BOMBSHELL: President Obama gun-walking arms to jihadis on a massive scale

Frank Gaffney:

The real reason behind Benghazigate

Via Instapundit

L.A. Times: Congress expands Fast and Furious probe to White House

By Richard A. Serrano

September 9, 2011, 12:47 p.m.

Congressional investigators reviewing the failed gun-tracking program Operation Fast and Furious have formally asked the Obama administration to turn over copies of "all records" involving three key White House national security officials and the program, other ATF gun cases in Phoenix, and all communications between the White House and the ATF field office in Arizona.

The letter signed Friday by Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Vista), chairman of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, and Sen. Charles E. Grassley of Iowa, the top Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee, was sent to National Security Advisor Thomas E. Donilon, a top aide to President Obama.

It marks a significant step in the committee's investigation into the failed gun-tracking operation, as the committee begins to broaden its investigation from the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and targets White House and Department of Justice officials.

This material, Issa and Grassley said, "will enable us to determine the extent of the involvement of White House staff in Operation Fast and Furious."

READ MORE

Connecting the Dots on Fast and Furious

HAT TIP: InstaPundit

Last part of the March 2nd "American Thinker" article:

So now the current issue is whether Eric Holder should be held in contempt. The EPA scandal of the Reagan years, and other issues such as the Travel Office and U.S. attorney firings, pale in comparison to the deadly Fast and Furious scandal, along with its apparent cover-up.

Since the gun-walking scandal has been linked not only to the murder of Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry in 2010, but also to the death of U.S. Immigration Agent Jaime Zapata in 2011, as well as to the deaths of 300 Mexicans, there is absolutely no reason for Eric Holder not to comply with the subpoena.

The public, as well as the victims of the deadly government operation, deserves to know the truth. Last June, in hearings before the House Oversight Committee, members of Brian Terry's family spoke, and Terry's cousin, Robert Heyer, said that other members of the Border Patrol nicknamed the former Marine "Superman."

During training for the elite tactical BORTAC unit, Terry was assigned to write something about himself. It was a poem entitled, "If This Is To Be The Day, So Be It." Terry wrote of being trained and ready to give everything he had to give, and willing to die, if necessary.

"I do not fear death," he wrote, "for I have been close enough to it on enough occasions that it no longer concerns me. But I do fear the loss of my honor, and would rather die fighting than to have it said that I was without courage."

Heyer concluded that Terry had lived a life of honor, duty, and sacrifice. "It is now up to all of us to put honor first and to remain faithful in the quest for justice."

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The day the music died...goodbye America

January 26, 2012 was a red-letter day in American history. It was the day on which justice died a painful death in an Atlanta courtroom. The hearts of patriots are broken. An immediate appeal is in order.

LADY JUSTICE HAS DIED

We were sleeping too long, enjoying our lives, and taking our freedom for granted.

Obama kept on GA ballot by Secretary of State Brian Kemp, Kemp upheld Judge Malihi ruling, Obama attorney Jablonski on Kemp Advisory Council

From CITIZEN WELLS

At this point, reasonable people need to contemplate whether we even have rule of law anymore and whether it could even be restored via working within the system. I am hearing much talk of extraordinary measures. God help us. . .

Michael Jablonski, General Counsel, Democratic Party of Georgia, who represented Obama in the Georgia ballot challenge and who defiantly refused to attend the hearing with Judge Malihi, is on the GA Secretary of State Elections Advisory Council.

And then there's this:

BOEHNER CUTS DEAL WITH HOLDER ON "FAST AND FURIOUS" GUN-WALKING SCANDAL

Sinaloa cartel floods U.S. with drugs and receives weapons in special immunity deal with Obama administration

(CNSNews.com) – An alleged Mexican drug trafficker awaiting trial in a Chicago federal court claims that the notorious Sinaloa cartel received weapons from “Operation Fast and Furious” under an alleged immunity agreement that the U.S. government made with cartel leaders, in exchange for information on rival gangs.

The defendant in a trafficking case before the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Vicente Jesus Zambada-Niebla, also claims the immunity deal allowed the criminal cartel to “continue to smuggle tons of illicit drugs” into the United States.

He wants the U.S. government to provide documents relating to the botched gun running sting operation along the southwest border, arguing that it would benefit his defense.

