Research Briefing

The Obama Justice Department’s Tactics In Combating Drug Cartels Are “Pure Insanity”

Arizona Sherriff Paul Babeu: Fast And Furious Was “Pure Insanity.” “The sheriff said ‘Operation Fast and Furious’ made no sense at all. He said it was patterned after the concept of sometimes letting drugs, cash, people go and watching a crime in progress to see where it leads. But, he said using the concept with weapons ‘is pure insanity.’” (“Babeu: ATF Agents Accomplices To Murder In Gun Program,” KTAR, 9/29/11)

FIRST, THE JUSTICE DEPARTMENT ALLOWED DRUG CARTELS TO BUY WEAPONS

The Fast And Furious Operation Was An ATF Program That Tracked Weapons Sold To Illegal Buyers In Hopes Of Arresting Mexican Drug Cartel Members.  “Agents with the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives purposely allowed licensed firearms dealers to sell weapons to illegal straw buyers, hoping to track the guns to Mexican drug cartel leaders and arrest them.” (Richard A. Serrano, “Emails Show Top Justice Department Officials Knew Of ATF Gun Program,” Los Angeles Times, 10/03/11)      

THE RESULT?

U.S. Border Agent Brian Terry Was Violently Murdered

“A Member Of An Elite U.S. Border Patrol Tactical Team Was Shot And Killed Tuesday Night Reportedly During A Violent Gun Battle In A Remote Arizona Canyon Just North Of The U.S. Border With Mexico, Authorities Said Wednesday.” (Devin Dwyer, “Agent Brian Terry Shot In Back With AK-47 During Gunfight, Family Says,” ABC News, 12/15/2010) 

Two Of The Guns Found At The Scene Of Brian Terry’s Murder Came From Operation “Fast And Furious”. “Two of the guns found at the scene of Terry's death were traced back to Operation Fast and Furious, an ATF-led scheme that allowed more than 2,000 guns to be sold illegally to straw buyers in the U.S. Agents with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives hoped to follow the buyers as they resold the weapons to Mexican cartels, but they lost track of hundreds of weapons. Nearly 200 have turned up at crimes scenes in Mexico.” (Kathleen Hennessey, “Holder’s ‘Fast And Furious’ Testimony Draws Rebuke From Victim’s Kin,” Los Angeles Times, 11/9/11)

Fast And Furious Weapons Were Found At Murders Of U.S. Border Agent, U.S. Immigration Official, And Several Mexican Officials. “Last December, two of the guns were left at the scene of the murder of Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry. Other Fast and Furious weapons were used in an ambush that killed U.S. immigration Agent Jaime Zapata in northern Mexico in February. Several of the weapons have been tied to murders of Mexican officials.” (Doug MacEachern, “Gun Scandal Skipping Big Fish,” The Arizona Republic, 9/28/11)

And Thousands Of Missing Guns Have Turned Up At Hundreds Of Other Crime Scenes

Fast And Furious Weapons Have Been Found At Over 170 Crime Scenes.  “The Department of Justice in Washington said last week that one other Fast and Furious firearm turned up at a violent crime scene in this country. They have yet to provide any more details. They said another 28 Fast and Furious weapons were recovered at violent crimes in Mexico. They have not identified those cases either. The Mexican government maintains that an undisclosed number of Fast and Furious weapons have been found at some 170 crime scenes in their country.” (Richard A. Serrano, “Gun Store Owner Had Misgivings About ATF Sting,” Los Angeles Times, 9/11/11)

Fast And Furious Guns Have Been Linked To “High-Profile” Shootings Including An Attack On A Police Helicopter That Injured Three Officers. (Ken Ellingwood, Richard A. Serrano & Tracy Wilkinson, “Mexico Still Waiting For Answers On Fast And Furious Gun Program,” Los Angeles Times, 9/19/11)

NOW, THE JUSTICE DEPARTMENT IS LAUNDERING MONEY FOR DRUG CARTELS

Federal Law Enforcement Officials Claimed That The U.S. Is Involved In Laundering Money For Mexican Drug Cartels. “Undercover American narcotics agents have laundered or smuggled millions of dollars in drug proceeds as part of Washington’s expanding role in Mexico’s fight against drug cartels, according to current and former federal law enforcement officials.” (Ginger Thompson, “U.S. Agents Launder Mexican Profits Of Drug Cartels,” The New York Times, 12/3/11)

