Fast And Furious Ongoing
Those who want to follow Fast and Furious go to the contempt proceedings. As per the feed, which has ended, a contempt report has been approved by the Committee and sent to the House. The stage is set for a vote next week unless the President can persuade Congress to desist.
PJMedia’s Bridget Johnson has more:
The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee voted 23-17 along party lines to hold Attorney General Eric Holder in contempt of Congress today, pushing forward with the action even after the White House slapped an 11th-hour executive privilege on subpoenaed documents still sought in the Operation Fast and Furious investigation.
Chairman Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) said an official communication from President Obama had not been received by Congress at the time of this morning’s meeting, but the committee had received a multi-page letter from Deputy Attorney General James M. Cole informing them of the action just minutes before the hearing, which was scheduled earlier this month.
“We regret that we have arrived at this point, after the many steps we have taken to address the Committee’s concerns and to accommodate the Committee’s legitimate oversight interests regarding Operation Fast and Furious,” Cole wrote. “Although we are deeply disappointed that the Committee appears intent on proceeding with a contempt vote, the Department remains willing to work with the Committee to reach a mutually satisfactory resolution of the outstanding issues.”
The vote was entirely on party lines. The talking points made by each side during the hearings were a study in contrast. The Democrats had played two notes: “Bush invoked executive privilege” and “let’s be reasonable and negotiate a deal with the President to avoid a confrontation”.
The Republicans were surprisingly aggressive and even offered an amendment which suggested the President didn’t validly invoke executive privilege, the letter coming as it did not from the President and at the literal 11th hour. Besides, they said, surely the President has nothing to claim privilege on since he can have nothing to hide.
The party-line vote suggests that the Republican House leadership will take this resolution at least some distance. They will advance some distance against the President’s dare; exactly how far is anybody’s guess.
Now the problem for the President becomes 1) does he try to head off the House vote? or 2) does he double down? Whichever road is taken will burn energy. This is not favorable ground for him to fight on. He can only accuse Issa of ‘playing politics’ or at worst, of racism. But Issa can hint that someone at justice was guilty of a serious crime. So the accusations are asymmetric. One is firing cupcakes. The other is firing 16 inch armor piercing.
What cannot be foreseen is what the next week will bring. But here’s a guess. Trouble in the Middle East. More bad economic news from Europe. More bad economic news at home. Immigration, of course. Also, there may possibly be an adverse decision from the Supreme Court on Obamacare.
President Obama might have been able to handle F&F if it were all he was facing. But it is simply one more nightmare among a crowd of them. As I wrote in the last thread, in some way this is all abut energy management between dogfighting opponents. And the administration has very little altitude and airspeed left.
Things are getting a little rough. The Daily Caller reports that Nancy Pelosi is appalled by the contempt citation. She said that were she so uncivil during her time in power she might have had Karl Rove arrested “anytime”.
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi attacked House Republicans for pursuing contempt of Congress charges against Attorney General Eric Holder on Wednesday.
“I could have arrested Karl Rove on any given day,” Pelosi said on Wednesday, The Huffington Post reports. “I’m not kidding. There’s a prison here in the Capitol. If we had spotted him in the Capitol, we could have arrested him.”
“Oh, any number” of charges could have been brought against Rove, Pelosi said. “But there were some specific ones for his being in contempt of Congress.”
Pelosi also criticized Republicans pushing for justice for Border Patrol agent Brian Terry — as House oversight committee ranking Democratic member Rep. Elijah Cummings has on numerous occasions — as “just strictly political.”
The contract between members of the Ruling Elite has been stretched of late. It used to be that one side let the transgressions of the other pass because they expected the same when their turn came. But then people started talking about “permanent majorities” and “fundamentally transforming America”. Then came selective enforcement of the laws. At some point one side was bound to see it as a threat.
