House panel finds Attorney General Eric Holder in contempt Rep. Darrell Issa, Chair of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee (left) and Attorney General Eric Holder (right) (CBS News) A year-and-a-half long investigation into a botched gun trafficking program culminated Wednesday with the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee holding Attorney General Eric Holder in contempt of Congress. The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee voted along party lines to pass a resolution holding the attorney general in contempt for withholding documents pertaining to Operation Fast and Furious. The vote went forward despite intervention by President Obama, who invoked executive privilege, which protects the Justice Department from handing over documents, even though a subpoena has been issued. For Holder to be held in contempt, the full House of Representatives must approve the committee's resolution, which, according to House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio., and House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, R-Va., the vote will take place next week. "While we had hoped it would not come to this, unless the Attorney General reevaluates his choice and supplies the promised documents, the House will vote to hold him in contempt next week," the Republican leaders said in a statement. If, however, Attorney General Holder produces these documents prior to the scheduled vote, we will give the Oversight Committee an opportunity to review in hopes of resolving this issue. If the House backs the panel's actions, punishment could be hard to hand down. A 2007 Congressional Research Service report notes if "information is protected under executive privilege, past practice suggests that the Department of Justice will not pursue a prosecution." At issue are documents over the Arizona gunwalking program that put guns in the hands of illicit gun purchasers as a way to track Mexican smuggling cartels. As a result of the program, hundreds of guns showed up in Mexico and one was found where a U.S. border agent was killed. An attempt to diffuse the standoff failed Tuesday after Rep. Issa and Holder were unable to reach an agreement regarding Justice Department documents on the program between February and December of 2011. We're looking for document production," Issa said Tuesday. Holder said he has provided more than 7,500 pages of documents and that on Tuesday he made Issa an "extraordinary" offer that includes documents, a briefing on those documents and answers to questions Issa and his committee might have. The contempt proceeding has elevated the face-off between the executive and legislative branches, which has led to the White House becoming involved by asserting executive privilege. Until now, everyone believed that the decisions regarding Fast and Furious were confined to the Department of Justice.