In Operations Directed By The Justice Department, U.S. Agents Launder “Two Or Three Loads Of Mexican Drug Money Each Week.” “Today, in operations supervised by the Justice Department and orchestrated to get around sovereignty restrictions, the United States is running numerous undercover laundering investigations against Mexico’s most powerful cartels. One D.E.A. official said it was not unusual for American agents to pick up two or three loads of Mexican drug money each week. A second official said that as Mexican cartels extended their operations from Latin America to Africa, Europe and the Middle East, the reach of the operations had grown as well. When asked how much money had been laundered as a part of the operations, the official would only say, ‘A lot.’” (Ginger Thompson, “U.S. Agents Launder Mexican Profits Of Drug Cartels,” The New York Times, 12/3/11)

Federal Agents Claimed They Sought Justice Department Approval To Launder Large Sums Of Mexican Drug Money “On Many Occasions.” “And the former officials said that federal law enforcement agencies had to seek Justice Department approval to launder amounts greater than $10 million in any single operation. But they said that the cap was treated more as a guideline than a rule, and that it had been waived on many occasions to attract the interest of high-value targets.” (Ginger Thompson, “U.S. Agents Launder Mexican Profits Of Drug Cartels,” The New York Times, 12/3/11)

“It Is Not Clear Whether Such Operations Are Worth The Risks. So Far There Are Few Signs That Following The Money Has Disrupted The Cartels’ Operations, And Little Evidence That Mexican Drug Traffickers Are Feeling Any Serious Financial Pain.” (Ginger Thompson, “U.S. Agents Launder Mexican Profits Of Drug Cartels,” The New York Times, 12/3/11)

Result Of Justice Department Money Laundering: Increased Violence And “No Significant Dip In The Volume Of Drugs.” “But there has been no significant dip in the volume of drugs moving across the country. Reports of human rights violations by police officers and soldiers have soared. And drug-related violence has left more than 40,000 people dead since Mr. Calderón took office in December 2006. The death toll is greater than in any period since Mexico’s revolution a century ago, and the policy of close cooperation with Washington may not survive.” (Ginger Thompson, “U.S. Agents Launder Mexican Profits Of Drug Cartels,” The New York Times, 12/3/11)

Role Of Federal Government In Cartel Money Laundering “Blur The Line Between Surveillance And Facilitating Crime.” “The officials said that while the D.E.A. conducted such operations in other countries, it began doing so in Mexico only in the past few years. The high-risk activities raise delicate questions about the agency’s effectiveness in bringing down drug kingpins, underscore diplomatic concerns about Mexican sovereignty, and blur the line between surveillance and facilitating crime. As it launders drug money, the agency often allows cartels to continue their operations over months or even years before making seizures or arrests.” (Ginger Thompson, “U.S. Agents Launder Mexican Profits Of Drug Cartels,” The New York Times, 12/3/11)

IT LOOKS LIKE THE ONLY THING THE JUSTICE DEPARTMENT ISN’T DOING IS TELLING THE TRUTH

Documents Show That The DOJ Purposely Submitted False Information To Congress Regarding “Fast And Furious”. “The Justice Department released documents today detailing how officials prepared a Feb. 4 letter to Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) that Attorney General Eric Holder has since admitted contained false information about Operation Fast and Furious, a botched gun operation under investigation by Congress. The documents show that Dennis Burke, then a U.S. attorney who has since resigned, and William Hoover, then the deputy director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives who has since been reassigned, principally provided the false information to officials who drafted the letter.” (Jonathan Strong, “Justice Department Reveals Origins Of False Gun Letter To Grassley,” Roll Call, 12/2/11)

Assistant Attorney General Lanny Breuer “Cannot Say For Sure” If He Read False Letter Denying “Gun Walking” Despite Having Received Four Copies. “Emails show Lanny Breuer, the assistant attorney general for the department’s criminal division, received versions of the letter on four occasions via email. Breuer forwarded the emails to a personal account but told Congressional investigators in a written statement today he ‘cannot say for sure’ whether he viewed the drafts.” (Jonathan Strong, “Justice Department Reveals Origins Of False Gun Letter To Grassley,” Roll Call, 12/2/11)