The Republicans probably came to see Holder as a threat — if only for his candid efforts to keep dubious voters on the rolls. Now that Issa has basically threatened to lock Holder up in the same cell Pelosi hoped to incarcerate Rove in, then the Democrats see the Republicans as a threat. As noted earlier, the thing to watch now is the escalator.
The “Chicago Way” as the movie famously put it, is to escalate until the other side is in the hospital or the morgue. But as this eventually creates a symmetric response, then logically either Boehner or Pelosi will one day be looking out from inside that self-same cell — if they are lucky. Someone had better get between the boys or it will be stools and whiskey bottles and maybe the piano player flying in the bar.
If it comes to a compromise, then look to see Holder thrown to the dogs. Holder must realize that he will be defended only up to the point where the trouble costs less than he is worth. Maybe he has realized it, and has arranged to wire himself up to the President in which case the situation becomes very interesting indeed.
Open thread. And double posts do not count toward the limit if they are substantially the same thing.
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I don’t get it. It doesn’t make sense. How can Obama think that hiding behind executive privilege is a good move in an election year? I think I’m beginning to see why Clinton called him an amature.
Oh yeah baby, four more years of Obama! – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a4nvhAZ0vr0
OK, I’m a slow learner but I think I understand now. Executive Privilege as a legal concept only extends to communications with the President. The obvious conclusion is that the subpoenaed documents contain communications about F&F with the President or at the very least his staff (I’m not sure about the legalities of that).
The President has just admitted that he at the very least knew about F&F and did not shut it down.
But where are this generation’s Woodward and Bernstein?
The biggest distinction may be that the press was hot for Nixon’s scalp and competed with each other to get him.
The better question is where is this generation’s Cicero?
By the same token Obama does not have anybody even close to the likes of Lanny Davis to take the hits and run interference for him. I hope he uses David Axelrod who has even less credibility than his boss, and no likeability at all with normal people.
An earlier commenter in the previous thread said that it’s likely that Issa already knows what’s in those documents, and probably already has copies of them. If he does I hope he uses them well. Even the NYT might throw Obama under the bus if Sulzberger saw a clear pathway to making itself the brightest star in the firmament.
‘And so it begins.’
Theoden at Helms Deep
‘And so it begins.’
Theoden at Helms Deep
Do double posts count towards the four post limit? I feel like such a noob.
BytheNbrs, that’s three and counting, you noob. J k.
Peter Boston, my question was meant somewhat sarcastically, as I suspect you already knew. The fact is, Mathews still has that thrill going up his leg and Brooks is still enamored of the crease in the man’s pants. Too bad for the major market ‘reporters’ and opinion-makers that this President is a Democrat; too bad for the rest of us we are just racists for expecting him to adhere to common decency, let alone the Constitution and the rule of law.
6. BytheNbrs
Not if you stand in the corner for 30 minutes.
Will be interesting to see if any foreign media begins to run the story. Once that occurs it takes on a life of its own and hangs around for donkeys ears.
This administration is a seething mass of maggots.
9. JJRedfan
…but very bright!
Let’s give credit where credit is due. Probably many of us had steeled ourselves for the Institutional Republicans making a few speeches which would never be reported in the Alphabet “News” services and dropping the matter without a vote.
The Institutionals have certainly exceeded my expectations. Congratulations, and carry on!
As long as the Institutionals can keep Barry & the Gun Runners on the playlist, unexpected events may happen. The bureaucrat with a conscience steps forward? The self-promoting journalist sees his chance to break from the pack & hit one out of the park? The Democrat ex-President decides to express his disgust (are you listening, Jimmy Carter)?
11. Can you stand more LOTR? Jimmy Carter as Golum. Dispicable but still may have a roll to play.
9. JJRedfan
Maggots wriggle a lot and are known to perform feats of maggotry – stupid absurdity – while they wriggle. Then they turn into houseflies.
Responding to Kinuachdrach@11
Hasn’t it been noted in press reports that Issa has a “mole” of some sort – a staffer (it would HAVE to be pretty high level…) within the DOJ?
