(Note: Excuse my rush on this. I went back and corrected many errors in grammar. I am NOT an English major!)
The on-going (18 months and counting?) investigation into the Fast & Furious debacle, stinks to high heaven. The Dems claim its a Republican witch hunt, and the Republicans claim its about the truth. The Home Committee on Oversight, is lead by Chairman, Congressman Issa, and is attempting to find out what happened, who was involved, when they knew about it, and who should be held responsible if wrong doing is found.
The on-going (18 months and counting?) investigation into the Fast & Furious debacle, stinks to high heaven. The Dems claim its a Republican witch hunt, and the Republicans claim its about the truth. The Home Committee on Oversight, is lead by Chairman, Congressman Issa, and is attempting to find out what happened, who was involved, when they knew about it, and who should be held responsible if wrong doing is found.
While there "may" be
some political
interest involved, the FACT is, over 2,000 guns, illegally purchased and
transferred under OUR government agents' direction in that operation, are unaccounted for. And, at
least one or two or those guns were used in the killing of one of our Border
Patrol Agents, Brian Terry (in 12/10/2010), outside Rio Rico, Arizona. That area of Arizona
was not at the border, although that doesn't really matter, but was more than 40 miles
INSIDE the US border. Reportedly, Terry was shot by drug runners, using an AK-47 rifle. That rifle has been tied to the guns PERMITTED to go to drug runners. (READ - "Provided"by OUR own government.)
Add to that, there are untold numbers of Mexican
people who have been targeted for violence, with some of those very weapons permitted to "walk" (without tracking!).
There are a number of issues involved in
this web of deceit surrounding Fast & Furious. And I'll try to address those that I feel can be agreed with
by most reasonable and objective people.
1. The "AK-47", IF that was what the weapon
actually is (this is important to understand), is on the face of it, an ILLEGAL
firearm to buy by the average lawful citizen. Only a specially licensed and regulated citizen,
can have a Class III license to buy such a weapon. An AK-47 is a fully automatic rifle! Possession by any unlicensed US citizen, is a FEDERAL FELONY. (Good questions for any
Oversight committee.)
2. The gun walking program, failed in every
way we know of, and the guns were NOT tracked. Not tracking the guns, to the
suspected drug runners, makes NO sense to me at all. What was the expected goal of
that flawed program? Not tracking them, makes me wonder if they only expected to match guns at crime scenes ... AFTER shootings (with victims) had taken place. (Good question for any Oversight committee.)
3. Do we, and particularly the Terry
family, deserve to know who was involved, from government officials to gun dealers and
straw purchasers? (Yes. And more good questions for any Oversight committee.)
4. In ANY investigation, ANY potential person who may be involved, should ALWAYS be treated with a certain level of suspicion. If any person is involved, criminally and/or civilly, where possible charges could be brought, it should be expected that they will attempt to cover up their involvement.
Therefore, such investigation, and legal inquiries, MUST be prepared to dig deeper than the person questioned is offering as information and evidence. (As an good Oversight committee do.)
5. When ANY person of
interest, or suspect, provides information and/or evidence, ANY good investigator should suspect more could
be hidden. MOST cooperating persons of interest, who DO have something to hide,
will very often "appear" to be cooperating, while concealing the most damning of
information and/or evidence.
THIS is why Issa and the committee are trying to get ALL relevant information. And except for absolutely critical investigative information, shouldn't OUR representatives on such a "oversight" committee, get everything relevant? And IF that is not forthcoming, then shouldn't they go for a subpoena? And if the subpoena is NOT being followed, an investigative entity go one to the next step to obtain such information? (Yes!)
In this case of US
Attorney General Holder, claiming he HAS cooperated by turning over
some 7,500 pages, of more than 80,000 yet to be reviewed, IS NOT cooperating. If
a suspect hands over 99 of 100 pages of communication, and says he/she is fully
cooperating, then how would an investigator know if page 100 didn't have the
page that said, "I DID IT!"?
Withholding ANY
requested information in an investigation, should absolutely suggest a cover up
of involvement of active participation in the situation being investigated!
DUH!!!! (Any good Oversight committee, would be cautious, and suspicious, of such efforts.)
6. For this President,
to "protect" his AG with a Executive Privilege in the 11th hour, now adds to the suspicion. The President has done more
harm than good here. And THAT too, is a mis-justice to the
Terry family, the whole Law Enforcement community, and to ALL of us who
should expect ACCOUNTABILITY! (Any good Oversight committee, should DEMAND compliance!)
Politics? No. Not on
Issa's side. Politics ARE being played
from the Obama side. Why hide facts otherwise?
Oh, by the way, the US
Justice Department, under Holder, has refused to charge Holder with contempt. They also
refused to prosecute The New Black Panthers for "voter intimidation", when the
whole world saw them on video attempt just that!
ANY fool, specially if
anyone is Law Enforcement or Military, who would still vote for those in the
Obama camp, should line up for their Jim Jones kool-aide!
Disclaimer: I DO NOT like Obama, and in fact feel he is destroying "the foundation" of our great country. But the facts described above, should apply to ANY investigation.