.
"I'm going to hold my breath until this goes away!"
June has been a bad month for one-term President Obama and it is getting worse by the day. Today, a congressional committee voted overwhelmingly (23-17) to issue a contempt citation to United States Attorney General Eric Holder for his failure to cooperate with a congressional investigation into the Obama policy that led to scores of murders including one federal officer. Before the vote, oversight chairman Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) said Obama’s move to declare the release of congressionally demanded documents protected by executive privilege “falls short of any reason to delay today’s proceedings. If the Justice Department had delivered the documents they freely admitted they could have delivered, we wouldn’t be here today.”
Today, the President sunk to a new low by declaring “executive privilege” for thousands of pages of documents in the Fast & Furious scandal. What makes this claim of executive privilege more interesting or damning is that the President has steadfastly claimed that he has never seen any of these documents. Hmmm, executive privilege for documents not seen by the executive office – interesting.
In two programs code named “Project Gunrunner” and “Operation Fast and Furious” President Obama’s Justice Department, through the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (the “ATF”), approved the sale to Mexican drug cartels of more than 1,800 AK-47s and 50 caliber sniper rifles. The ostensible plan was to follow the weapons across the Mexican border to allow the ATF to chart a path to the leadership of the cartels. One not so small problem, the ATF “lost track” of more than 1,000 of the assault and sniper rifles.
Unfortunately, these weapons started turning up at crime scenes and two were found at the murder of United States Border Agent Brian Terry who was killed in a gun battle with members of a Mexican drug cartel. When Agent Terry’s mother was informed about the connection between the ATF sold guns and her son’s death she responded that she was “flabbergasted.” “At first I didn’t believe it,” she said.
This program started two months into the Obama administration and was the responsibility of United States Attorney General Eric Holder. The ultimate responsibility for the programs lands at President Obama’s feet, but the President has denied any knowledge of the operations until details of the murder of Agent Terry started to emerge.
gw this holder is as much of a disaster as nobama . he has this going on . he has arizona , didnt do nothing when the black panthers intimated voters and also when they put a BOUNTY on zimmermans head .. and last but not least what is going on in florida with the dead people on voters roll that he wants to keep .. PLEASE NOVEMBER CANT GET HERE FAST ENOUGH .
You know who voted for this in 2008? Darrell Issa.
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2012/06/21/1101851/-2008-Darrell-Issa-Voted-YES-to-Fund-Project-Gunrunner-Merida-Initiative
Darrell Issa will now presumably be investigated by Darrell Issa, but Darrell Issa is expected to exonerate Darrell Issa from any responsibility, because that’s how Darrell Issa rolls.
@ Geoff Willis:
It seems that the tactic of “gun walking” was started under the Bush administration and carried over and continued in the Obama administration.
Because of this, it seems that this is more about ELECTION-YEAR POLITICKING , since I find it hard to believe that federal agents, who are “deep in the trenches” fighting organized crime, would intentionally arm the people they are trying to defeat.
Mistakes have been acknowledged by these federal agents in the way they conducted the operation. And I assume they are implementing the lessons-learned to protect themselves and the community.
AP Exclusive: Second Bush-era gun-smuggling probe
http://www.tulsaworld.com/news/article.aspx?subjectid=16&articleid=20111015_13_A10_WASHIN703082
Project Gunner:
“In early 2011, the operation became controversial when it was revealed that Operation Fast and Furious and other probes under Project Gunrunner had allowed guns to “walk” into the hands of Mexican drug cartels since as early as 2006.”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_Gunrunner
ATF Gunwalking scandal:
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) ran a series of “gunwalking” sting operations 2006 and 2011
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ATF_gunwalking_scandal
Paco Barragán
Francisco, you are both wrong and changing the subject. First, unlike under the Bush Administration where these projects were acknowledged and reviewed, in the Obama Administration the Attorney General has LIED about knowledge and approval of the program and has spent the past 18 months trying to cover it up. This morning the White House was complicit in the cover up by trying a paper thin tactic of declaring executive priviledge to thousands of documents the Chief Executive claims he has never seen. Just like Watergate, a stupid criminal act followed by a much worse series of lies and coverups.