How is it Calderon can run to the press to express support for Obama on immigration policies he is not even a part of but has not come out condemning the US role in killing Mexican citizens with weapons supplied by the US Government.
He cheers on the abandonment of his own citizens from their homeland but shrugs his shoulders over a foreign government providing the means to kill them at home?
I guess at the end of the day Calderon really cares very little for his own people. They are merely peasants. Nice president you have there Mexico. Still, I’ll swap ya…….
Does reporting an issue with the “Comment” facility count towards the four post limit?
I got no opportunity to edit my #11, but was invited to edit or delete the posts at by others #7 & #9.
OK, I’ll shut up now.
Perhaps the Institutionals (sounds like a failed name suggestion for a 50s doo wop group dont it) are starting to sense that the crocodile, having worked its way down the menu, is starting to make goo goo eyes at the flabby flesh on their bones. (Then again maybe not, since the existence of a skeleton would also suggest the existence of a spine).
As W said, if this is for all the marbles, or is even perceived by the Institutionals to be for all the marbles, then they may be roused to exhibit behavior they have never bothered to exhibit before. Guess we’ll see.
12. Shredder – Can you stand more LOTR? Jimmy Carter as Golum. Dispicable but still may have a roll to play.
I always felt David Axelrod was Master Wormtongue (the analogy stops there – i.e. he is a weasel. I do not mean Obama is like Theoden)
Although I was a teenager in the 70′s, I remarked to my wife the other night (she was the same age), about the spooky resemblance that King Putt had to Tricky Dick during that presser the other day. She said that was exactly what she was thinking too.. He was furious at being questioned. I believe that The wheels are truly coming of Too Much the Magic Bus!
Sorry, I couldn’t resist the Last bit.
from Tom Clancy ‘the bear and the dragon’
“Yeah, I understand,” Murray said. “Sometimes big shots act just like street hoods. Just with bigger guns.”
Kin@ 11 “The Institutionals have certainly exceeded my expectations. ” Mine too!
Could it be that Issa has something so damning and so conclusive that that even the RINO Left Institutionals know they dare not hide it?
If Issa really wanted to double down, he should subpoena Hilary and Napalitano to see if they evoke privilege and refuse to answer the committee’s questions. If they refuse to answer, Hilary and Nap could be held in contempt as well. That way the back door Presidential Alternate Candidate ( Hilary) is removed from the election chess board. Just Dreaming.
I think pjmedia has been infected by a bogus advertiser popping up quibids.com pages, via about half a dozen interlinked bogus sites.
That or I’m getting it somewhere else.
“The contract between members of the Ruling Elite has been stretched of late. It used to be that one side let the transgressions of the other pass because they expected the same when their turn came. But then people started talking about “permanent majorities” and “fundamentally transforming America”. Then came selective enforcement of the laws. At some point one side was bound to see it as a threat.”
This is an extremely cynical point of view, and all the more unnerving because it certainly seems to be the truth. I have watched the venom spat at the Tea Party from the establishment GOP when it dared to challenge them instead of being their expected lackeys.
While it is comforting to know the system has a defensive mechanism against oligarchy, the fact the it has to come from an entrenched group of elites worried they will lose their share of the spoils and power is disheartening. Maybe that was the way the system was designed all along, but one hopes people can still act on principle.
I look at this and wonder – could it be possible that Eric Holder is eyeing that jail cell and muttering to himself “don’t throw me in that briar patch…”
Could this be a deeper game? Is this part of a comprehensive effort to paint the GOP as seriously bent or off the rails?
cue MSNBC stooge – “These crazed far-right Republican racists have locked this humble black man up in this jail cell. And some people say America has changed… (cut to picture of Dr. King in B’ham jail/fade to Holder looking serious in his compartment)”
When life gives you lemons, make lemonade. Who knows?
Can this possibly be their game? Talk about double down…
It’s almost as if the House Republicans are actually working in concert to keep Obama’s administration off-balance in this election cycle. If so, it marks a rare degree of coordination from the GOP.
