DOJ’s Fast and Furious head fake
In the wake of swelling outrage over the Obama administration’s fatally botched Fast and Furious straw gun purchase racket, the DOJ is punishing the very whistleblowers who protested the scheme in the first place.
This is a head fake.
Instead of exercising more control over lawless bureaucrats within its own agencies, the Obama administration is tightening its grip over law-abiding gun shops:
As a backlash mounts over the government’s failed Fast and Furious gun-tracing operation, the Justice Department will begin requiring firearms dealers in California and other border states to alert officials anytime they sell more than two semiautomatic rifles to someone in a five-day period.
The new reporting requirement will help the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives “detect and disrupt” border gun-smuggling operations, Deputy Atty. Gen. James Cole said Monday.
Once the ATF distributes its new reporting forms, about 7,000 dealers near the border must report multiple sales of semiautomatic weapons in California, Arizona, New Mexico and Texas. Such weapons “are highly sought after by dangerous drug-trafficking organizations and frequently recovered at violent crime scenes near the Southwest border,” Cole said.
Republican critics quickly denounced the measure, saying it was wrong for the Obama administration to let illegal guns get into the hands of Mexican cartels in Operation Fast and Furious, and then require more monitoring of legitimate gun owners in the U.S. Under the program, the ATF permitted illegal straw purchasers to obtain weapons as part of a plan to trace the guns as they flowed to Mexico.
“It’s the height of hypocrisy,” said Rep. Lamar Smith of Texas, the Republican chairman of the House Judiciary Committee.
Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Vista), who is leading the House investigation into Fast and Furious, called it a “political maneuver designed to protect the careers of political appointees at the Justice Department and not public safety.”
NRA will sue over the new regs.
Sipsey Street Irregulars sums it up best:
Ironic, ain’t it? It is as if the ATF is admitting that it was incompetent (deliberately or otherwise) in the Gunwalker Scandal and was having trouble keeping track of their cartel straw buyers so now they insist that the FFLs [federal firearms licenesses] who previously tried voluntarily to help them, now must help them.
Of course this is another ratchet on the attempt at back-door arms registration…
Ignore the distraction.
Keep your eye on the corruptocrats’ ball. The latest:
Are high-profile suspects in Mexican drug cartels also paid informants for U.S. federal investigators? If so, could a brewing scandal in Washington implicate more U.S. agencies in the ongoing drug-related violence in Mexico?
Kenneth Melson, the embattled chief of the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), made the earth-shaking revelation in testimony early last week, The Times reports. Melson reportedly told congressional leaders that Mexican cartel suspects tracked by his agents in a controversial gun-tracing program were also operating as paid informants for the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) and the FBI.
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More: Here’s the latest on the brewing Tampa gunwalking allegations.
***
On a side note: While I was on vacay, old news about Fast and Furious’s parent program, the stimulus-funded Project Gunrunner, somehow got recycled as new news. But if you read my column and extensive post with links back in March, you already are in the know. David Codrea and Bob Owens try to clear up confusion sown by latecomers.
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And then you ask why Sock Puppet is coming out shortly with another executive order concerning Gun Control. This little IMP has been caught in the original ATF scheme to justify the Socialist Plan for more restrictive Gun Control, but is doubling down now like this Fast and Furious will go away.
I want to see the little twerp do the perp walk! Now!
We all saw this coming. But the silver lining here is that, as in Watergate, the coverup is what will bring them down. Now if only the Republicans can generate the cohones and chutzpah necessary to see this through, they can wreck havoc on the 2012 ambitions of the Dems. Payback is sweet.
It would be ironic if this leads to Obama’s impeachment.
This isn’t over.
Everyone from Holder on down should be asked to take a polygrapgh on Gunrunner. Let’s see who refuses.
I have to thank Issa, Grassley, and Allen West for trying to deal with this. Also, Fox news is doing a good job of keeping this before the public. I don’t know if any other msm is talking about this, but probably not since bho and holder are knee deep in this. I just hope something can be done to deal with all those involved with this gets their day in court!
L
Holder is in this up to his eyeballs. I pray daily for the whistleblowers and Darrell Issa…for their safety and their courage. If this doesn’t bring down this house of cards, NOTHING will. Why do I keep thinking that even this won’t do it? That is truly frightening! The people in this country need to stand up and take it back. In the meantime, cling to your guns and your Bibles.
The good news is that Democrats are so ignorant and full of hubris, it’s likely they will only steel the American people against a wide spectrum of their disastrous policies, not just gun ownership. This could be just the tip of a schadenfreudelicious iceberg.
Errah, aren’t the staw/switchgrass F&F ATF gun buyers in the AFGE Government Union? How can they let this happen??!!
Extradite Holder to Mexico. At the very least, fire him. If he knew, he is culpable; if he didn’t know, he’s incompetent.
So when will a special prosecutor be selected?
Here is another situation that will fissle out. All you need to do is look at a ball player accused of taking steroids is being tried for lying to congress, then look at Eric Holder lying to congress on this “gun running” and that is called misleading congress. That tells me that we should not lie, but it is not only expected of politicians it is condoned. There will be no justice in this matter.
