Drug lords targeted by Fast and Furious were FBI informants

[one-eyed fat man]

The LA Times has the story:

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-fast-furious-20120322,0,3334424.story

As previously reported, the key target actually was apprehended inside the US, about six months into F&F, but released to return to Mexico on a promise to cooperate. (Reports that the ATF supervisor made him swear "cross my heart and hope to die / stick a thousand needles in my eye" have not been confirmed.)

It gets worse. The supervisor was hoping he'd lead them (because even a cartel supplier can't break a "cross my heart" promise) to two higher ups.

It turns out the two higher-ups were informants working for the FBI....

Who do these clowns all work for? Oh, that's right, the FBI and the ATF are both in the Justice Department.

Wasn't that the same guy who got Marc Rich a pardon?

Same guy who had a key role in a notorious case relating to the Chiquita's funneling money and weapons to the United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia, AUC, the right-wing paramilitary organization on the U.S. State Department’s own list of terrorist organizations?

[BlueToTheBone]

1. He needs to resign. n/t

[efhmc]

2. He is not an asset to this administration.

[EC]

3. Didn't

Fast and Furious start under Bush and Holder didn't even know anything about it at first?

[DonP]

4. No, Bush admin ran "Wide Receiver" IIRC.

It ended before his administration did and no guns ever actually crossed the border.

Fast & Furious was all Holder.

[one-eyed fat man]

5. Close but no cigar.

The operation under Bush was called "Wide Receiver" and it failed because the smuggler's outwitted the ATF. They drove around in circles until the surveillance aircraft had to refuel or they outlasted the batteries on the tracking devices in the shipments. The ATF also failed to effectively coordinate the transfer of ground surveillance to the Federales.

That meets the definition of "botched sting" operation. The operative difference in "Fast and Furious" was that there was NEVER any coordination with the Mexican authorities. The ATF failed to even notify their own liaison officers in Mexico. Never any mechanism to track weapons in any way after they crossed the border until they turned up recovered at a crime scene.

Even Larry, Curly and Moe never cooked up a scheme as patently stupid.

That the operation was hatched AFTER the Holder, Hillary and Calderon were all very visibly and repeatedly "quoting" the 90% meme in support of a new assault weapons ban makes it difficult to believe it was all the work of an over-eager and rogue underling.

Last, there is still that business of William D. Newell, Special Agent in Charge of the Phoenix Office who reported outside normal channels to White House National Security Director for North America Kevin O'Reilly.

When that tidbit broke, O'Reilly suddenly disappeared on a State Department assignment to an "unreachable location" in Iraq. There is enough "coincidence" to wonder. After that many straight passes, maybe the dice are loaded?

[frylock]

6. knr