Obama had it bad enough just dealing with Romney’s campaign, and the continued poor economic news. The squabble over F&F has realistically, until now, been a sidelines issue for the current administration, managed by the general on that front, Mr. Holder. However, with this citation, it’s as if the Republicans in the House have broken through Holder’s lines, and forced Obama to reallocate forces already devoted to Romney to prevent a breakout.
I’m encouraged by the GOP’s determination. I remain to be convinced of their real dedication to deficit reduction and fiscal conservatism. . .but that’s what I hope for.
To my knowledge Executive Privilege does not simply include the President and his direct communications. I was once told by a JAG officer that it included the USAF withholding the details of mishap investigations.
G.W. Bush invoked Executive Privilege in the case of the supposed horrific firing of the 7 US attorneys. However that case involved no crime, no secret screwed-up program about which the administration had blatantly lied to Congress, no deaths of US law enforcement officers or foreign nationals, and no aid to criminal gangs – and everyone, even the Dems, agreed that it was well within his rights to fire all of the U.S. attorneys if he wished to do so. The “case” and no doubt the information, concerned the reason for the attorneys being found inadequate. Reportedly, it involved their failure to properly prosecute cases of voter fraud.
Brett Baier on FOX News just gave NBC and the New York Times not-so-subtle jabs for the paucity of their coverage of Fast and Furious. Said they have some serious catching-up to do, to put Holder’s contempt citation and the President’s invocation of executive privilege in context for their viewers/readers.
Apparently, NBC News has mentioned Fast and Furious but once, and that briefly, in all the time this issue has been simmering. Now that it’s about to go full boil, it should be interesting to see how the traditional news outlets handle it. Their high executives and chief editors might be suffering migranes, trying to determine what to do.
Charles Krauthammer (sp?) just said that NBC News’ coverage of F & F to this point has amounted to all of ten seconds. So much for the public’s right to know, eh?
The Contempt resolution is staggering. If there had been a Republican President, it would have been all over the news. There have been whistleblowers, and the Obaminoids have retalitated against the whistleblowers.
http://oversight.house.gov/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/6-19-12-Fast-and-Furious-Contempt-Report.pdf
“Early in the investigation, the Committee received hundreds of pertinent documents from whistleblowers. Many of the documents the whistleblowers provided were not among the 2,050 pages that the Department had produced by October 11, 2011, demonstrating that the Department was withholding materials responsive to the subpoena.”
“These documents will also identify who at the Department was responsible for authorizing retaliation against the whistleblowers.”
Watergate gave us the expression — it’s not the crime that is the problem; it is the coverup. Let’s see!
I really believe the game here is that O and the Marxists Dems believe that the Instutional Rupbs. will fold from fear at the thought of attacking the historic first Black President. I think they have been conditioned by years of rollover but I sense there is something different about this deal. The Instutional R’s hear the rustleing in the grass; 2010, S. Walker, TEA party, L3 and company, Romney up in the polls, etc. Close for hand to hand combat with an admin. more criminal than Nixon ever thought about being. People died, AMERICAN people died, because of this action and my guess is that the documents show Commissar Obama approved it personally from the VERY first day of the administration.
SMOKING CANNON not gun.
24. mezzrow, yeah, no matter what, someone will argue we’re all just a bunch of racists.
Somehow that slander just doesn’t cut ice anymore.
Josh, I’m getting the same annoying quibids pop-ups.
Karl Rove was a presidents adviser. Eric Holder is the friggen US Attorney General for the love of God, who is supposed to, and has not, uphold the law of the land. Fail at that and the nation of laws fails. Holder is the weakest link in our democracy. He must be fully prosecuted and made an example of or we must give up on the theory of justice for all.