In Order for this to bring them down, the media has to put this front and center-much like the Watergate scandal…and we know that won’t happen.
So much corruption and underhanded moves it’s hard to keep up with these criminals.
The wheels of justice move ever so slowly when it comes to this stuff.
Actually, will there be justice?
Talk about hypocrisy! GE’s Jeff Immelt, crony capitalist extraordinaire leading a company that is exporting jobs while on the government dole (think light bulbs) is lecturing American businesses to stop complaining about government.
Immelt is the very face of American fascism.
The underlying cause of failure in dealing with this scandal is not simply mainstream media’s effort to protect Obama, Holder, and the entire administration it is Ruling Class elitest versus Citizens. That includes both Parties and explains the “lack of cohones” in GOP.
I still haven’t heard an explanation for gunrunner and fast and furious that isn’t idiotic on its face.
There really was no one in the room who said, “Guys, maybe this isn’t such a good idea ….?”
It isn’t the guns being in the hands of narco-terrorists that are frightening. It’s that these incredible idiots have guns and power over us.
Immelt is bought and paid for. We need to be sure that he is fitted for chains along with everyone in this administration.
Eric Holder knew that he could get that gun controls in place just by empting out guns shops and send them to the south of the border. Where are responsibilities of guns going south lies? Just like the illegal human trafficking, it lies at the top of the list.
Nixon many have been a crook, but Watergate didn’t kill anyone. Obama and his Operation Fast&Furious can’t say that.
It really may be too late. The government and public schools have been thoroughly infested with communists and they have had 80 years to get firmly entrenched. It really is like the Borg now. Eliminate one and three take his place.
America has reacted to the threat way too late. Whittaker Chambers, Joe McCarthy, and others were right in their alarms regarding communist infiltration of our institutions – and they were destroyed.
The increasing number of conversions of former Leftists (Breitbart, Mamet etc.) to Conservatism is a good thing but it is happening too late in the game I think.
Have you hugged your assault rifle today?
I have.
I was wondering when something like this would happen. It is just another case of our narcissist in chief laying the blame for one of his administrations debacles at someone else’s feet.
It looks like the one of the Gipper’s quotes needs an update:
The nine most terrifying words in the English language are, ‘I’m from the government and I want your help.’
Now, lesseee, as #15 NotTheMama questions… my ‘what if’ — Holder indicted by the last Federal judge who had the guts, then who arrests him? FBI? nahhh, he controls them, Federal Marshal’s Service? No again. Court bailiffs, House of Rep. Door keepers and elevator operators? Certainly not the Capitol Police Force.
Seriously, now, if the Justice is wholly corrupt, how can the Constitution be obeyed? So, the Supremes rule, who enforces? The Senate regardless of President’s party should be pretty darn picky when confirming the DoJ and the A.G. in particular. We survived Nixon’s John Mitchell, and Clinton’s Web Hubbell as the #2, but… can luck hold beyond Holder?
Time was, folks actually used to resign when caught out, or in honorable protest. Remember the relentless question from Attorney Welch to Senator McCarthy in open hearing: “Have you no sense of decency, sir, at long last? Have you left no sense of decency?” He didn’t, but the country did. See and hear at
http://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/welch-mccarthy.html
The reason I think Holder & Co. are in full blown panic?
Gosh darn it! Take uh… that! ( I think? ) Talk about “Arbitrary and capricious”? Might as well just been drawn out of hat!
It’s your option to construe this as over-reach and more gun control but all I see is desperate ex-post-facto flailing. I agree w/ RedDog, the damage will be in the cover-up.
There are a multitude of reasons why he should but ONE reason why he won’t: cowards abound in the Beltway.
===
Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms
should be a convenience store-
NOT a government agency.
Thomas Jefferson: “Laws that forbid the carrying of arms…disarm only those who are neither inclined or determined to commit crimes. Such laws only make things worse for the assaulted and better for the assassins; they serve to encourage than to prevent homicides, for an unarmed man may be attacked with greater confidence than an armed man.” (1764 Letter and speech from T. Jefferson quoting with approval an essay by Cesare Beccari)
I do not see gun control as the main purpose of this. I see it as arming the Mexican and Columbian drug cartels as a private Army of Obama’s. This is not about a constitution he hates, but rather about power which he adores.
People, it is and always was an attack on the 2nd Amendment! The republicans don’t have the guts to do anything about it. The remainder of Ubama’s term will make Headly Lamar look like a genius.
Only three Republicans voted for the Stimulus of 2009 allowing $10 millionin tax money for Operation Fast and Furious gun running into Mexico: the two women from Maine, Snowe and Collins,plus Arlen Specter from PA (who is, thankfully, gone). Otherwise, this was a pure Democrat bill, allowing guns into Mexico that were not tracked. Obama signed the bill. AG Holder and his assistant have YouTube speeches touting the operation.
All should be held accountable for this program.
No, but I just shot a deer in the butt with a pellet to keep her out of the cat food. Does that count?