Operation Fast and Furious, which began in September 2009, saw the Phoenix office of the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives supervise the sale of guns to straw purchasers with the intent of tracing the guns to Mexican drug trafficking organizations and prosecuting their members. The ATF allowed about 2,000 guns to be sold in this manner.

The operation came under congressional scrutiny after it was linked to the December 2010 murder of U.S. Border Patrol agent Brian Terry at the hands of Mexican bandits.

An investigative report, spearheaded by Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) and Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), found that most of the weapons provided to Mexican criminals under the operation were going to the Sinaloa cartel, arguably one of the world’s largest drug trafficking organizations.

In a court pleading filed last July, Zambada-Niebla made the claims about an immunity deal.

READ MORE

What did Obama, Holder, Napolitano and Clinton know and WHEN did they know it?

All four principals -- Obama, Holder, Napolitano, and Clinton -- visited Mexico in March and April of 2009.  All four raised the issue of smuggled guns, and each in his or her own way vowed to "take the fight to the Mexican drug cartels."  All four supported tightening loopholes in existing gun laws and reinstituting the AWB.  All four have denied knowledge of a program named Fast and Furious.  All four executives in charge should have known what we citizens now know.

Even Before Fast and Furious, They Had Guns on Their Minds

Obama's chickens coming home to roost

President Obama's Watergate:

Officials cover up culpability for gun smuggling and murder

Breaking: Issa receives more damaging Gunwalker emails

Examiner.com

U.S. Congressman Darrell Issa, R-California, whose committee, the House Committee on Government Oversight and Reform, is investigating the Project Gunwalker scandal, stated late today after a hearing that he has received more damaging emails on the scandal within the last 24 hours.

That information, according to Vanderboegh, is so explosive that a political tsunami could occur...

CBS exposé: worse than Fast & Furious

Video: US approved large escalation of legal gun sales to Mexico

The Tiahrt Amendment

Mens rea is Latin for “guilty mind.” In legal theory acting to set up a crime before committing it indicates a guilty mind; or guilty intent.
 

In the spring of 2009, just a few months before the Obama Administration instructed the Phoenix ATF office to commence Operation Fast and Furious,  Attorney General Eric Holder introduced and secured a curious change to United States gun legislation.

The tracing of firearm serial numbers provides information about the manufacture of a weapon,  its original retail seller and buyer,  the entire known history of the weapon. For years,  anti-gun rights zealots had procured these trace statistics from the Bureau of Alcohol,  Tobacco and  Firearms  for the purpose of initiating frivolous lawsuits against both gun dealers and manufacturers.

Then,  in 2004,  Kansas Republican Rep. Todd Tiahrt successfully added an amendment to the yearly ATF funding bill.  Known since as the Tiahrt Amendment,  the legislation prohibits the sharing of trace information for any but legitimate law enforcement purposes.  That is,  trace information on firearm serial numbers could only be provided to federal,  state and local law enforcement agencies engaged in specific,  criminal investigations.  Those responsible for left-wing fishing expeditions would no longer have access to trace statistics for the purpose of manufacturing lawsuits.

Then,  although Barack Obama and Eric Holder had promised liberal supporters they would fight to overturn the Tiahrt Amendment,  in the spring of 2009 Holder lobbied Congress for a change to the Amendment,  one which would allow ATF acquired trace data to be provided to  “a foreign law enforcement agency solely in connection with or for use in a criminal investigation or prosecution.”

The Regime was just about to launch the corrupt and murderous Operation Fast and Furious.  And it must be remembered that during the year long course of that despicable gunwalking venture,  no agency or official of the United States government informed the Mexican government of the scheme’s existence,  keeping all particulars concerning the deliberate smuggling across the Mexican border of thousands of firearms quite hidden from Mexican officials and law enforcement.

So former Congressman Tiahrt asks the obvious question:  “Why sign into law the Tiahrt Trace Data Amendment with clarification language to share trace data with foreign law enforcement agencies at approximately the same time that “Fast and Furious” program illegally allows firearms to cross the border into a foreign country?” 

Certainly this Holder-inspired change to Tiahrt was no coincidence. So, why did Barack Obama and Eric Holder, hardly known for their attention to details of legality,  suddenly consider this detail so important?  How was the Regime to benefit from the new language?  What possibilities for deceit and abuse of power did it secure for an Administration bent upon terminating the God-given right of the American people to keep and bear arms?