I should probably give this post more thought before posting, but in watching the coverage today, there’s a Democrat push, followed by some Republican pundits, i.e., Charles Krauthammer, that this will backlash against the Republicans if they pursue it – that this is to distract from the economy and jobs, jobs, jobs. I disagree vehemently. The DOJ and this Administration has been flagrant in its “pursuit of justice” re voter intimidation, clearing the voter roles of dead and illegal voters, now the immigration waiver, etc. This is an in-your-face flouting of the rule of law and whether we still are a country of laws. I think the Republicans should push this hard – don’t descend into the name calling, but pursue the investigation on the legal basis. Surely, we can handle more than the economy and the need for jobs, jobs, jobs – and, if we can’t, there in lies the true crisis.
RE: docbill’s comment at 29: This does have some flavor of the first Gulf war in which Saddam was conditioned to believe America would never follow through. Let’s hope we don’t stop prematurely the way Bush 41 did.
The Left lives on “narrative” and they expect their narrative — Bush used executive privilege; Bush started the gun running process during his term; we gave them thousands of pages and they are being unreasonable — will succeed. And it still might, given the air cover they are getting from the MSM. Whether facts and reality will trump narrative is something we may see in the next few months.
Each passing day it seems Obama is more like Nixon, than Nixon, and Carter, and LBJ, etc., does it not?
How long before those investigating are used in the same sentence with the word “lynching”?
How many Mexicans have died as a result of Fast and Furious since the White House began stonewalling?
If the spin machine turns the narrative back to the economy we’ll know there is fire…and smoke.
Isn’t it rich that Obama, in various ways, can reasonably be compared to each of the most awful Presidents, or Presidential acts, in modern times?
Let’s not forget Agent Terry. Efforts will be made to dehumanize what exactly is going on here. Every story, every conversation, every video…about today’s actions…should invoke the name of Terry.
Mark Levin (via instapundit) gives a rather concise overview of this current situation re Executive Privilege, and how the House should proceed in reaction: https://www.facebook.com/notes/mark-levin/executive-privilege-and-how-the-house-should-move-forward-legally/10150866576635946
Levin makes the reasonable assertion that EP is not to be used “to cover-up wrongdoing, conceal embarrassing information, or advance a political agenda…”
He also cites U.S. v. Nixon, 1974 to show that the invocation of EP needs to be done on a document by document basis, and cannot be used to shield an entire cache of potentially incriminating information.
Peter Boston @ 3: “But where are this generation’s Woodward and Bernstein?”
Running journ-O-list.
it’s only a distraction if the rommney campaign let’s it be one. they can just respond in a way that emphasizes the themes they are already pushing.
http://evilbloggerlady.blogspot.com/2012/06/house-votes-23-to-17-to-hold-eric.html The more pressure we can put on this the better. Let’s get to the truth of what happened.
“18. shivermetimbers
12. Shredder – Can you stand more LOTR? Jimmy Carter as Golum. Dispicable but still may have a roll to play.
I always felt David Axelrod was Master Wormtongue (the analogy stops there – i.e. he is a weasel. I do not mean Obama is like Theoden)”
I’m no Tolkien scholar but I will see your Axelrod=Wormtongue and raise you an Obama=Saruman (whom Wormtongue actually served).
It fits if you think it through.
Agree with Knight1 @ 33…
The LAWLESSNESS of this administration AND the Dems when they had “super majority” in BOTH houses of the legislature for two full years — THAT is EXACTLY WHY this country has been plunged into the economic toilet.
Total up all the crooked quid-pro-quo paybacks in the form of Taxpayer subsidies to counterfeit “GREEN” companies that went broke in months while their principals pocketed hundreds of millions of dollars… Makes for BILLIONS in Obama-pal GreenScamming
All the friends of Obama who were given grants they used for personal expenses instead of the intended charities and non-profits. Just for ONE instance: Remember how Obama illegally fired Americorps Inspector General Gerald Walpin for investigating the abuses and mis-use of taxpayer funds by former NBA player and Mayor of Sacramento Kevin Johnson? (No consequence then, BECAUSE THE DEMS HAD SUPERMAJORITIES IN BOTH HOUSES!)