You are also a bit behind on the news. The programs under the Bush Administration involved closely monitored release of weapons with tracking devices planted inside. A very limited number of weapons were released in an attempt to track their movement through the cartels. In Fast & Furious all of the “silly” tracking devices were eliminated and 1500+ guns were released without any ability to track. Even the liberal media has backed away from claims that the two programs were at all “similar.”
@ Geoff:
1) It seems that it is NOT necessary for the President of the United States to be involved in a discussion or deliberation, in order to be able to claim Executive Privilege but rather that the privilege can be exerted if it covers sensitive deliberations by or between the President’s advisers.
2) Yes, it seems that the programs are similar in that they allowed “gun walking”, but they are not similar in that they did not use the tracking devices. But it seems this is covered by the federal agent(s) involved acknowledging their mistake.
3) So let’s assume that AG Eric Holder lied about his OWN knowledge. The issue is then NOT about WATERGATE-like”” actions where President Nixon was directly involved in a directly criminal activity.
You are correct, my understanding of this is evolving.
Paco
Yeah, I’m pretty sure the Executive Branch is more than just Barack Hussein Obama, and I don’t find it incredible that a President who was busy running a war in Afghanistan, ending a war in Iraq, killing Bin Laden and many other terrorists, revamping our healthcare system, saving our auto industry, and trying against all odds to get our economy back on track, might not have micromanaged this little fiasco in the Southwest.
Welcome back Geoff. But damn, you seem angrier than ever. Are you SURE that you’re sure that Romney’s gonna win, and because of THIS operation-gone-awry?
BTW, could you make your second sentence a little clearer? You write, “Before the vote, oversight chairman Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) said Obama’s move …” but you never mentioned what that “move” was.Thanks.
Where do you stand on this proposed 405 Toll Road? That’s something we’ve been discussing a lot here, and it would be nice to have someone taking the PRO side. Unless you’re against it like the rest of us.
vern, i have already weighed in on the 405 Toll Road. Anything that gets me to Newport Coast faster, like avoiding the proletariat on the 405 until i hit the 73, i am for. anything that separates me from the masses, i am for. as previously stated, ten dollars is nothing, that is what i tip the valet at the montage
We know, Willie. I was asking Geoff, who is more of an ideologue while you are more of a libertine.
We know that you’re a proud one percenter, which is why we all like voting against you!
IT’S ALIVE!!!!!
Welcome back, Geoff. I reiterate my call for Republicans to put ALL of their chips on this number in the general election. Romney is a dead duck otherwise; only Geoff Willis can save him! There is no time to waste!
I told you the culpability for F&F goes all the way to the White House.
Yeah. Whoa yeah. PROVEN now!
Is Willis to blind to see the hilarity of Darrell Isa (R-Ca), the felon on an illegal weapons charge, is chairman of oversight on an illegal weapons charge ?
Also, as far as “sinking to a new low by declaring executive privilege”, isn’t that money changer Karl Rove still claiming “executive privilege ” to avoid a subpoena issued by Congress ?
And with the current stalemate in Congress, yes it’s shocking that Obama has used executive privilege only once so far in his administration. Does Willis remember Bush using it 4 times in little over a month?
And my favorite…”June has been a bad month for one-term President Obama and it is getting worse by the day.”
According to the polls, he is doing better every day against the French loving, “Just for Men” hair dying, dog torturing, Mormon.
democrap you must be getting your info from msnbsleeze we see they are real good at REPORTING TRUE STORIES WITHOUT SOMEONE FIXING THE TAPE .. whats that make 4 times now .. please keep watching that pig ed schultz you must be the only one from the look of his ratings .. while you boy barry keeps sinking into his hole ..
Just in from Bloomberg….
The Grating Juan has a secret love affair with Ed Schultz.
No, seriously though.
“Obama leads Romney 53 percent to 40 percent among likely voters, even as the public gives him low marks on handling the economy and the deficit, and six in 10 say the nation is headed down the wrong track, according to the poll conducted June 15- 18.”
We must have a different idea of what a hole is. It ‘s going to be a long summer for you.
LA Times: “Is Obama’s big lead in Bloomberg poll to be believed?”
The most recent three-day Gallup tracking poll showed Romney at 46%, Obama at 45%.
