Posted on 06/23/2011 8:50:06 PM PDT by Nachum
Kenneth Melson of the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms faces controversy over the agency's surveillance program that allowed U.S. guns into Mexico. He is said to be eager to testify to Congress.
The acting director of the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives is strongly resisting pressure to step down because of growing controversy over the agency's surveillance program that allowed U.S. guns to flow unchecked into Mexico, according to several federal sources in Washington.
(Excerpt) Read more at latimes.com ...
I have to agree with you on the police state. When these dumb-butts do things like this or like Ruby Ridge, they try to follow it up with a “homerun” like they did at Waco. BATF doesnt give a crap about someone else’s life or liberty, their tactics never change.....Keep your head down and pass the ammo!
Subtle blackmail by Melson? “I know too much so you CAN’T fire me.”
“Mr. Chairman, I am happy to at last appear before your committee. At the outset let me state that Attorney General Eric Holder was hermetically sealed in a federal condom and protected against any information at all about Operation Fast and Furious. Yes, authorization for this operation came from high up in the Justice Department but Mr. Holder, as I stated, was hermetically sealed off from any details about it. At no point did the federal condom break and allow details to leak in to Mr. Holder. Oh, and would you be interested in a bridge in Brooklyn that I am selling?”
Congress will be proposing drastic spending cuts. Guess which agency is SURE to be on the chopping block?
“Yes, Mr. Chairman, I did watch Operation Fast and Furious” as it was delivering up guns to questionable characters on a live video link and also TIVOed it but I have no knowledge of what was taking place. Oh, and Attorney General Eric Holder was hermetically sealed off from all details of this in his federal condom. I hereby deny that he was eating popcorn as we watched the live Fast & Furious video feed. He was actually eating nachos while we watched the operation that he has absolutely no knowledge about.”
Can you say Holder?
Do a search on “Issa” in news there are sick news/blog articles attacking him. One questioning if Issa is a terrorist because of his nationality. And the one I posted the other day where Issa is being blamed for F&F because he was briefed. I can’t believe I am witnessing this. If the DOJ/Obama admin were not guilty they would not be stonewalling and Issa would not be being attacked.
Melson not stepping down shows the Obama/Holder mob “they think they are indeed above the law,”mentality.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms should be a convenience store, not a government agency.
I’ve got higher hopes than that.
"Melson does not want to be "the fall guy" for the program, under which ATF agents allowed straw purchasers to acquire more than 1,700 AK-47s and other high-powered rifles from Arizona gun dealers, the sources said. The idea was to track the guns to drug cartel leaders. But that goal proved elusive, and the guns turned up at shootings in Mexico, as well as at the slaying in Arizona of a U.S. Border Patrol agent in December.
"He is saying he won't go," said one source close to the situation, who asked for anonymity because high-level discussions with Melson remained fluid. "He has told them, 'I'm not going to be the fall guy on this.' "
Added a second source, who also requested anonymity: "He's resisting. He does not want to go."
Melson has an open invitation to appear on Capitol Hill. So far, he has not been given Justice Department approval to appear before Congress.
This week, Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Vista), chairman of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, said he hoped that Melson would give a full accounting of how the gun operation was conceived and carried out. He also said Melson should resign, and that other senior leaders at ATF and the Justice Department should be held accountable as well.
Well put.
I would suggest this guy get some mighty good protection for his life, very quickly!
This is encouraging. I think this guy isn’t willing to be the fall guy, and will give testimony that takes things up the line.
It is the media that people will hear,read, and see their entire life,whereas the indoctrinators(teachers?) only get them for 12 or 16 years.
The relentless media drumbeats for more government control and the concurrent media rejection of all traditional Judeo-Christian Western values both energize the statists and discourage the freedom loving.
Plus the press which this nation's founders envisioned as a check on government abuses has become a cheerleader and co-conspirator in the very misdeeds of government.
I have little doubt he was in plenty of meetings with Holder etc where the true purpose of F+F was discussed. The kind of meetings where no notes are taken. His testimony, if he could be truthful, would be huge. And if he’s feeling scorned, after them trying to throw him under the bus as the pawn, he might be in a talkative mood.
does he have security?
Being that he is the head of the BATFE, my initial thought is that he is surrounded by jack booted thugs who want to kill people and blow up property, so he would just look for some of the thugs to be his personal security detail.
Then I realized that we are talking about a bunch of violent retarded misfits who couldn't organize a pissing contest at Oktoberfest without causing much carnage and mayhem
He might want to take a vacation far away from Fort Marcy Park.
Causing a disaster policy then refusing to step down is right up the leftist lawless bag of tricks. It’s a close cousin of leftist judges not recusing when its clear as the nose on [her] face that recusal is the right thing to do.
Yeah, caught that list morning. Good, I hope this brings enough attention the press can’t suppress it any more but I have my doubts. If one takes the time to read the testimony and details, it’s sickening what the ATF and higher officials were attempting to do.
From what’s leaked out so far this IS an impeachable offense but of course it would never come to that. Remember that story several months ago about Obama telling Sarah Brady they were quietly working on gun-control, well yeah he wasn’t lying.
I think the repubs *might* be holding their powder on this for the election, now that Perry is jumping in I could se him making a BIG issue out of this.
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