‘Calm down’ about Fast and Furious gun sting, ATF acting director says

[MountainLaurel]

:banghead:

The new acting director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives announced a major shake-up of his agency Wednesday and urged Washington insiders to “calm down” about the latest revelations surrounding a controversial ATF gun operation.

B. Todd Jones said calm is needed as he begins rebuilding the beleaguered agency, including shuffling top personnel. He made his comments as his boss, Attorney General Eric J. Holder Jr., came under fire this week from Republican lawmakers, with one calling for a special counsel to investigate Holder’s role in the Fast and Furious gun-trafficking operation.

Fast and Furious, a Phoenix gun sting that began in 2009, allowed small-time straw purchasers to pass firearms to middlemen, who then trafficked the guns to Mexico. The fury over the tactics, which resulted in more than 2,000 illegally purchased firearms hitting the streets, has led to the reassignment of the ATF’s former acting director and others, and the resignation of the U.S. attorney in Arizona.

snip

Smith made his request a day after Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.), chairman of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, released new documents from the Justice Department that he said indicate that Holder was told about Fast and Furious as early as July 2010, although he told Congress in May that he had just learned about it.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/calm-down-about-fast-and-furious-gun-sting-atf-acting-director-says/2011/10/05/gIQAbKJpOL_story.html?hpid=z4

[Angry Dragon]

1. I love transparency

[MountainLaurel]

2. Kick for the morning crowd

:kick: