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Have Gun, Will Travel…Fast and Furious to Mexico. Thanks ATF!

Question: How do convicted felons repeatedly possess and distribute numerous guns without fear of arrest, let alone prosecution?

Answer: By purchasing guns from “straw purchasers,” who purchased the guns from gun dealers cooperating with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco,  Firearms and Explosives (ATF)- an agency within the United States Department of Justice- to permit gun sales without completion of the mandatory background checks or interdiction by agents.

Oops!

Rep. Darrell Issa (R. Calif.), Chairman of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, and Sen. Chuck Grassley (R. Iowa), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee,  have been conducting congressional hearings regarding guns being purchased in Phoenix, Arizona, by those who then resell the guns to Mexican drug cartel associates, all with the cooperation of the gun shop owners.

Why would a federal agency, whose mission statement is to keep guns out of the hands of criminals, conduct such an operation? As ATF spins it, the purpose of Operation Fast and Furious was to trace the distribution network to discover who are the end users/possessors of these guns.

The congressional hearings have disclosed that two other federal agencies within the Department of Justice may have been involved: the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Rep. Issa and Sen. Grassley continue to forge ahead in their investigation, and what has come to light is disturbing. Over 2,000 guns were permitted to cross over into Mexico unimpeded. And recent evidence has surfaced that some Mexican drug cartel members acted in an informant capacity against their competitors. And they were allowed to import cocaine, methamphetamine and marijuana into the United States.

Didn’t ATF learn anything from the FBI’s spectacle in Boston Ma., when that agency developed its Top Echelon Informant Program designed to recruit informants within the ranks of street criminals? That program ultimately snared two highly-prized Irish mobsters: Whitey Bulger and Steve “the Rifleman” Flemmi.

These two serial killers were courted by FBI Agent John Connolly, who ran interference for Bulger and Flemmi while they continued their crime spree, decimating the Mafia in north Boston and placing a choke hold on Boston street crime.

To say the FBI was outmanuevered by streetwise Bulger and Flemmi is to recognize the obvious. Now history repeats itself in Phoenix.

 ATF Acting Director Kenneth Melson has appeared before the committee with counsel. Why? Because evidence has surfaced that many ATF officials were in the loop, being routinely briefed on the “progress” of the program?

And,  Attorney General Holder has stonewalled the committee’s investigation. Why? Because many within Justice were aware of this debacle as it unfolded? 

As a criminal defense attorney for over 30 years, I have handled many federal prosecutions in and outside Minnesota involving ATF, DEA and FBI. I cannot fathom a defense where I contend my client didn’t intend to distribute guns or drugs; he only wanted to determine how wide-spread drug/gun possession was in his community. That is not a viable defense.

 And ATF’s explanation for the distribution and eventual recovery of a minimal number of guns is equally laughable.

So where does the congressional hearings go from here? Through the subpoena process the committee should be able to identify the crimes that were committed and who committed them. And then, to borrow a phrase from Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D. Cailf.), “drain the swamp.” That is, can you say “Indictment?”

How many guns have found their way into the hands of killers?

How much dope has found its way into our communities?

How many people have died because of the arrogant and misguided policy of the ATF?

I’m reminded that our President campaigned on a platform of transparency. He selected and supported Attorney General Holder who, I assume, shares the President’s core policy of transparency. Where is that transparency now?  Obama and Holder should have a heart-to-heart talk, maybe over a beer.

Light is the best disinfectant. Let the hearings go forward. Hold those accountable who were irresponsble in conceiving, implementing and protecting  this disasterous program. This is not about politics. It is about holding the ATF to its mission statement: prevent criminals from having guns. It is about holding the DEA to its mission statement: prevent illegal drugs from entering our communities. And it is about holding the FBI to its mission statement: to uphold and enforce the criminal laws of the United States.

But most importantly, it is about the United States Congress carrying out its obligation: to protect its citizens from rogue agents/agencies that believe they are above the law. 

 

 

 

10 thoughts on “Have Gun, Will Travel…Fast and Furious to Mexico. Thanks ATF!

  1. Points well taken! It seems that those in power do over look many things when it comes to how dirty they got their hands.

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