When Obama shattered court precedents, intimidating all the creditors of General Motors, he may not have directly broken laws, but he abused his powers by threatening to disrupt their businesses and lives with IRS, EEOC, and other federal agency audits. “I am all that stands between you and the crowds with pitchforks,” I believe was his eloquent threat. As part of the re-fashioning of GM, its dealerships were culled nationwide. Oddly enough, most of the dis-enfranchised dealerships just happened to be owned by Conservatives and Republicans, who weren’t supporters of Obama.
The MUGGING of America by the administration and the Dems during the first TWO YEARS includes all the putrid payoffs of Dem legislators who had to be bought off with enormous Pork Projects and spectacularly wasteful deals, AND EXEMPTIONS FROM THE OBAMACARE COSTS FOR THEIR STATES THAT WERE TO BE IMPOSED ON EVERYONE ELSE!
Billions and Billions and Billions of dollars of crooked deals.
After a while, it starts adding up to some real money.
Back in 2008 the reporting from Mexico said that few of the guns used in the gang wars came from the US. In 2009 the reporting changed — a lot of the guns came from the US. I wondered about that rapid change. Of course the Obama administration hoped to make political hay out of that.
Then Fast and Furious broke and it turned out the Administration had the audacity to allow the gun running. I wondered if the operation was about more than breathing life into “gun control” as an issue. I wondered if they wanted to use the gun running to picture white male Republican gun store owners callously selling weapons that would kill Mexican Children — and not mentioning they were cooperating with the ATF when they did so. Then the Democrats would “narrow cast” that image into minority communities around election time to stoke anger and drive up turn out. If so, using the ATF and DEA as part of a political operation may well be seen as an existential threat by Republicans in Washington — as well as very bad for the nation.
A lot of people have heard about Fast and Furious from their neighbors and relatives but heard nothing about it on the news. Now it blows up, with claims of Executive Privileged, no less! Seems that if you want to know what is really going on you should talk to a right wing extremist, not waste your time with the evening news. I figured that out myself about a decade ago.
The Washington Democrats may want to use this confrontation to drive up turn out in their base — which seems to be their only strategy. As I have mentioned before, many down ticket Democrats will be real nervous by that turn. Those with secure seats will win big. Those from red states and leaning states — even in otherwise safe districts — will be vulnerable. They might form the “Throw Eric under the bus” lobby.
I seem to recall that a lot of the guns went to one particular Mexican Cartel. Perhaps that was planned? Gee, how do you explain that? I know! They’re the underdogs!
By the way, the Mexicans did complain about Fast and Furious. It was not considered news. They would complain, wouldn’t they?
Here is a very naive question: If Fast and Furious caused the death of Mexican children, what effect (if any) might that have on the Latino/Hispanic vote here?
44. batman
A significant effect if it were carried in multilingual media, otherwise it is akin to a tree falling in the forest.
How bad is Fast and Furious? So bad the Dems wanted to talk about the economy today. Eric Holder lied. Brian Terry died. President Obama in 2007: Bush Tends to ‘Hide Behind Executive Privilege’. ABC World News leads tonight with the northeast heat wave instead of Obama’s criminal cover-up. NBC never told it’s viewers about Fast and Furious. Only 10 seconds of coverage over the last two years. Hmm… they were finally forced to cover it when there was a contempt proceedings brought against Holder. That’s like when Japan finally had to admit they were losing the war in 1944 when Saipan fell, when they had been losing since Midway, two years earlier.
At various times, this Administration seems alternately cunning and inept. Is F and F the best that the Clown Posse can orchestrate or as some previous poster asked, is Team Obama running a deeper game to distract the ‘pubs and voters from a putrid economy and high levels of unemployment? Certainly they didn’t want this dust up with Issa but if life hands you lemons…
#22 Josh,#31 sirius
I’m getting the quibid popups too. Wretchard, y’all been infested.
Subotai Bahadur
Whatever they are hiding must be good for them to go to such brazen lengths, or are we chasing a rabbit?
