Gunwalker: Agent Admits His Testimony ‘Lacked … Completeness’
The ATF agent who oversaw Operation Fast and Furious now says his testimony to Congress “lacked clarity and completeness,” Fox News reports:
“After taking time to reflect and review my testimony from the hearing on July 26, 2011, I realize I could have given clearer, more complete and more direct responses to some questions,” former Special Agent in Charge William Newell said in a 12-page document submitted to the House Government Reform and Oversight Committee and obtained by Fox News.
In other words, Newell previously lied:
In a “supplemental statement,” Newell insisted agents did not knowingly allow thousands of weapons to reach criminal hands. Any concerns raised over the program were never voiced to appropriate authorities, he said, and only once did higher-ups tell agents not to arrest a suspect — when the safety of the agents was in jeopardy.
This would appear to be another lie — he contradicts testimony by one of the original ATF whistleblowers, Special Agent John Dodson:
“Rather than conduct any enforcement actions, we took notes, we recorded observations, tracked movements of these individuals, wrote reports, nothing more. Knowing all the while that just days after these purchases, the guns we saw these individuals buy would begin turning up at crime scenes in the U.S. and Mexico. And yet we still did nothing,” says John Dodson, ATF Special Agent.
PJMedia’s Bob Owens has suggested this entire operation was about more gun control, and Newell’s filing suggests the same thing:
In the filing Wednesday, Newell said any mistakes were “unintentional errors of omission” rooted in, among other things, “the laws we have at our disposal.”
Meanwhile, one of the cooperating gun shop owners — Andre Howard, who ran the Lone Wolf Trading Company – was apparently concerned about the operation and secretly recorded conversations with ATF Agent Hope MacAllister. Two of the weapons Howard sold turned up just days later at the scene of the murder of Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry, according to CBS News:
Among other things, Howard and MacAllister expressed concerns about ATF Special Agent John Dodson, who by that point had gone public about “Fast and Furious” in an exclusive interview with CBS News correspondent Sharyl Attkisson.
The transcripts are damning, as MacAllister suggests the FBI is in real trouble:
Dealer: But you have got to put the word out there to all the departments tell the f****ing FBI shut the f*** up. (whispering)
Agent: FBI’s got their own problems, trust me.
Dealer: I know, I hear.
Agent: They’ve got their own problems.
Dealer: Hypothetically.
Agent: If anybody’s gonna get sued it’s gonna be the FBI, in my opinion.
Moreover, Hot Air is reporting Howard suggested to MacAllister that Terry’s death was just “collateral damage“:
It’s not an ATF agent who utters those magical words, it’s the Arizona gun dealer who was working with the ATF on Fast & Furious. He utters them to an ATF agent, though, to which she replies with a cryptic “mm-hmm.” Callousness — or strategy?
I’m trying to think of any major institution or agency in the past year (news, government, financial, etc.) that hasn’t generated some major scandal which was so overt and crooked, that it almost seems like it was done on purpose….
Just another corrupt, inefficient and bloated government department, ho hum.
Not “just another corrupt…” but a corrupt Fascist government operation. No ho hum here. We have thirteen months to put an end to it, and after that, many will take up arms or secede.
I’m moving to Texas!
No. As mentioned in another article here, GunWalker is treason.
Was it only last month that we were being assured by certain pundits that barry’s re-election was a given, in that his administration had suffered no “scandals”? Well, well, well…what have we here? It seems that wherever one looks now there are scandals, both agregious and small, everywhere.
There’s a reason why you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.
But, we know that the truth and this administration are most often far apart. The cover-ups are so blatant and obvious except to them, and their denials and restatements trail the active news cycle with media ignoring as they are on to covering the next scandal. And, we pay for all of this?
This whole thing literally makes me sick to my stomach.
I kept wondering (and asking here, at times) what mindset kept this operation secret down at its lower levels. The conversation between Howard and McAllister tells me.
I’m not sure why Andre Howard went forward with the operation in the first place, though. Did it help his sales that much? Was he one of those idiots who thought it a fun, exciting opportunity? Was he plain stupid at first, and later in over his head and scared (as well as amoral)?
The ATF can put a gun dealer out of business pretty much any time it wants to, by simply going over all of his gun sales’ paperwork with a fine-toothed comb. There are ALWAYS errors. All they have to do is find enough, and PRESTO, your license is gone, and maybe you’re in jail, too.
It would be very easy for ATF to pressure a dealer into cooperating.
I forgot to mention, simply the fact that they have this kind of raw power should make every American very angry.
I remind everyone that AG Holder was part of the AG Reno disaster DoJ. Consider all the DoJ evils: the Gillick Wall, Waco, Ruby Ridge, and that belongs to Holder and Janet Reno.
AND OBAMA & HOLDER…………KNOW NOTHING? SHOCKED! EITHER SOMETHING IS DONE
NOW, OR FOREVER SHUT UP.
