Agents worried ATF program connected to Loughner gun

The Hill ^ | June 15, 2011 | Jordy Yager

[SoonerStorm09]

TUCSON, Ariz. - Federal agents were worried that the gun used to shoot Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-Ariz.) in the head could have been part of the controversial “Fast and Furious” gun-tracking operation. They learned eventually that it had not, sources said.

The “Fast and Furious” operation was a program run by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) that authorized and monitored the sale of weapons to known and suspected straw purchasers for Mexican drug cartels with the stated goal of exposing and dismantling gun trafficking routes.

House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) held a hearing on the mired program on Wednesday, during which ATF agents testified that they had been ordered to let guns “walk” into the hands of suspected and known criminals with little hope of ever seeing them again or being able to successfully track them to their final owners.

[neodad]

What did Obama know and when did he know it?

[apillar]

Gee, I wonder who Gabby pi$$ed off at the ATF.

[FroggyTheGremlim]

Where, Oh where is the media on this important story?

I know, they're busy reading Sarah Palin's e-Mails.

[Principled]

Just exactly how do they know that the gun that shot giffords wasn’t one of the guns they pushed?

Just how?

Cuz if they know, then they know something about the guns they did push out there.

[smalltownslick]

I noticed that yesterday as one of many points in a document someone posted. No one seemed to pick up on it then, so I’m glad it got singled out for a story. If they indeed feared that, it might partially explain the rush to place blame elsewhere.

[TexasRedeye]

The testimony from the agents yesterday estimated that 1/3 of all the guns “walked” was specifically bought for a user on the U.S. side of the border. That amounted to an estimated 600 to 800 guns given to known criminals for distribution into the U.S. Was this gun one of them? What was the serial number? Who was it originally sold to? Was it one of the known “straw” buyers the agents followed but were not allowed to stop

[jaydubya2]

Barely a peep...

[Erik Latranyi]

The dealers need to get together, via the NSSF, to produce a list of all the firearms sold at the BATFEs insistence to known gun smugglers.

Fast & Furious is directly responsible for the death of over 150 human beings.....nobody died from Watergate.

[afraidfortherepublic]

Heck. They all said it was Sarah Palin’s fault!

[Joe Brower]

This thread has just added to the FreeRepublic "bang list" (firearms interest list) by adding the keyword "banglist".

Any time a firearms-related thread is created on FreeRepublic, please be sure to add the "banglist" keyword to it so that interested FReepers don't miss it. Just a suggestion.

Let Freedom Ring,

Click the pic to go to the Gun Facts v5.1 download page!

[Eagle of Liberty]

Even more important, what did Napolitano know and when did SHE know it?

SHE was the Governor of Arizona right before heading to Washington under Obama.

She also said:

“There is a perception that the border is worse now than it ever has been,” Napolitano said. “That is wrong. The border is better now than it ever has been.”

It’s also “wrong,” Napolitano said, that the drug-related violence in northern Mexico is spilling over into U.S. border cities. Violent crime rates in cities in the Southwest have stayed flat or fallen, she said. At the same time, she acknowledged, “there is much to do with colleagues in Mexico in respect to the drug cartels.”

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0311/51925.html#ixzz1PS2A3z6b

Border is better than ever, yet she didn't KNOW that Fast and Furious was going on? We truly have clueless showpieces at the top levels of Fed Gov with a whole lot of unelected second-tier "staffers" running the show.

[Charles Martel]

Just exactly how do they know that the gun that shot giffords wasn’t one of the guns they pushed?

Here's the part that I don't follow: This operation was about certain gun dealers being authorized to see guns to people who were allegedly known or suspected to be straw-purchasers for the Mexican cartels. That's the official line, anyway. So although which guns were actually involved is something the Feds should know... this is also about the "straw purchasers". Was Loughner on their list of people to sell to?

Hmm. Sounds like they're making this stuff up as they go.

[B4Ranch]

Good idea. Any idea who would pay them to do it?

[Erik Latranyi]

Good idea. Any idea who would pay them to do it?

NSSF has decent funding. In this case, the NRA, GOA, JFPFO, etc should all be on deck, helping put the case together.

[B4Ranch]

I was hoping we could add something to the budget.

[BerserkPatriot]

From the article:

The gun allegedly used by Loughner was not purchased under the guidance of the program, according to law enforcement sources.

Not exactly a definitive answer on this question is it?

But then again, it’s not like they would LIE to us or something.

[JudgemAll]

Are they going to jail the final owner of the gun, even if he bought it legitimately through another store?

[greeneyes]

“Napolitano said. “That is wrong. The border is better now than it ever has been.”

How odd. I don't remember any signs in Arizona or elsewhere that warned of unsafe areas during the terms of Eisenhower, Kennedy ....etc. I do recall reading that illegals self-deported during Eisenhower's term, because he actually believed in actively enforcing the immigration laws.

[Brad from Tennessee]

Had Pima County Sheriff Clarence W. Dupnik provided security for the Gifford event, instead of chasing political boogeymen, lives could have been saved.