The subpoena Wednesday asked Holder and others to supply records related to "Operation Fast and Furious."
The subpoena was issued by the Oversight and Government Reform Committee. Republican Chairman Darrell Issa said top Justice Department officials, including Holder, know more about the operation than they have publicly acknowledged.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives allowed intermediaries for drug cartels to buy thousands of weapons from Arizona gun shops and lost track of about 1,400 of the 2,000 guns. Some of those weapons have been recovered at crime scenes in Mexico.