Smells like another part of the CFR global agenda to me. For example, supporting the Muslim brotherhood in North Africa, Egypt, Syria, and North America, supporting abortion globaly, homosexuality in the military, and attacking the Constitution, and Bill of Rights of these United States.
Murder in the name of global Marxism is not a problem for amoral individuals. Holder is just another sell out to the agenda. He should be tried for Treason. Along with DaOne, Billerey, and the Bull Dike at Homeland.
The scope of this lawless disregard expands by the day
Obama: Treason
The Executive: Treason
The Judicial: Treason
The Regulatory
Congress:Treason
DOJ: Treason
BATF: Treason
FBI: Treason
DHS: Treason
Law Enforcement: Treason
Traitors All: = Tyranny
Just got worse for those involved in the cover-up.
Vanderboegh & Codrea exclusive: U.S. Gov’t used an ATF employee to buy weapons with taxpayer money & walk them — without help from straw buyers!
http://sipseystreetirregulars.blogspot.com/2011/09/vanderboegh-codrea-exclusive-us-govt.html
Even worse, AlexJ… I have corroboration of the Codrea and Vanderboegh post.
Patrick Richardson – Can you inform us why Rep. Issa cannot hold open hearings, much like Jaworski did in Watergate?
Because Sam Irvin held the hearings and Leon Jaworski ran a grand jury.
tdiinva – I forgot that. Thanks.
I’m a little confused, Newell’s testimony WAS in an open hearing. Issa has had MANY open hearings.
Click on my name and you’ll see several stories about the hearings.
No one is asking “what happened to the money?” At least $1.25 million was spent to buy guns in Arizona. They went to Mexico. ATF didn’t just leave them on the corner with a sign that said “Please, just take one!” ATF sold them to some one. Presumably, the guns were worth more in Mexico that they were in Arizona. WHAT HAPPENED TO THE MONEY THAT ATF GOT FOR SELLING THESE GUNS TO THE MEXICANS??
the links (ads?) on the bottom of this pjm page appear to be for porn sites. six thumbnails of mostly nude women. pjm should check on it and remove it asap.
“Moreover, Issa is now calling for an independent prosecutor, according to the Washington Examiner:” Well fine as far as it goes, but guess who appoints special prosecutors under fed law…the Attoney General.
Some of the gun dealers CALLED the ATF as the straw buyers were doing the paperwork and were told by ATF to complete the sale, or else. After this all came out those same dealers were informed by ATF they were under investigation for selling guns to straw buyers…
Normal folks who lie under oath cannot “amend” their sworn testimony later to avoid going to prison. He should suffer that penalty like the rest of us.
I think the appointment of a Special Prosecuter would be a good deal because it would force the MSM to start covering the story. The concern about the DOJ being the agency to appoint an SP is a valid point.
Former Special Agent in Charge William Newell – reservations have already been made at the ‘Tobacco Barn’!
I’m still open to the possibility that the propaganda theory is a clever cover for real gun-running, and that some non-gov’t organization was making money off this.
AU’s Alan Licht. said, that with no scandals , Obama would be a shoe in. I wonder if he will re-think this now that there are two really expanding scandals that involve both Holder and Obama? Fast and Furious is growing in facts and Solyn. and other green baloney offerings seem to be filled with weird if not criminal offerings. Perhaps now that the MSM cannot hide this anymore, the voters will finally wake up and throw all these liberal Dems out, not only in state legs, guvs, but in Congress and this horrid Prez too?
Congressman Issa, a tough smart guy, should talk to Ken Starr, about the wisdom of creating a Special Prosecutor. Starr was the SP, who led the legal work culminating in the Impeachment of President Clinton. Starr came to consider this extralegal position as deeply flawed, almost impossible in our three branched form of government. How do you prosecute a crook, in another coequal authority, and maintain a separation of powers? The guys who must carry the ball are the DOJ inspector general, and Democrat Congressman Cummings. There is superficial evidence that an agency has either incredibly incompetent employees (gun cops are not supposed to procure weapons and give them to the bad guys, but they did), or are potentially accomplices to murder. Issa’s job is overview, shining the light, and legislation. Congressman Cummings takes the position that Congress must not interfere with a criminal investigation. Which apparently is exactly what the Inspector General did, coordinate incriminating documents with the suspects, prior to revealing it to Congress, and us.
It must be difficult to score a game of bridge with these guys. Who is “we” and who is “they”? And who is hiding their cards, while peeking at another’s hand? Issa hit the nail square, this”…can’t be explained by any ordinary people [who tried] to do the right thing but made a mistake.” DoJ has a problem. As does every gun owner in America.
HOLDER et al should be wearing orange jump suit’s with the other s**ts in Gitmo!
September 29, 2011 Sheriff Paul Babeu: ATF Are Accomplices To Murder
http://www.hapblog.com/2011/09/sheriff-paul-babeu-atf-are-accomplices.html
Obama Blames US Guns For Mexican Violence… Then Runs at Least 2,000 Guns to Mexico (Video) Posted by Jim Hoft on Thursday, September 29, 2011, 12:02 PM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=wgkh_1sgFrs