‘Gunrunner’ Whistleblower Vince Cefalu Speaks (PJM Exclusive)
Earlier this week, Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA) sent a letter to Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) Deputy Director William J. Hoover, insisting on assurances there would be no reprisals against the ATF agents who have chosen to testify about the failed Operation Fast and Furious — the operation Issa has called “felony stupid.”
Just a day later, ATF Special Agent Vince Cefalu received notice ATF wants to terminate his employment after more than 30 years with the agency. Cefalu is one of the founders of CleanUpATF.org, a message board dedicated to addressing abuses within the ATF. He is one of the most vocal critics of the heads of the organization.
He said the main reason given in the four-page document for his termination is “lack of candor.”
Four years ago, what originally landed Cefalu in trouble was a case called “Road Dog“. In that case, local law enforcement was allegedly using an illegal wiretap — something Cefalu resisted:
I threw the locals under the bus. … I became the most vocal critic and they got sick of my s***.
He’s since spent four years in a do-nothing job, with ATF managers hoping he’d get the message and retire:
They put me in a cage, paid me full salary, and hoped it would break me down mentally and I would retire.
Since he did a three-part series of interviews about the problems in ATF with CNN’s Anderson Cooper last May, Cefalu says he’s been given only 122 minutes of work:
Not GS-13 investigative work either. Changing batteries or filling cars with gas.
Cefalu said he’s suffered persecution in several other ways as well:
[Acting Director] Ken Melson can’t even respond to a letter from a committee chairman. … I can’t fart in public without being accused of violations. I’ve submitted to seven internal affairs investigations since I blew the whistle. Without an attorney present, I answered every question.
I’m representing dozens of agents [in greivance cases]. They take me out of play, they take a bunch of these cases out of play.
Cefalu says there should be prosecutions in the failed Operation Fast and Furious case, also known as “Gunwalker.” When asked if ATF had violated the law in this case, he responded:
Of course it violates the law! They conspired to traffic firearms, you can’t do that under color of law. … There was no intent to follow the guns, this never had a chance of succeeding. It was a failed plan from the beginning.
I hope it IS abolished – and not just revamped and given a new name! The more these useless gov’t orgs are disbanded the better!
Don’t hold your breath. We have become a police state** and they no longer care whether agencies are found to be breaking the law, it doesn’t matter.
** A police state exists not when the government arrests every one, but when the government CAN arrest any one.
CAN ANYONE DO SOMETHING TO HELP THIS MAN?
Yes! Write your Congressman…Now.
A Nation of Sheep Breeds a Government of Wolves!
Seems like that is where we are headed. Maybe we’re already there.
and look at the money we could save if all of the USELESS over lapping agency’s were discontinued. most of which were created to give some big donor a reward for helping get some SCUMBAG elected,
What happened to the whistle blower law,or doesn’t that apply to the DC politicians, and their dirty tricks? They are taking over our country right under our noses, and if we re-elect the Saul Alinskyites again,they will completely dump the Constitution and the Republic. We don’t have a President, we have George Soros pulling his strings. Soros,has many media souce’s sewed up, many of them are run by using tax free status, o attack anyone not in agreement with their agenda. Its time to kick them all out, by using our vote in 2012,enabling us to stop the madness that is being foisted on America against its will
The ATF should be abolished, along with the DEA, CIA, NSA, IRS and Federal Reserve. They are all unconstitutional organizations, anyway.
For the last week I have been impressed with your vigilance on operation Gunwalker, and like you I see this as another threat to the freedoms we enjoy here in the United States. I routinely follow another Conservative Blog that I have always enjoyed. In the past month during WeinerGate they ran daily blogs on that story, yet now when there is a story that needs to be exposed, and can be instrumental in undermining the creditability of not only the Obama administration but that of the MSM they have done only one blog. This story needs to stay front and center every day and hopefully like Weinergate it will be forced to the forefront of the American media. Thank you hopefully others will follow your lead, and not be anything more than Weiner Wackers.
Rock, You are right this needs to be kept upfront daily! Many people read Pajamas Media and I believe more and more people are turning away from MSM and to sites like this. Wienergate was everyday and I was so tired of it but the guy did leave so I guess it was okay. I disliked the lies and games he played as a sitting officer. This story a United States Border Patrolman was killed and he was a Federal Officer! That is serious and still means something to me. He was protecting me and my family. His family was proud of him and loved him. His fellow officers loved and respected him. He is gone now. He is gone forever due to this?
PAJAMAS MEDIA…PLEASE, PLEASE KEEP THIS STORY ALIVE EVERYDAY!!!
AMEN to that Rock,
Cefalu is being presented here as a hero, a man of integrity, and I hope that’s an accurate portrayal of him.
However, the ATF has been a rogue agency since before Reagan’s presidency. It routinely violates the rights of American citizens, and is really nothing more than a tool for the anti-gun elements in our government. If any agency of the federal government deserves the moniker of “Jack Booted Thugs”, it’s the ATF.
It needs to be disbanded.
Mark. does hitlers jack booted storm troopers ring a bell SS for sure,
As the bumper sticker says, “Alcohol, Tobacco & Firearms should be the name of a convenience store, not a government agency.”
I hope they get rid of it and hundreds of other do nothing, money wasting, intruding agencies.
Aren’t they also the despised “revenuers” charged with busting illegal stills,the government’s the anti-moonshiners and NASCAR chase car drivers?
What do they do with tobacco except collect tazes?
… I’m afraid the agency will be abolished because of the actions of a few self-serving individuals.
Don’t be afraid (I’m not, if that makes you feel any better). They can always put you into a more productive government job where you can do that 122 minutes of work EVERY WEEK.
I see it more as a big box store, Walt C., but I agree otherwise.
So much for whistle blower protection laws.
Everything about the feds has gotten too screwed up, out of contol, chaotic or abusive to all Americans.
How much more sheet do we need to take before we take to the streets? Will they actually shoot us down like we’re Syrians, Libyans or Iranians?
The EPA, ATF, NEA and the IRS…then Congress needs to be completely fired, sent home and a whole new set of representatives in place who get the message. I’ll take to the vote first….but leave open the right to revolt as Jefferson and the founders envisioned.
We’re losing control of our employees folks.
Yes they will. Ever heard of “Kent State”? All it would take would be one agent in the crowd to fire one shot and that would be all she wrote.
As the T-shirt says, ATF should be a convenience store and not a government agency. If it were a convenience store, it would have had tighter oversight and have done less harm.
It’s getting worse every day, Obama is losing his mind now if he’s pulled “GunRunner” and thought he could get away with it. Even if he has the main stream media in his pocket and working as propagandists for the regime this can’t be hidden because of the deaths of Mexican Policemen as well as some of our own. This is going to get bigger and bigger just like the expose of his ACORN and the PigFord Scam and all the rest of the ripoffs, lying, cheating, stealing and extortion.
Couldn’t the ATF be folded into the FBI?
My impression is that all the BATF’s duties can and should be performed by the FBI.
The last time a proposal was made to fold the ATF into the FBI, the head of the FBI was against it. His comment was “You mix dirty water with clean water, and you get dirty water”.
Forget about the BATF’s structure, uniform, charter, badge, etc. Just dissolve it and let the FBI perform the erstwhile BATF’s duties.
This was tried in the early nineties, no one wanted their agents, to corrupt I believe was the reason. The only part of the ATF anyone was interested in was the bomb folks in the ATF.
This guy will be thrown under the bus. Not because he’s telling the truth, but because he sold out the Obama administration, the MSM’s darling. They’ll scortch this poor bastard until you can smell him in Tel Aviv.
That’s unfortunate, because without men and women like this, our experiment in a republican form of government is doomed to fail.
Rich Vail
Pikesville, MD
The Vail Spot dot Blogspot dot Com
Barack Hussein Obama is nothing but a front man for Ayers and the Weather Underground. He’s also appointed Muslims with ties to the Muslim Brotherhood to DHS. He, Holder, Napolitano, and many others belong in prison. Obama is pure evil, and so are those that work for him.
They think they can be accessories to murder, and call it policy and all is ok. When you provide a weapon to someone knowing it will be used in the commission of a crime, you are an accessory. It sure fits the bill here. This is a Reichstag event. I’ve oftened wondered about the BP Disaster. It was very convenient that they wanted to shut down drilling, and voila Gulf Oil Disaster? Who is this man? Why isn’t the FBI after him? I’ve even written to Mossad hoping their intelligence will investigate him, for their sake as well as ours.
GUNWALKER SHOULD RESULT IN FAST AND FURIOUS PROSECUTION OF OBAMA OFFICIALS
Written by Jack Kelly
Monday, 20 June 2011
http://www.tothepointnews.com/content/view/4571/130/
Your comment about the “convenience” of the BP oil spill: I thought the same thing.
Many events in this administration seem to be very convenient. I think this is all carefully planned.