It is often easy to forget that the entirety of the Fast and Furious agenda was not played out, the ultimate goal not realized, as ATF whistleblowers and citizen journalists forced a premature close to the Operation.  What would the giving of trace information to a foreign nation—presumably Mexico–have accomplished and why was it so important to the final outcome of the scheme?  It’s very revealing to note that,  even at the zenith of its power, with clear majorities in both the House and Senate,  the Administration apparently could not afford to lose a fight for the overthrow of Tiahrt. It had to settle for a change.

It’s quite possible that when we discover the reason for Holder’s change to the Tiahrt Amendment,  we’ll finally have the rest of the pieces to the Fast and Furious puzzle.

Use this site to contact your Congressional Representative:

https://writerep.house.gov/writerep/welcome.shtml

Fast & Furious: "You need to know that Eric Holder, now nominated to become Attorney General, played a key role in covering up the torture-murder of my brother, Kenneth Michael Trentadue"

"This is not just my shocking opinion. It is also the opinion of many Americans. More importantly, it is supported by the Justice Department’s records and actions that came to light as a result of my family’s efforts to obtain a certain measure of justice for my brother’s murder."

While Eric Holder is getting a lot of media attention these days related to his involvement in the controversial ATF gun-running program known as Operation Fast and Furious, Salt Lake City attorney Jesse Trentadue said he “was way ahead of the curve” when it came to pointing out the attorney general’s many flaws — and skeletons. He points to a scathing 4-page letter (PDF) he sent to Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) Dec. 19, 2008, as proof.

‘Fast & Furious’ Not Eric Holder’s First Controversy Involving the Murder of an American Citizen

The Obama administration gives the impression that it increasingly regards democracy as an inconvenience...

PowerLine:

Is paranoia a bad quality in an Attorney General?

One would think so, and I speculate that Eric Holder’s tenure may be drawing to a close.

How Obama completely f*cked up our relations with Mexico

Key question in scandal: Why?

But why stop at Mexico: can you think of ANY country where our relationship has improved since Obama took office???

22 Shocking Facts About The Scandal That Could Bring Down The Obama Administration

FAST & FURIOUS

Fourth Congressman demands Eric Holder's resignation

Letter also questions Obama administration's motivation for Fast & Furious:

The Fail is strong with this one. As is the stench of corruption, death and destruction.

Obama administration-approved black ops in Mexico more extensive than known

All the focus has been on Agent Brian Terry until now.

Mr. Issa’s subpoena demands all Justice Department documents “referring or relating to the murder of Immigrations and Customs Enforcement Agent Jaime Zapata, including any correspondence outlining the details of Zapata’s mission at the time he was murdered.”

Zapata’s assassination didn’t receive nearly the publicity afforded U.S. Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry - despite the fact that both men died at the hands of drug thugs wielding ATF-enabled weapons. But Zapata’s case is the more potentially revealing of the two.

How deep does this go?

According to sworn testimony, the Gunwalker scandal involves an entire alphabet soup of federal agencies: the ATF, FBI, DOJ (Department of Justice), DHS (Department of Homeland Security), ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement), CBP (Customs and Border Protection) and IRS (Internal Revenue Service), not to mention the State Department and White House.

In short, like Watergate, the Gunwalker scandal is the tip of the proverbial iceberg. It’s just getting started.

Read the whole thing:
FARAGO: Gunwalker is only the tip of a scandal iceberg

CBS: "Grenade-walking" part of "Gunwalker" scandal

When the mainstream media takes over, it's Watergate time.

(CBS News) There's a new twist in the government's "gunwalking" scandal involving an even more dangerous weapon: grenades.

Fast and Furious: timeline

The following is a timeline of events surrounding Holder and Congress’ dealings with Operation Fast and Furious:

2009 — Operation Fast and Furious is launched under the supervision of the ATF's Group VII, based out of Phoenix.

March 12, 2010 — Group VII Supervisor David Roth sends an email to the group acknowledging a “schism” in the attitudes of the agents. ATF agents in the group would later testify they were conflicted over the tactics being used. “Whether you care or not people of rank and authority at HQ are paying close attention to this case,” wrote Roth.