I think the contempt vote forces greater media coverage. I think Issa has got high cards and the Administration knows it. I think Romney can –and should– keep some distance from this. Issa owns it; it’s still “inside baseball;” and the (desperate) counterstrikes by the Administration against its tormentors will be ugly and full of baseless accusations of racism. Romney needs to build and protect his brand as Economy Father Figure with some Kind Neighbor and Family Man thrown in.
But there is a promising pincer move here. As we get closer to the election, expect Romney to demand answers on a cover-up of a program INTENDED to kill innocent Mexicans as a pretext for stripping Americans of their Constitutional rights. He seems to have a strong team on policy/platform, messaging, and tactics. If he needs to counterpunch or get tactical, he will. But he gains much more by keeping strategic distance and then striking as Teh Won exposes himself.
In the background, of course, Romney’s team should help educate the public on themes like why this is a frivolous invocation of Exec Privilege, Holder’s long sorry history, Holder’s inability to go to the john without a note from his boss, the whistleblowers and the retaliation, etc. All that, when they’re not busy shelling the Administration on the economy. Busy days ahead.
The fun part will be watching the mainstream media come in halfway through act III and try to pretend it has already reported on acts I and II.
40. El_Heffe
I’m no Tolkien scholar but I will see your Axelrod=Wormtongue and raise you an Obama=Saruman (whom Wormtongue actually served).
I thought about that too. But, Obama = Saruman is an insult to Saruman. He, at least, didn’t have to read from a teleprompter.
I think pjmedia has been infected by a bogus advertiser popping up quibids.com pages, via about half a dozen interlinked bogus sites.
I have seen these elsewhere in the “link chain” of my browsing in PJM and other similar and linked sites.
Just to refresh everyone’s memory, let’s put one and one together. First point:
http://tucsoncitizen.com/view-from-baja-arizona/2011/07/06/atfs-melsonmeets-with-issa-and-grassley-july-4th-fireworks-show-will-continue/
July 4th, 2011. Acting ATF director Kenneth Melson secretly meets with Charles Grassley and Darrell Issa with his personal attorney present. Meaning, in his capacity as a private citizen.
Second point:
http://www.newsmax.com/InsideCover/Issa-Grassley-FastandFurious/2011/07/12/id/403373
The Justice Department afforded witnesses access to a shared hard drive “replete with pertinent investigative documents, including ATF e-mails,” Issa and Grassley say in a letter to Holder … “They put a link on our computer, some kind of hard drive that I can click on and read things that have been produced,” McMahon said. When asked what the purpose of the drive was, he replied, “Just to refresh my recollection about what is out there.”
Put one and one together, and it’s probable that Issa has everything. Prior to July 4th, Issa was largely fishing. Since then, he’s been focused like a laser beam. This isn’t about looking for evidence about F&F. What Issa is doing is squeezing Holder tighter and tighter. He has a bigger target. And he has everything. And Holder knows it. This has been a long, slow buildup, Holder and Obama are down their last few bullets, yet practically nothing has happened yet.
Yet.
By some folks’ analysis, the administration has been in free fall for a good long time, and maybe they don’t even realize it.
Remember JAL flight #123, the Japanese Air Lines 747 that in 1985 lost its tailfin / rudder and redundant hydraulic systems 12 minutes after takeoff from Haneda Airport (Tokyo) while climbing to cruising altitude.
The airplane was doomed from that moment; all the brave pilot and copilot could do was mitigate the disaster at best. The plane continued to fly for 32 minutes, with the crew trying to control the aircraft by varying engine thrust. The crash resulted in the deaths of 520 crew and passengers.
Sadly, we have no such brave and experienced pilot or crew in control of this unfolding disaster. Acting affirmatively has installed third-rate preening posers, properly fit to serve as supernumeraries in a grammar school assembly skit.
Rep. Issa is having so much difficulty because he’s trying to read the flight data recorder BEFORE the crash.