IMHO, that was only of secondary benefit to the Administration. The primary objective was De-stabilization of the Border. Chaos.
The strategy was multi-pronged. It energizes the hispanic base, increases net illegal inflows ( fleeing Narco-violence ) and keeps the focus ON immigration and -away- from the cr@P s*ck economy!
Narcocorridos sing the praises of the cartels:
Known as a “Drug Ballad” it’s popular on both sides of the border.
http://www.borderlandbeat.com/
Exploiting chaos is the goal, much the same as former SEIU thugster Steve Lerner seeking to further de-stablize our banking sys. by orchestrating nationwide “strategic defaults” among mortgage payers.
Why is the BATF investigating firearms trafficking, when the 2nd Amendment dictates that they can do nothing about firearms trafficking? I think we’ve found a place where we can save money and cut the budget…
That may just happen, the Mexicans have started making noise that they’ll want to prosecute some of those involved. Good luck to them.
They will then try to shut down the businesses with paperwork violations. This administration is simply evil.
We should all recognize by now, anything in the Constitution that is inconvenient to the goals of this administration dictates nothing to any Fed bureaucracy. The job of dictating belongs entirely to our current Prentender in Chief and his puppetmasters.
The longer the dems hide the truth with their damage control, the closer the scandal will get to 2012. Any in the media who try to support the cover up will go down with the administration. The hidden agendas will be exposed. These people have committed crimes in our name.
Attorney General Eric Holder testifies under oath in Congress that he hadn’t known about this operation. New details show that he did know, and had to have known about it. So….
Congress charges retired major league pitcher, Rocket Clemons with four felony counts of lying to Congress. (Why Congress is involved in baseball doping in beyond me, but I digress.) Where are the felony perjury charges against a high American official, the highest ranking law enforcement official in the country?
I can only speak for myself, but I could care less if a baseball player lies to a bunch of lying hacks…but, to have the top law enforcement officer in the U.S., to lie to these hacks, and to (1) not charge him, and (2) not insist on his immediate removal from office, is a slap in the face to all Americans.
What else would one expect from the most corrupt administration in the history of the United States? Oh, I know…give him the Medal of Freedom, instead of a prison cell….
Sorry, but Holder is NOT the highest ranking law enforcement official in the country.
That title belongs to one Barak Obama.
There is a simple question to ask Obama: When Eric Holder went to Mexico in 2009 to announce project Gunrunner, was either the Secratary of State or yourself aware of the announcement or the program? And if not, why not?
So, can the FFL’s make this rule retroactive and report (with a copy to Breitbart) all of the weapons sold under gunrunner? Then we can find out who was getting the guns for whom.
Leftists blaming law-abiding legitimate businesses for their failures and punishing them?
No surprise there.
Leftists are always unjust.
All these thugs should be thrown the HADES OUT! Starting with the White House, the DOJ, and the IDIOTS in Con-gress with a ‘D’ after their name!
They think we’re SO stupid. There’s more of us than them.
TAR AND FEATHER PARTY ANYONE?
I think Obama and his cronies wanted to use this program to target the Second Amendment. Now that it’s blown up in their faces, they are scrambling to keep the original objective viable. The whole point – limit the lawful ownership of firearms. The Founding Fathers were geniuses. Frankly, it’s practically your Constitutional duty to own one.
Which was the point all along.
I strongly believe this “straw-gun” fiasco was aimed at identifying which legal gun dealers were selling guns (legally or illegally) to people who then trafficked them to Mexican drug cartels. Thereby giving DOJ a reason to target American gun dealers.
Problem is DOJ never found anyone doing this. Mexican drug cartels were actually buying their weapons much cheaper from sources in other nations, and had no incentive to black-market them from U.S. dealers.
The only U.S. weapons that ended up in drug cartel hands were the ones DOJ bought and sent to the cartels in context of this erstwhile sting.
Eric Holder should be in jail for allowing and supporting this travesty under his watch.
No thinking needed. They, and the left in general, want the peaceable, law-abiding public disarmed completely. We know some well meaning leftists fear an armed populace are a danger to them to themselves and others. Of course,many leftists consider a well armed populace to be a dangerous foe in opposition to the intentions the left has for this country. Weapons only in the hands of a leftist government generally means full cooperation of the public to do the left’s bidding.
Thought I’d add to your comment.
I remember the “news” media actually talking about guns finding their way to Mexico. It was part of the buildup to restricting their sale. Now of course they are pretty quiet about it…
That’s what I’ve been telling my family since the story first broke.
Remember all the chatter from certain Democrat officials? I’m thinking it was Pelosi, the blowhard from Illinois, Durbin, and Chuck U. Schumer, who were out there claiming that the majority of the guns in Mexico were coming from the U.S. There was a big stink about it at the time.
I’m thinking they KNEW about Project Gunrunner, and that’s why they were so sure. It was a “set up” all along!
We know liberals…when they can’t prove things factually, they’ll create the means necessary to make it so.
These people need to be subpoenaed, put under oath, and questioned. But, we can relax since that will never happen as long as the runner of interference, Holder, is Attorney General.