So, while the Bloomberg results are instructive, it’s best as always to keep an eye on the trend lines within individual polls, rather than draw major conclusions from a single one.
http://www.latimes.com/news/politics/la-pn-obama-bloomberg-poll-20120620,0,6597375.story
From what I understand, Bloomberg was “likely voters” while most other poles, especially the notoriously Republican-favoring Rasmussen, is “registered voters” – much less dependable.
With the obvious lesson that lotsa people are gonna sit at home half-heartedly favoring that Romney guy.
Far be it from me though to want any of us to get complacent. We need every last sane man jack out there! Especially to take back Congress and the Senate.
really i can show a million other polls that he is losing cant wait till nov when it will be 4 long years for you with a new guy in charge
You have to promise not to kill yourself when your Mormon fails miserably in November, Juan.
Don’t be so demanding, Vern.
VERN IN NOV KEEP ALL SHARP OBJECTS AWAY FROM YOU
“The ostensible plan was to follow the weapons across the Mexican border to allow the ATF to chart a path to the leadership of the cartels.”
The outwardly appearing plan of F&F was as you say here Geoff. However, the real plan of the Obama Administration – through Fast & Furious – was to make it appear that US gun dealers were the cause of gun proliferation and violence in Mexico. Thereby easing the path of further gun control regulations supported by the Obama Administration.
That is proven how?
Oh, I know… by all of his gun deregulation.
Unless, you’re talking about his “double reverse secret flea flicker Statue of Liberty conspiracy plan.”
The NRA might be lying to you to keep gun sales high.
Rachel did a great bit on this rightwing myth last night. It’s really pretty comically absurd. But they’ve been telling themselves this story for so long, and listening to nobody but each other, that it really makes sense to them.
I had no idea that the mastermind of this “Fast and Furious was an intentional disaster intended to lay the groundwork for tougher gun control” meme was some fringe terrorist, one Michael Vanderboegh, who masterminded the breaking of lots of Democratic office windows when Obamacare was passed, and now is all over FOX News with his FNF theory.
We are actually lucky here at the Orange Juice; most of America is just now saying “Huh? WTF? Come again?” But we’ve had skallywag here proclaiming this theory for the better part of the year, so we’re prepared.
Ha! I see “Little Green Footballs” – which was a Bush apologist site back in the Bush days but, like Balloon Juice, Andrew Sullivan and David Frum, has morphed into a simple common-sense site – has the video.
Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy
CBS has a rather damning report that the ATF considered using Fast and Furious as an argument for restrictions on the sale of multiple long guns.
On July 14, 2010 after ATF headquarters in Washington D.C. received an update on Fast and Furious, ATF Field Ops Assistant Director Mark Chait emailed Bill Newell, ATF’s Phoenix Special Agent in Charge of Fast and Furious:
“Bill – can you see if these guns were all purchased from the same (licensed gun dealer) and at one time. We are looking at anecdotal cases to support a demand letter on long gun multiple sales. Thanks.”
On Jan. 4, 2011, as ATF prepared a press conference to announce arrests in Fast and Furious, Newell saw it as “(A)nother time to address Multiple Sale on Long Guns issue.” And a day after the press conference, Chait emailed Newell: “Bill — well done yesterday. . . . (I)n light of our request for Demand letter 3, this case could be a strong supporting factor if we can determine how many multiple sales of long guns occurred during the course of this case.”
Rather damning indeed!
“ATF Field Ops Assistant Director Mark Chait” and “Bill Newell, ATF’s Phoenix Special Agent in Charge,” tossing around ideas after their big old fuckup.
Impeach the President!
Stop it, skally, you’re making me laugh too hard, my tummy hurts!
We will see how far up the chain the sculdugery goes – a fish rots from the head.
That is what the supoena and contempt charges are all about – disecting the rotten fish.
Silly Skallywag, didn’t you know that Geoff doesn’t want people coming on here and “changing the subject”?
I guess you get a free pass. Apparently for Geoff, consistency ends where hyper-partisanship begins.
. . . and this is why I left and shouldn’t have come back.
Don’t let the door hit you on the way out…again.
What do you mean by “this” — lack of immediate and total agreement?
