FOXNews.com: After Holder contempt vote, GOP eyes civil court case to extract 'Furious' documents

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After Holder contempt vote, GOP eyes civil court case to extract 'Furious' documents Jun 29th 2012, 17:32 The highest law enforcement official in the land has been held in contempt of Congress, but don't expect that to lead to jail time, at least not anytime soon.  Technically, the contempt finding against Attorney General Eric Holder means a U.S. attorney eventually could be called upon to bring the case against Holder before a grand jury.  But despite the high drama of Thursday's floor vote, Republicans are planning to take the less-sensational route toward obtaining the Operation Fast and Furious documents they want.  Instead of lurching into a criminal case against Holder, Republicans are looking to act on the civil contempt citation that also passed Thursday. That resolution allows lawmakers to go to civil court to try and get an order that would compel the Obama administration to release the documents.  That could be the path of least resistance.  On the criminal contempt path, the speaker could refer the case to the U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia, who would then be urged to convene a grand jury. But because U.S. Attorney Ronald Machen works for Holder, some see this as unlikely.  "Based on past experience, it's very possible the president will instruct the U.S. attorney not to prosecute further on the criminal side," Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, told Fox News.  He continued: "The House has authorized me to hire staff and legal staff who can pursue civilly through the courts to try to get a federal judge to order, separately, this discovery."  Issa spokesman Frederick Hill later told FoxNews.com that the next stop probably would be civil court, but he suggested the threat of criminal prosecution still looms. For now, the Obama administration can argue that its executive privilege claim over the documents protects Holder from the possibility of prosecution. But if a civil court rules that claim invalid, Hill said, "then basically Justice has lost that shield."  If the administration still refused to turn over the documents the Republicans want, then they could start looking at prosecution more seriously.  Republicans technically have a handful of other options if the Justice Department still refused to take the case to a grand jury.  Republicans could move to appoint a special prosecutor or even move to impeach. The last time that happened with a Cabinet member, though, was in 1876 -- with the impeachment trial of war secretary William Belknap.    Hill said lawmakers are not looking at that option for Holder. They remain focused on the civil court route.  Machen and Holder also have spoken fondly of one another in public, further casting doubt on the possibility that the U.S. attorney would bring the case before a grand jury.  Machen is one of the two U.S. attorneys Holder tapped to lead an investigation into the recent rash of security leaks. In early June, Holder praised Machen and the other attorney as "great U.S. attorneys who have shown a willingness to take on difficult cases."

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