Writing in Contentions , Jennifer Rubin confirms what has long seemed obvious: the decision to drop the case against the New Black Panther Party for voter intimidation in Philadelphia was a political decision which involved appointed officials at the Department of Justice who overruled the career attorneys and then tried to hide that fact.

As she notes, it's time Holder and Associate Attorney General Perrelli went under oath to explain their role in this outrage.

Sources within the department stated that Associate Attorney General Thomas Perrelli, a political appointee, in conjunction with the acting assistant attorney general for civil rights, Ms. Loretta King, and her deputy, Mr. Steve Rosenbaum, overruled the career attorneys in the Voting Rights section. Earlier this week, the department finally acknowledged that the Attorney General was made aware - on multiple occasions - of the steps being taken to dismiss this case."

Wolf may be referring to the Justice Department's supplemental response to an interrogation from the Commission, a copy of which I have received. The Department confirms, "The Attorney General was generally made aware by the then-Acting Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights and the Associate's staff that the Civil Rights Division was considering the appropriate actions to take in the New Black Panther Party litigation case." The response states that Holder was "likely provided a brief update" but "did not make the decisions regarding any aspect" of the case. Did he weigh in? Did he advocate a position? Did his underlings? We don't know.

But one thing is certain: if the case was significant enough to brief the attorney general on, you can bet that the decisions were approved if not instigated by political appointees. The veil is beginning to be lifted. Now it is time to put Holder and Perrelli under oath and find out what they knew and when they knew it. And then we can determine whether the Justice Department has been covering up the politicization of the enforcement of civil rights.

Clarice Feldman