Attorney General Eric Holder pauses during a news conference at the Justice Department in Washington.WASHINGTON - The Justice Department is rejecting Republican suggestions that Attorney General Eric Holder committed perjury when he told Congress he had never been involved in a potential prosecution of the news media.
Holder's testimony came just days before it was disclosed that he had approved a search warrant application calling Fox News journalist James Rosen a probable co-conspirator in a leak investigation. In his May 15 testimony, Holder had told the House Judiciary Committee that "potential prosecution of the press" for disclosing classified material is, quoting, "not something that I've ever been involved in."
In a letter to the House Judiciary Committee chairman, Virginia Republican Bob Goodlatte, the Justice Department said at no time before or after seeking the search warrant have prosecutors sought approval to bring charges against the reporter.