I wish you Godspeed with your promotion of this line of attack. If Holder did something seriously wrong, let the chips fall where they may. I’m just not betting on it. Meanwhile, congratulations on your hard work paying off, after a fashion.
ROMNEY/ FRAUD and DRUG GATE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
June has been a bad month for continual presidential candidate Mitt Romney and it is getting worse by the day.
Will this story END Romney’s presidential bid? It seems Ann Romney was sued for FRAUD! For DRUGGING a defective horse and trying to pass it off to an unsuspecting buyer. The implications are HUGE! Flabbergasting! Is this a new low for these LYING, THIEVING, ANIMAL ABUSING THUGS? This story goes to the heart of Romney’s character, this is damning new evidence that proves we can’t let these thugs anywhere near the White House!
What did Ann and Mitt Romney know and when did they know it?????????????
Now we know that the Romney’s are SERIAL ANIMAL ABUSERS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
While this growing scandal has been largely ignored until now by media with the exception of Buzzfeed and The DailyKos, the media now has no choice but to cover this story given it’s moral implications.
From Buzzfeed;
Ann Romney found herself briefly the subject of a lawsuit at whose core, according to court documents, was a heavily-medicated horse.
Romney and her trainers sold the horse, Super Hit, in 2008 for $125,000. And Super Hit had what a prominent veterinarian described as a staggering quantity of drugs in its system at the time of its examination before being sold, according to a toxicology report that’s part of the lawsuit over the horse’s condition.
The lawsuit, which was mentioned in a New York Times story last month, was filed in 2010 by a woman in San Diego who had bought Super Hit from Romney and her trainers, Jan and Amy Ebeling. The woman, Catherine Norris, sued Romney for fraud after the horse allegedly proved physically incapable of performing as a dressage horse.
for the full story;
http://www.buzzfeed.com/rosiegray/ann-romneys-high-horse
Good find Anonster.
So the horse that had more drugs in it’s system than Ozzy Osbourne, and it’s name is “Super Hit” ?
Apparently the Romney’s settled that case ? What a surprise that Richy Rich bought his way out of that animal abuse and fraud.
OH I’ve been to the desert on a Horse with no Name,
it feels good to be out of the rain…
That horse was too high to remember its name.
Exactly. And this is our answer to Obama Murdergate.
Thanks.
Just imagine if this story had been about the Obamas. There would’ve been a full on media s**t storm!
“Liberal media”, my ass.
Did you see my post in Daily Kos about that, Anonster, under my own pseudonym? Over 2900 views so far.
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2012/06/22/1102320/-Did-Michelle-Obama-Turn-Back-the-Odometer-When-Selling-an-Expensive-Car
Darrell Issa, on Fox News Sunday today, when asked if lawmakers have evidence that there is a cover-up emanating from the White House;
“No, we don’t”
But as long as they can hammer on the possibility, that’s good enough for “silly season.”
That’s you? I did read that. On the Rec. list and everything, wow!
I’m impressed.
Gosh, you’re practicaly a celebrity, how exciting for the OJ.
Eat crow, Geoff Willis!
Well, to be fair, GW DID invent the phrase “Obama Murdergate” which got its own hashtag (whatever that means, Machete don’t tweet…)
I came to this site through free agency, not the minor leagues!
Those years of preparation were essential for dealing with — well, you know…. ;7)
From the anybody can be sued for anything no matter how frivolous the case file – NY Times:
In 2010, a San Diego woman sued the horse trainer and Mrs. Romney for fraud, claiming that the severity of a foot defect in a horse she bought from Mrs. Romney for $125,000 had been concealed. The case raised questions about whether the trainer, who acted as sales agent, intentionally covered up the animal’s condition, and if so, whether Mrs. Romney, a largely absentee owner, knew.
Lawyers for Mrs. Romney argued that the buyer was aware of the defect – a condition disclosed by a veterinarian who conducted a prepurchase exam – and denied any effort to deceive her. The buyer continued to ride the horse a year after the purchase in 2008.
On the eve of a jury trial, Mrs. Romney was dropped from the lawsuit before it was settled out of court. “The lawsuit was frivolous,” said Gail Gitcho, a Romney spokeswoman.