July 2010 — Michael Walther, the director of the National Drug Intelligence Center (NDIC), wrote three memos to Holder in which he mentions Operation Fast and Furious. In one memo, Walther advises Holder that NDIC and a Phoenix drug enforcement task force would assist the ATF with an investigation of a suspected gun trafficker, Manuel Celis-Acosta, being run under Operation Fast and Furious.

“This investigation, initiated in September 2009 in conjunction with the Drug Enforcement Administration, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and the Phoenix police department, involves a Phoenix-based firearms trafficking ring Manuel Celis-Acosta,” the memo states. “Celis-Acosta and [redacted] straw purchasers are responsible for the purchase of 1,500 firearms that were then supplied to Mexican drug trafficking cartels.”

Nov. 2010 — Assistant Attorney General Lanny Breuer sent a weekly memo to Holder notifying him of a sealed indictment against alleged gun traffickers in Arizona by the DOJ’s organized crime and gang section. Breuer wrote that the indictment would remain sealed “until another investigation, Phoenix-based ‘Operation Fast and Furious,’ is ready for takedown.”

Nov. – Dec. 2010 — Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) is contacted by whistleblowers within ATF about the tactics used in Operation Fast and Furious.

Dec. 15, 2010 — Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry is killed in a firefight in Arizona. Two of the guns found at the scene were sold to suspected straw buyers under the operation.

Jan. 2011 — Grassley meets with Holder and DOJ officials to discuss the whistleblower allegations.

Feb. 2011 — DOJ sends a letter to Grassley denying that the ATF would knowingly sell assault weapons to straw purchasers and that the agency makes every effort to prevent weapons from going to Mexico.

March 2011 — Holder asks the DOJ’s Inspector General to investigate Operation Fast and Furious.

March 8, 2011 — Eleven people are federally indicted for alleged weapons trafficking crimes in connection with Fast and Furious.

March 16, 2011 — Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) sends his first letter to ATF’s acting-director Kenneth Melson requesting documents pertaining to the origin of Fast and Furious and who authorized it.

March 31, 2011 — Issa issues first subpoena on Fast and Furious to DOJ for documents he requested in March.

May 3, 2011 — Holder testifies before the House Judiciary Committee saying, “I’m not sure of the exact date, but I probably heard about Fast and Furious for the first time over the last few weeks.”

June 15, 2011 — Issa holds his first hearing on Fast and Furious where former and current ATF agents testified about the controversial tactics employed under the operation and their efforts to stop them. Assistant Attorney General Ronald Weich, who operates as a legislative liaison to Congress, also testifies that the DOJ was doing everything in its power to assist Issa with his investigation. Republicans have said the DOJ is “stonewalling” their efforts to get information about the operation.

June 29, 2011 — Obama says he will not comment on Fast and Furious further until the IG investigation is complete. “My attorney general has made clear that he certainly would not have ordered gun running to be able to pass through into Mexico,” said Obama. “I'm not going to comment on a current investigation. I've made very clear my views that that would not be an appropriate step by the ATF, and we've got to find out how that happened.”

July 4, 2011 — Melson testifies in a closed setting before Issa and Grassley’s investigators. Melson acknowledges that Fast and Furious was under the jurisdiction of the Arizona U.S. Attorney’s office.

August 30, 2011 — Holder transfers Melson out of his position as acting director and Arizona U.S. Attorney Dennis Burke resigns.

Fast and Furious fallout puts Holder on collision course with Congress

Hillary Clinton connected to Fast and Furious/Gunwalker scandal

Breaking new information on the Project Gunwalker scandal, reported last evening by investigative citizen journalist Mike Vanderboegh, indicates that the connection between the Hillary Clinton State Department to the illegal operation is much more extensive than previously reported.

Gunwalker part 2--the State Department connection

UPDATE:

A source told Mike Vanderboegh that she is livid over the relevations concerning her involvement, so much so that she personally read Vanderboegh's 2 articles on the State Department and the Secretary of State in the Gunwalker scheme.

Hillary's enemies list now includes Gunwalker reporters

Wide Receiver

Wide Receiver was [a] botched law enforcement, while the gun-walking programs of the Obama administration were intentionally criminal — and arguably terrorist — acts, arming violent narco-terrorists waging war on a U.S. ally

Gunwalker: Gunning Down the ‘Bush Did It, Too’ Lie