I also believe this administration has committed treason. Only one example, but a big one: Took an oath to protect the United States of America but left the borders open, wants to grant a “blanket” amnesty, and welcomes our enemies in without investigating their backgrounds, put terriorists on trial in a civil court…….I could go on but won’t. I think you can get the picture.
>>Many events in this administration seem to be very convenient. I think this is all carefully planned.<<
DUH! Ya think?
INCUMBENTS- THE "POLITICALLY CORRECT" ENDANGERED SPECIES!
I sincerely hope that the ATF is abolished.
They’ve killed people for no good reason. They’ve manufactured evidence to frame people. Look up the name David Olafson for an example.
Look up the term “economic Waco” to see an ATF policy in action.
Look up the terms “Good Ol Boy’s Roundup” for the ATF at play.
Look up the phrase “Always Think Forfeiture” to see the ATF mindset at work.
Look up the name “Waco Jim Cavanaugh.”
Please, please, please abolish this agency. Please?
I applaud Special Agent Cefalu’s courage in speaking out. Unfortunately, I doubt we’ll hear much about it in most of the American media. The MSM only loves whistleblowers when they expose wrongdoing by Republicans.
I second your applause. I hope other agents follow his example, although his fate should tempt few.
If the ATF must exist, then I hope President Perry’s first act is to appoint Agent Cefalu it’s new Director.
Vincent, I am glad I know you. I am very proud of you for standing up for your beliefs in what is honest and right.
Never sell yourself out. Never, never give up.
May you and your family be blessed. N.
I am tired of the lies and underhanded Obama Administration and his culture of deceit as well as others, no matter which side they are on, I will be working to
defeat as many as I can.
Here is an agent that is trying to correct what many of the comment bloggers are complaining about. He is saying his agency is out of control. He agrees with you. He’s saying they are wasting money and manpower and not giving a good product back. The guy is trying to speak out for right and he was doing so long before they gave him his walking papers so don’t say he is speaking out only after he got hurt. He has been on the forefront of trying to reform ATF from the inside out for years. The fireing was just his agencies payback.
I spoke at length with Special Agent Cefalu and what I found was a man who deeply loves the agency to which he’s given his life. Who is genuinely hurt by what it’s become and truly believes the agency should be apolitical. My hope is that what he’s doing will shame enough people that there can be change in the ATF.
Unfortunately from what I’ve read at CleanUpATF.org, the best of the agents are run out in favor of glory hunting cowboys and bosses who care only about a political agenda.
Thank you for helping Mr. Cefalu shine the light on these RATS!
It seems such agencies are corruptible and susceptible to politicization. So just don’t maintain them. It’s somewhat defeatist, but which way is better — maintaining a corrupt agency that kills, or having none at all? The BATF’s job could be done by the FBI.
Demo-rats: No Law Can Stop them, No Sense Can Stop Them!
This reads like ATF has Homosexuals in charge. They have a New Age agenda, and have a reprobate mind. Like, supporting false witness, and no moral compass.
Yea, I’m way off base on this one, so I will go cling to my Bible, and weapon.
The word for these activities is treason. I say treason because the intent of this agency to deliberately circumvent and destroy what is left of the second amendment and you may as well include the rest of what is left of our constitution.
They know exactly what they are doing and their lies cannot hide the truth for anyone with open eyes. FLAT OUT TREASON.
We may need to start forming our own Militias to protect us!
I hope Matt Drudge keeps this front and center as in ‘developing’, Rush could also be a big help. My understanding is this is an outfit staffed by Secret Service, FBI, Federal Marshall and Border Patrol rejects, real ‘Mall Ninjas’. Abolish them and good riddance.
Obama, Holder, and the unelected Czars have already tipped the scale to Socialism. The issue is way beyond “prevention” and well into the territory of revolution. Your congressemen are impotent and at times complicit with, and even unwilling to oppose Obama when he is in clear violation of the Constitution. The ATF is morphing into Obama’s own personal guard. The O is also pushing for signing up for the UN small arms agreement which is near the beginning of the end for our 2nd Amend rights. Prepare yourselves for the government thugs breaking down your door at 4 a.m. Agent Cefalu is the proverbial canary in the cage.
I agree with many of the posters here that the Obama regime cares not a whit that ATF or TSA or the DoJ or any of the federal agencies violated the law. When has there EVER been a socialist regime that actually cared about the citizens?
The real problem is that way too many of the citizens actually support the corrupt and unlawful Obama regime.