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/27/us/politics/ann-romneys-hobby-spotlights-world-of-dressage.html
You are right, but read the REST of the story.The lawsuit DOES sound like it had MERIT, but sometimes even if you’re right you can’t always prove it. This story SMELLS and it STILL makes you wonder about the Romney’s character and judgement (about people and animals).
From NYT’s;
Selling the Horse
Though Mrs. Romney loved the horse, calling him “Soupy,” she decided to sell him in late 2007. Riding him, though meant to soothe her multiple sclerosis, had in fact become painful. “I frequently was getting back spasms when I rode Soupy,” she said.
The eventual buyer was a horsewoman named Catherine Norris, who lived near Seattle at the time. Mr. Ebeling, she later said, called Super Hit “the soundest horse in the barn.”
Before writing a check, Ms. Norris sought a standard prepurchase exam. The Ebelings recommended a veterinarian they knew, Dr. Doug Herthel, who identified the joint abnormality on an X-ray. He informed Ms. Norris of it but assured her it would not bar him from the upper-level show ring.
But Dr. Herthel apparently did not mention that a toxicology test reported four tranquilizers in Super Hit’s blood at the time of the exam. His records showed that he injected two of the drugs — to steady Super Hit during X-rays, he testified — but there was no documentation of the other two tranquilizers.
Dr. Herthel sent an e-mail to Ms. Ebeling asking if the horse had been sedated before the exam; she replied that he had not. How the additional tranquilizers got into the animal was never fully established. A lawyer for Dr. Herthel, Steve Schwartz, said the drug laboratory’s tests were not definitive.
But veterinary experts unconnected with the case questioned the circumstances. “The presence of all those medications makes interpretation of the exam null and void,” said Dr. Carolyn Weinberg, a board member of the American Association of Equine Practitioners. She and others said tranquilizers could mask problems.
“They can affect the gait of the horse,” said Dr. Harry Werner, the chairman of animal welfare for the equine association. “They have the potential to obscure a subtle lameness.”
Ms. Norris, who could not be reached for comment for this article, continued to board Super Hit at the Acres, paying some $2,400 a month. But she was soon complaining that “he looks funny on his left front,” she testified in a deposition. According to her, Mr. Ebeling replied, “It’s your riding.”
When she moved Super Hit to a stable near San Diego in April 2009, a new veterinarian reviewed the X-rays Dr. Herthel had taken and diagnosed lameness, and Super Hit subsequently became “a pasture horse” unfit for riding, Ms. Norris said.
Jontelle Forbus, a trainer who had gone to work for the Ebelings shortly after Super Hit’s sale and rode him at the Acres, said in court records that she, too, thought he had an irregular step and told this to Mr. Ebeling.
“It was a horse sale where the seller wasn’t honest about the product they were selling, and the buyer wasn’t smart about looking into the whole picture,” Ms. Forbus said in an interview recently.
In testimony, she said she quit working at the Acres in part because she perceived “a feeling of general dishonesty” between the Ebelings and their clients largely over a failure to openly communicate.
In interviews, other dressage clients of Mr. Ebeling’s vouched that they trusted him. There is no record of other lawsuits filed against him or his wife in state or federal courts.
A spokeswoman for the Romney campaign, Amanda Henneberg, said, “Mrs. Romney has, and always had, full trust and confidence in Jan and Amy Ebeling.”
Nine days after ending her case against Mrs. Romney and the Ebelings, Ms. Norris settled with Dr. Herthel. The veterinarian’s lawyer, Mr. Schwartz, said his client paid no money. “They did not have a viable case and they quit,” he said.
Before it ended, Ms. Norris’s lawyers accused Dr. Herthel of being more interested in gaining favor with Super Hit’s famous seller, at a time when Mr. Romney was making his first bid for the presidency, than in protecting Ms. Norris’s interests.
On the day Ms. Ebeling had made the appointment for the prepurchase exam, Dr. Herthel confirmed it in an e-mail. It was Feb. 5, 2008: Super Tuesday, when California was holding its Republican primary. “We are telling everybody to vote Romney today,” the vet wrote.
