Posted by Kromey at 1:56pm Dec 8 '11Been a while since I posted about Fast & Furious, mostly due to the fact that there really haven't been any new developments of note -- the Senate investigation continues to demand answers, the ATF and the DoJ continue to stonewall while simultaneously claiming they're cooperating, business as usual.
Some of you may recall that when I first posted about Fast & Furious, I mentioned off-hand that "cynical" gun rights activists were saying that the administration was planning on using these gun sales -- thousands of guns that were allowed to walk across the border into the hands of the violent Mexican drug cartels -- to blame American gun rights for Mexican violence and demand new gun control measures.
I dismissed them as being cynical, and their idea as being a conspiracy theory.
Well, turns out, while I was right on both counts, they were right, too!! The ATF did indeed intend to use the Fast & Furious gun sales to justify their "Demand Letter 3", the requirement that gun dealers report to the ATF any sales of two or more semi-automatic rifles greater than .22 caliber and with detachable magazines.
"It's like ATF created or added to the problem so they could be the solution to it and pat themselves on the back," says one law enforcement source familiar with the facts. "It's a circular way of thinking."
It would have worked beautifully, too. Think about it: If the whistleblowers hadn't come forward, if things had gone as the ATF higher-ups had planned, then we'd have the ATF coming to the rescue as thousands of guns are pouring across the border into Mexico. They implement a few pointless feel-good measures, in the process infringing the rights of honest American gun owners; then they simply shut down Fast & Furious, killing what's in fact their own gun-running operation to Mexico, and say, "Look, we've reduced the flow by 2,000 guns!"
If Fast & Furious hadn't been brought to light, not only would the ATF have succeeded in gaining more authority, but it would have set back gun rights years, maybe even decades, in this country!
Some of you may recall that when I first posted about Fast & Furious, I mentioned off-hand that "cynical" gun rights activists were saying that the administration was planning on using these gun sales -- thousands of guns that were allowed to walk across the border into the hands of the violent Mexican drug cartels -- to blame American gun rights for Mexican violence and demand new gun control measures.
I dismissed them as being cynical, and their idea as being a conspiracy theory.
Well, turns out, while I was right on both counts, they were right, too!! The ATF did indeed intend to use the Fast & Furious gun sales to justify their "Demand Letter 3", the requirement that gun dealers report to the ATF any sales of two or more semi-automatic rifles greater than .22 caliber and with detachable magazines.
"It's like ATF created or added to the problem so they could be the solution to it and pat themselves on the back," says one law enforcement source familiar with the facts. "It's a circular way of thinking."
It would have worked beautifully, too. Think about it: If the whistleblowers hadn't come forward, if things had gone as the ATF higher-ups had planned, then we'd have the ATF coming to the rescue as thousands of guns are pouring across the border into Mexico. They implement a few pointless feel-good measures, in the process infringing the rights of honest American gun owners; then they simply shut down Fast & Furious, killing what's in fact their own gun-running operation to Mexico, and say, "Look, we've reduced the flow by 2,000 guns!"
If Fast & Furious hadn't been brought to light, not only would the ATF have succeeded in gaining more authority, but it would have set back gun rights years, maybe even decades, in this country!
Well, I'll be -- the cynics were right! - Kromey