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Memo shows ATF recognized red flag of F&F whistleblowers
Seattle Gun Rights Examiner ^ | 17 July, 2012 | Dave Workman

Posted on 07/17/2012 12:40:27 PM PDT by marktwain

A newly-revealed memorandum to Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives supervisors about whistleblower protection – sent several days after Senator Charles Grassley (R-IA) warned the agency against retaliation – suggests the ATF knew it had a problem with the gun walking scheme.

In an e-mail to Examiner Tuesday, Sen. Grassley stated, “If there was enough information to cause ATF to think about whistleblower protection – whether it had been from my January 31, 2011, letter alone or also additionally spurred on by the February 3, 2011, Styers memo – that should have given the Justice Department pause before publicly denying the allegations and then stonewalling.”

The Washington Guardian reported Tuesday that the Feb. 9, 2011 memo, forwarded by Mark Chait – then the ATF’s director of field operations – had already begun preparing to treat agents as whistleblowers when they came forward with complaints about Operation Fast and Furious. The story also contends that “Obama administration political appointees were publicly undercutting the agents’ credibility” even as the memo was being circulated.

The timing of this memo suggests that it may have been at least partly in reaction to the Grassley letter, sent to then-ATF Acting Director Kenneth Melson, on Jan. 31, 2011. In that letter, which may be read here, Grassley stated, “I understand that Assistant Special Agent in Charge (ASAC) George Gillette of the ATF’s Phoenix office questioned one of the individual agents who answered my staff’s questions about Project Gunrunner. ASAC Gillette allegedly accused the agent of misconduct related to his contacts with the Senate Judiciary Committee. This is exactly the wrong sort of reaction for the ATF. Rather than focusing on retaliating against whistleblowers, the ATF’s sole focus should be on finding and disclosing the truth as soon as possible.

(Excerpt) Read more at examiner.com ...


TOPICS: Crime/Corruption; Government; News/Current Events; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: banglist; fastandfurious; gunrunner; gunwalker; murdergate
Whistleblowers are routinely retaliated against.
1 posted on 07/17/2012 12:40:37 PM PDT by marktwain
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To: MestaMachine

Gunwalker / Murdergate ping.


2 posted on 07/17/2012 12:41:28 PM PDT by marktwain
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To: marktwain
From July 1:
"We are also going to file in District Court a civil suit over the issue of executive privilege," Boehner told the CBS program "Face the Nation." "I would expect that to be coming in the next several weeks, but it needs to happen," Boehner said.

= = =

It is July 17. It's been 2-1/2 weeks, Mr. Boehner. It is now time to file the civil suit, so that the whistleblowers, the two dead border agents, hundreds of dead Mexicans and the American people can have justice.

3 posted on 07/17/2012 12:50:00 PM PDT by kidd
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To: marktwain

Eric Weasel said the GOPee investigation had nothing to do with gunrunning and the murder of Brian Terry ... it was because of my “positions” and because I’m a “proxy” for Obama ... so who are you Right-Wing Nuts going to believe ... the obvious truth or obvious lies by the head snark?

4 posted on 07/17/2012 12:50:59 PM PDT by Zakeet (Like Barack said, "We can't be broke cause we still have checks in the checkbook.")
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To: marktwain; Joe Brower; Travis McGee; LucyT; vette6387; MetaThought; 60Gunner; XHogPilot; ...

obama is on stage now in all his malevolent glory. No one is paying attention to the evil he does or has done.


5 posted on 07/17/2012 2:22:29 PM PDT by MestaMachine (obama kills)
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To: kidd

The media coverage is still going on. The lawsuit will likely be filed when they need a media push.


6 posted on 07/17/2012 3:43:48 PM PDT by marktwain
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To: Zakeet

Gee, he really does look like a rat, doesn’t he. Gee.


7 posted on 07/17/2012 4:45:40 PM PDT by TheOldLady
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