Things that make you go hmmm;
From the info available about this lawsuit, it WASN’T “frivolous” at all, yet was “settled” out of court.
No money was paid by the veterinarian, but since NEITHER PARTY has commented, one is left to wonder if there wasn’t some other “settlement”.
As we all know, Romney was running for office for Pete’s sake.
It’s so, so, so very carefully worded. If Norris, for example, received a replacement horse of equal or greater value, that statement about no money would still literally be true. I don’t put much faith in it; they were clearly protecting the Romney’s reputations, so dropping her from the case first could have just been part of the choreography of the settlement.
Choreography! Dressage! The Romneys!
…said Dr. Harry Werner, the chairman of animal welfare for the equine association, “They have the potential to obscure a subtle lameness.”
A subtle lameness – the Romneys in a nutshell.
Nice job changing the subject from Obama Murdergate to f**king horse shit.
Which of us are you complimenting here?
You want to talk more about “Obama Murdergate”? Pray speak!
ATF agent John Dodson testified that he and other agents were ordered to observe the activities of gun smugglers but not to intervene.
“We monitored as they purchased hand guns, AK-47 variants, and .50 caliber rifles almost daily. Rather than conduct any enforcement actions, we took notes, we recorded observations, we tracked movements of these individuals for a short time after their purchases, but nothing more. Knowing all the while, just days after these purchases, the guns that we saw these individuals buy would begin turning up at crime scenes in the United States and Mexico, we still did nothing. …”
Why were ATF agents ordered to allow non-tracked weapons to cross into Mexico into the hands of known murderers?
Do you honestly believe that Deputy AG Bruer did not advise Holder of the F&F tactics? Was Brian Terry’s murder then only collateral damage?
When will Obama hold someone accountable for the murder of Brian Terry and countless Mexican citizens? BHO: “”There may be a situation here in which a serious mistake was made, and if that’s the case then we’ll find out and we’ll hold somebody accountable.”
I submit that we don’t have a full picture of what the plan was — and furthermore, that we probably won’t, because they won’t want to tip off future targets. But let me ask you: if Obama wanted to get guns to Mexican drug cartels, aren’t there easier and more secretive ways available? You know, “pallets of cash on places” and such?
If your ally Willis weren’t such a scared little dandy-pratt who can’t take some friction without running off, he’d keep this on topic.
Willis needs a little Skallywag in him!
Hillary made the “tee up” on the “assault weapons crossing into Mexico” schtick with Calderon in March of ’09 – check the youtube vids. Perfect choreography with F&F and then tell me that Holder and BHO were not in the loop.
Well, we knew there were “assault weapons crossing into Mexico” because of operation Wide Receiver. Was Bush jr. also in the “loop”?
It is pretty well documented that the Bush Admin. made legitimate but bungled attempts to interdict and track the weapons involved in WR – BHO & Holder made no such attempts in F&F.
We demand justice for Brian Terry.
I think I’ll agree with you on the justice for Brian Terry.
Except, hasn’t it already been shown that he was shot with a different weapon, that had nothing to do with Fast and Furious?
Did their underlings make such attempts? If not, did they know that their underlings didn’t?
“In the loop” in that they approved the general outlines of a program, on the recommendation of their staff, in the belief that it was in essence a continuation of a Bush Administration program? Sure, I can believe that. If the program is legal, but turns out to be a policy error, how is that possibly impeachable?
The Hill Poll found that likely voters disapproved by an almost 2-to-1 margin of Obama’s assertion of presidential power in the case. Overall, 56 percent of voters disapproved of his action, while only 29 percent approved. …
Sixty-one percent of independents said they disapproved of the president’s actions, and just 25 percent approved. Among Republicans, opposition to the president’s use of executive privilege was more entrenched at 78 percent.
Even 28 percent of Democrats, and 30 percent of self-identified liberals disapproved of Obama’s position.
The “Hill Poll” What’s that?
How much explaining did they need to do, to get these regular Americans (the ones who don’t watch FOX) to understand what they were talking about? And what did the explaining sound like? Did they explain what was in the protected documents? And how could they have, if they don’t know? Because you and I certainly don’t know.
Great — keep running with it, then. Presumably this will be the issue that decides lots of people’s votes in November, right?
