to be filed against the Obama Department of Justice.

For those unfamiliar with the political hearing process, Monday’s Darrell Issa-initiated investigation of the now infamous Gunrunner project may have appeared a tedious, long-winded affair.  Not so.  By D.C. standards, what Issa pulled off was brilliant political stagecraft, which ultimately may prove highly damaging to the Obama administration.

In a 90-minute time span, the terms “cover-up”, “Watergate”, and “Iran-Contra”, were repeated numerous times as a table of constitutional scholars appeared unanimous in their opinion that Obama’s DOJ was in violation of the right of Congress to make applicable requests for information – in this case information surrounding Project Gunrunner that resulted in the death of U.S. border agent Brian Terry and likely hundreds more civillians just across the Mexican border.  Since 2009, thousands of guns were allowed to be sold to Mexican drug cartels – guns that were in turn used against U.S. law enforcement, civilians, and their Mexican counterparts.  Attorney General Eric Holder testified before Congress he knew nothing of the program, but that he would launch “an internal investigation.”  Since that time, no findings have been disclosed, as Holder continues to ignore Congressional requests for further information.

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On Monday, June 13th, Republican Congressman Darell Issa led the first of two scheduled hearings this week surrounding Project Gunrunner and the implied cover-up being undertaken by top-ranking ATF officials, and the Obama Department of Justice.  This first hearing centered on the right of Congress to receive requests for information from the Executive Branch in a timely manner, even if those requests could prove politically damaging to Executive Branch officials.  And while Democrat Congressman Gerald Connolly attempted to paint the actions of Issa and his fellow Republicans as being unreasonable against the Department of Justice, this claim was roundly dismissed by the constitutional scholars providing testimony.  In fact, these same scholars indicated there was no applicable reason for the Obama DOJ to not be providing the information being requested by Congress, leaving the ever-growing spectre of a possible cover-up looming over the proceedings.

On Wednesday, Issa will be calling the mother of slain border agent Brian Terry to testify.  Her testimony will most certainly provide a powerful emotional component to the proceedings, while further heightening the questions of what Attorney General Eric Holder has been hiding from Congress, and giving more reason for Congress to proceed with official charges of contempt against Holder, and possibly even President Obama, if the administration continues to actively stonewall the ongoing Project Gunrunner investigations.