• Assistant Attorney General Knew About “Gun Walking” As Early As April 2010. “Breuer conceded Oct. 31 he knew federal officials allowed assault guns and other weapons to fall into the possession of Mexican drug cartels as early as April 2010, 10 months before the department denied in the letter to Grassley that the investigative strategy was used.” (Jonathan Strong, “Justice Department Reveals Origins Of False Gun Letter To Grassley,” Roll Call, 12/2/11)

• The Assistant Attorney General’s Deputy Was Well Informed About “Gun Walking”, Saying ATF Should Be “Embarrassed” By Amount Missing In April 2010 Email. “The documents show Weinstein was intimately involved in drafting the letter, urging repeated changes to strengthen the tone of its denial over objections from the Office of Legislative Affairs headed by Weich. Weinstein was also far more familiar than Breuer with the details of Operation Wide Receiver, according to documents released in October. For instance, Weinstein told colleagues in an April 12, 2010, email that the ATF should be ‘embarrassed that they let this many guns walk’ in Wide Receiver.” (Jonathan Strong, “Justice Department Reveals Origins Of False Gun Letter To Grassley,” Roll Call, 12/2/11)

BUT OF COURSE ATTORNEY GENERAL ERIC HOLDER WOULDN’T KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT THAT

Attorney General Eric Holder Said He Didn’t Know About “Fast And Furious” Because He Can’t Read Every Item Sent To His Office. “Holder and the DoJ have pushed back strongly on the claim that he misled Congress, writing on Friday that he can’t read every item that is sent to his office. The Attorney General maintains that he did not learn about the controversial tactics used in Fast and Furious until earlier this year.” (Tim Mak, “Issa Subpoenas Holder,” Politico, 10/12/11)

On May 3, 2011, Attorney General Eric Holder Testified To Congress That He Only Became Aware Of Fast And Furious “Over The Last Few Weeks” In Spring 2011. (Sharyl Attkisson, “ATF Fast And Furious: New Documents Show Attorney General Eric Holder Was Briefed In July 2010,” CBS News, 10/03/11)

• Documents Showed Attorney General Holder Received Briefings About Fast And Furious Since 2010. “Internal Justice Department memos released last week show that Holder was notified about the existence of the operation as early as last year. Holder testified in May before the House Judiciary Committee that he did not know about the operation until recently. The White House and the DOJ said that Holder was referring to when he was made aware of the controversial and taboo tactics used in the operation.” (Jordy Yager, “Issa: Holder’s Defense On Fast And Furious ‘Has Reached A New Low’,” The Hill, 10/10/11)
• Asked About When He First Heard Of “Fast And Furious,” Eric Holder Said He Meant “Couple Of Months”, Not “Weeks” As He Previous Testified. “Under gentler questioning from Sen. Patrick J. Leahy (D-Vt.), the committee chairman, Holder also acknowledged the imprecision of his May 3 testimony. At that hearing, he said he ‘probably heard about Fast and Furious for the first time over the last few weeks.’ On Tuesday, Holder amended his recollection, saying that he had actually learned about the program at the beginning of this year. ‘I should probably have said a couple of months,’ said Holder, who defended his overall handling of the controversy as ‘responsible’ and made it clear that he has no plans to resign, as some Republicans have urged.” (Jerry Markon, “Holder Grilled On ‘Fast And Furious,’ Admits Mistakes,” The Washington Post, 11/8/11)

Attorney General Eric Holder Testified That Justice Officials Didn’t Know About “Gun Walking” During Correspondence With Congressional Investigators. “Mr. Grassley and other Republicans also demanded to know more about who had drafted and reviewed a February letter the department sent him saying that ‘A.T.F. makes every effort to interdict weapons that have been purchased illegally and prevent their transport into Mexico.’ Mr. Holder said that the drafters of the letter did not know at the time about the tactics used in Wide Receiver and Fast and Furious.” (Charlie Savage, “Holder Urges Lawmakers To Support Efforts To Stop Gun Trafficking,” The New York Times, 11/8/11)

• Attorney General Eric Holder Testified That The DOJ Provided Congressional Investigators With “Inaccurate” Information About “Fast And Furious” Knowledge.  “Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. told Senate Republicans on Tuesday that the Justice Department provided ‘inaccurate’ information to Congress on the ‘Fast and Furious’ gun-trafficking sting and said that his congressional testimony about when he learned of the controversial operation had been imprecise.” (Jerry Markon, “Holder Grilled On ‘Fast And Furious,’ Admits Mistakes,” The Washington Post, 11/8/11)