That’s not the point Diamond – the point is ACCOUNTABILITY. But I will take the votes too.
“Dozens of senior-level U.S. government officials turned a blind eye to public safety as they pursued an ill-conceived and poorly managed investigation into gun trafficking in Mexico, according to a long-awaited inspector general’s report on Operation Fast and Furious. The report cites a failure in leadership and a lack of accountability and oversight up and down the chain of command at the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), the Justice Department itself and other offices. It says many senior executives knew the U.S. was helping traffic guns to Mexico that killed people but did nothing to stop it.”
Accountability …. goodbye Mr. Holder.
Next is motive – and for that we look at the Oval Office of BHO.
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2012/09/11/exclusive-long-awaited-furious-report-spreads-blame-across-agencies/#ixzz26BfFkhSs
By all means pursue the story, skally! Maybe you’ll determine the election!
“the point is ACCOUNTABILITY”
skallywag is so right, but when will he and Geoff come clean and admit that their accusations were nothing more than crap cooked up and fueled by their (and other right wing nutters) partisan hatred.
From TPM;
“RYAN J. REILLY SEPTEMBER 19, 2012, 2:15 PM
There is no evidence that Attorney General Eric Holder and high-ranking officials at the Justice Department knew that guns were allowed to “walk” during an ATF operation known as Fast and Furious, according to a report released on Wednesday afternoon by the department’s internal watchdog.
Following a 19-month investigation, the Inspector General found that the decision not to take action against low-level “straw purchasers” was made by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and the Arizona U.S. Attorney’s office. Their decision, according to the report, “was primarily the result of tactical and strategic decisions by the agents and prosecutors, rather than because of any legal limitation on their ability to do so.” Dennis Burke, the head of the U.S. Attorney’s office at the time, resigned from his position in August 2011.
The IG report is considered to be the most comprehensive and least partisan account of the scandal available to date. Unlike investigators with Rep. Darrell Issa’s House Oversight Committee, DOJ investigators had access to criminal investigation files.”
“Accountability” … goodbye Geoff and skallywag.
Next is motive- and for that we look into the twisted partisan minds of Geoff and skallywag.
And let me just add, ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!!!!!!
Hm… I’m inclined to believe Holder’s innocence too, but – at least as a devil’s advocate in the absence of the righties – an “internal investigation” the final word? Has this internal watchdog ever found fault with the department? (Maybe, I doubt it)
Vern,
According to MM’s the report is consistent with the report put out by the republicans.
From MediaMatters;
“The right-wing media’s conspiracy theory that the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) Operation Fast and Furious was hatched as a nefarious plot by the Obama administration to impose draconian gun control upon the United States has been debunked by an independent investigation into the failed gun trafficking sting.
According to a report issued by the Department of Justice Office of the Inspector General, there is “no evidence that the agents responsible for the cases had improper motives or were trying to accomplish anything other than dismantling a dangerous firearms trafficking organization.” This is consistent with a June 2011 report by Republican congressional staff, which found that “The operation’s goal was to establish a nexus between straw purchasers of assault-style weapons in the United States and Mexican drug-trafficking organizations (DTOs) operating on both sides of the United States-Mexico border.” From the OIG report”:
ATF’s Phoenix Field Division, together with the U.S. Attorney’s Office, bore primary responsibility for the conduct of Operations Wide Receiver and Fast and Furious. While we found no evidence that the agents responsible for the cases had improper motives or were trying to accomplish anything other than dismantling a dangerous firearms trafficking organization, we concluded that the conduct and supervision of the investigations was significantly flawed. For reasons described in Chapters Three and Four, the Phoenix and Tucson offices adopted and adhered to a strategy that deferred taking overt action against subjects, even when evidence of the illegality of the purchasing activity was overwhelming, and we concluded, did so without adequate consideration of how that strategy placed the public at risk and what measures could be taken to minimize that risk. Further, as the case progressed, there was no discussion about whether the goals of the investigation should yield to what should have been an imperative to end the firearms trafficking taking place.
“Obama Murdergate”
A phrase coined by a man who recently started a blog and is hoping for “…vibrant and INTELLIGENT (my emphasis) discussions from all perspectives…”
Seriously?