GOP Turns Its Attention to Holder

With former Fannie Mae CEO James Johnson out of the picture on Barack Obama’s vice presidential search committee, the GOP is now turning its attention to another of Obama’s VP vetters: former Deputy Attorney General Eric Holder.

The RNC circulated new allegations against Holder today in a memo, namely that he supported amnesty for Puerto Rican terrorists and lobbied on behalf of a faltering telecommunications company.

In the past week Obama’s critics have blasted his choice of Holder for the VP committee, alleging Holder was instrumental in President Bill Clinton’s controversial pardon of Marc Rich. Until now, however, Johnson has taken most of the heat, as Republicans have pointed to loans he received from Countrywide that may or may not have signified preferential treatment. Johnson stepped down from the committee yesterday.

The RNC today said Holder played a major role in Clinton’s extension of clemency to 16 former members of the Puerto Rican liberationist group The Armed Forces Of National Liberation (FALN), pointing to New York Daily News, New York Post, and New York Times stories from 1999 (see the Daily News story here).

The 1999 FALN clemency decision was controversial for Clinton, as the Republican Senate voted 95 to 2 to pass a resolution condemning it.

The RNC also said Holder lobbied on behalf of telecom company Global Crossing in 2002 after the company had accumulated nearly $12 million in debt. The RNC has previously blasted Holder for being a registered lobbyist as recently as 2004, insinuating a conflict with Obama’s no-lobbyist fundraising policy.

Democrats and Obama’s campaign have fought back against critics who say they hypocritically associate with lobbyists, accusing Republicans of trying to distract the public from John McCain’s lobbying ties.