Please continue to shine a light on this story. The entire truth has not come out, but it smells to high heaven. I was struck by the parallels between this agency’s recent history and the arrest of the Boston killer (alleged), James “Whitey” Bulger. Whitey was an FBI informant who corrupted his handlers, and the rot extended wide and deep within the FBI. A high level FBI executive was convicted of of federal racketeering, obstruction of justice and lying to an FBI agent. He was a suspect in being complicit in murder. History repeats itself.
We know enough, now, to be certain that the ATF morale is in a shambles. Men who dedicated their life to law enforcement, perhaps put their life on the line, have been betrayed, by high level managers. A house cleaning is in order. We need to know why, based on prima facie evidence, the ATF committed crimes. The bosses, in DOJ, sit on a razor blade. The Inspector General is investigating his own agency for possible felonies. This is the reason DOJ is resisting Congress’ investigation, a most valid concern.
But keep the light shining. This is journalism at its best. And the fact that we are deluged about the passing of actor Peter Falk, in lieu of this serious reporting speaks volumes about our MSM.
Federal Marshals with Search warrants for all information regarding Agent Cefalu’s notice of termination, as well as “Fill In The Name” Arrest warrants for anyone whose signature is on any document authorizing this action should be front and center at ATF Headquarters first thing Monday morning.
I have long advocate that ATF,(E), should be stripped of all arrest powers. They are Treasury, and therefore are essentially bean-counting revenue-collectors.
They have proven time and time and again that they have utterly no business wearing a badge and carrying any firearm.
Let them do paperwork and collect evidence, but let other more professional enforcement agencies,(after their own internal oversight of ATF(E) data is satisfied) be tasked with actually arresting people.
It seems that the lesson given by Timothy McVeigh has already been forgotten…and so soon.
“If the Court please, I wish to use the words of Justice Brandeis dissenting in Olmstead to speak for me. He wrote, ‘Our Government is the potent, the omnipresent teacher. For good or for ill, it teaches the whole people by its example.’ That’s all I have.”
This Goes All The Way To The OVAL OFFICE Via The JUSTICE DEPARTMENT, Include The DRPT OF STATE. Since Innogoration They Have Been Pushing The “Gun Runer”
Theory In A PLOT” To Seek Legislation To “BAN GUNS”!(Part Of Their “PROGRESSIVE AGENDA”)
Well, everyone has an ax to grind, and in thirty years on the job you get to see where the skeletons are buried; but no, we can’t lock down the border in restraint of free trade. Wouldn’t it be funny if the same political appointees at BATF who approved running guns to Mexico covertly, were the same folks pandering the CIA story about importing foreign dope into the Ghettos? Wasn’t that one of Maxine Walters and various Black Caucus member’s pet fantasy complaints when it suited their political purposes? Remember that “dynamic entry” into the Koresh compound in Texas that finally resulted in the 84 killed, many children, only after the FBI took over from BATF after they blew it? Well, at least one can say the new changed BATF has improved over Waco’s death toll; at 150 estimated Mexican nationals killed south of the border and no BATF agents, the Obama DOJ has obviously improved on their biological cost shifting. Now that’s what I call leading from behind, providing the guns the cartel members can use to kill each other off over drug market shares.
Mexico is a perfect exemplar of what the gun grabbers of Chicago and New York, Daley and Bloomberg, would make of the U.S. if there policies were embraced. In Mexico, guns are outlawed, so only outlaws have guns.
This is terrible what has happened to this man..hopefully someone will come to his defense…Mr.Melson now is willing to completley cooperate and testify…what I don’t understand is why does the DOJ have to give him permission??? The DOJ and the White House are the real criminals here. Next week should be interesting, we will see if Issa can get his interview with Mr. Melson and bring this investigation to a head… The Media is only concerned right now with Casey Anthony, they are so unbelievable…but we the people have to keep the Birth Cerificate, SS and this corrupt failed attempt to bring down the 2nd Amendment by the monster that is in the White House going.I will never give up If anyone knows the answer to why the DOJ has power over Mr. Melson on who he can testify to, please let me know…Thank you
Let me get this straight. “You mix dirty water with clean water and you get dirty water.” That’s supposed to describe the condition of the FBI, clean water? Are they so clean that they can walk away from the prosecution of all 234 “unindicted co-conspirators” from the Holy Land Foundation terror trial? Are they so clean that they knuckle under Eric Holder’s treason and not resign en masse? Are they so clean that you can allow known associates and supporters of Hamas to freely roam about the country while they plot our destruction. Take your collective heads out your asses people. The DoJ is selling this country down the drain to Muslim oil producers who provide vast sums of “Petro Political Payola” to Obama.