Saturday, February 5, 2011

The Project Gunwalker Scandal in a nutshell.

I was asked by Larry Pratt this morning to sum up what I thought the Project Gunwalker scandal consisted of. I answered --

Jeff Knox laid it out this way:

"There are actually four separate but connected accusations against ATF officials:

First, that they intentionally arranged to have hundreds of firearms "walked" across the U.S. border into Mexico.

Second, that they instructed U.S. gun dealers to proceed with questionable and illegal sales of firearms to suspected gunrunners.

Third, that they intentionally withheld information about U.S.-sanctioned gun smuggling from the Mexican government.

Fourth, that one of the guns ATF allowed or helped to be smuggled into Mexico was involved in the death of Agent Terry."


I would a fifth: that ATF, FBI, DHS and DOJ officials are covering up the true circumstances of Project Gunwalker, the decision not to inform the Mexicans, and the death of Brian Terry by threatening whistleblowers and others to remain silent "or else."

1 comment:

Defender said...

A nonspecific response to my repeated emails about Gunwalker: Sen. Mark Warner's big "but":

"Thank you for contacting me to share your views on gun control.
I realize that there are very strong opinions on both sides of the debate around Second Amendment rights. I support public policies that ensure the responsible and appropriate use of guns, as well as efforts to reduce gun-related crimes through increased enforcement and background checks. I supported full funding of the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), the only national database that flags individuals who are precluded under current law from purchasing or possessing firearms. ***I do not, however, support laws or regulations that infringe on the Second Amendment Constitutional right of law-abiding citizens to keep and bear arms.***
In the aftermath of the tragedy in Tucson, Arizona and in light of the Virginia Tech shootings, we must remain vigilant in our efforts to ensure firearms do not get into the wrong hands. In the United States Senate, legislation on gun control generally falls under the jurisdiction of the Senate Judiciary Committee, of which I am not a member. However, I will keep your views in mind should any legislation on this matter come before the full Senate in the future."