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Earl Anthony ‘Tony’ Wayne said Wednesday that if he is confirmed to be the next U.S. ambassador to Mexico, he will do everything possible to prevent the reoccurrence of covert operations such as “Fast and Furious". In response to questions: “There has been criticism over the level of violence, but I have not heard of an alternative strategy that would allow us to keep moving forward,” Wayne was nominated June 9, after Carlos Pascual submitted his resignation on March 19 due to tensions with Felipe Calderón after WikiLeaks published some of Pascual’s correspondance which criticized Mexico’s efforts to combat drug...

IRS undercover operations: Privacy invasion? The bailout bill also gives the Internal Revenue Service new authority to conduct undercover operations. It would immunize the IRS from a passel of federal laws, including permitting IRS agents to run businesses for an extended sting operation, to open their own personal bank accounts with U.S. tax dollars, and so on. (Think IRS agents posing as accountants or tax preparers and saying, "I'm not sure if that deduction is entirely legal, but it'll save you $1,000. Want to take it?") That section had expired as of January 1, 2008, and would now be renewed....

What Are U.S. Military Options in Iran? Thursday, April 21, 2005 WASHINGTON — U.S. officials are still trying to find a diplomatic resolution over Iran's interest in creating nuclear facilities. But if diplomacy fails, the Bush administration is also looking at its military options. FOX News spoke with two retired generals and a military expert, who outlined some of the options on the table for the Pentagon. Covert Action: The Bush administration might send CIA agents or commandos to sabotage Iran’s nuclear facilities. “There were no smoking guns, no fingerprints,” said Walter Russell Mead (search), with the Council on Foreign...

As pressure mounts for Congress to pass legislation overhauling US intelligence agencies before the end of the year, Representative Edward J. Markey pledged yesterday to fight "extraordinary rendition" -- the covert practice of transferring suspects in US custody to countries where they are likely to face torture during interrogation.

/begin my translationJapanese mag. Aera: In N. Korea, Kim Jong-chol To Be The Successor "We are instructed to put comrade (Kim) Jong-chol into 6-month training at Advanced Party Academy after he finishes his internship at Organization Guidance Dept. of the Party." While it has been confirmed that Ko Yong-hee(age:51), a wife of N. Korean leader Kim Jong-il, died of heart failure on the dawn of Aug. 13, (Japanese) weekly news magazine Aera, published by Asahi Shimbun(a major Japanese daily,) reported on its latest edition(dated Sept. 6) that it had obtained (N. Korean internal) documents which indicate that Kim Jong-il's...

WASHINGTON, Aug. 11 — Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld is considering ways to expand broadly the role of American Special Operations Forces in the global campaign against terrorism, including sending them worldwide to capture or kill Al Qaeda leaders far from the battlefields of Afghanistan, according to Pentagon and intelligence officials. Proposals now being discussed by Mr. Rumsfeld and senior military officers could ultimately lead Special Operations units to get more deeply involved in long-term covert operations in countries where the United States is not at open war and, in some cases, where the local government is not informed of...