Dem Congress Gave Gunrunner Stimulus Cash

[AgeOfEnlightenmentSCP]

I've heard Project Gunrunner blamed on Bush, but we now have the facts to set the record straight: Congressional Democrats funded the project using stimulus cash. Specifically, Representative Ciro Rodreguez with co-sponsors Representatives Henry Cuellar (D-TX), Eliot Engel (D-NY), Silvestre Reyes (D-TX), and Harry Teague (D-NM).

www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=44717

We need to know who pushed this Gunrunner funding into the Obama stimulus, and then the President must be made to formally admit – under oath if necessary – either he knew about Project Gunrunner all along… or he had absolutely no idea what was contained in the trillion-dollar stimulus package he boasted of passing without a single Republican vote.

It was the result of an earmark contained in House Resolution 495, the Southwest Border Violence Reduction Act of 2009. This bill explicitly included $15,000 in funding for Project Gunrunner.

SEC. 2. PROJECT GUNRUNNER.

(a) In General- The Attorney General shall dedicate and expand the resources provided for the Project Gunrunner initiative of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives to identify, investigate, and prosecute individuals involved in the trafficking of firearms across the international border between the United States and Mexico.

(b) Activities- In carrying out this section, the Attorney General shall--

(1) assign additional agents of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives to the area of the United States adjacent to the international border between the United States and Mexico to support the expansion of Project Gunrunner teams;

(2) establish not fewer than 1 Project Gunrunner team in each State along the international border between the United States and Mexico; and

(3) coordinate with the heads of other relevant Federal law enforcement agencies and State and local law enforcement agencies to address firearms trafficking in a comprehensive manner.

(c) Additional Staff- The Attorney General may hire Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives agents for, and otherwise expend additional resources needed to adequately support, Project Gunrunner.

(d) Authorization of Appropriations- There are authorized to be appropriated $15,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2010 and 2011 to carry out this section.

Given what actually happened when the ATF “walked” American guns into the hands of murderous Mexican drug lords, the name of this bill is one of the most Orwellian expressions of the modern political era.

That funding did indeed make it into the Obama stimulus act:

For an additional amount for ‘State and Local Law Enforcement Assistance’, $40,000,000, for competitive grants to provide assistance and equipment to local law enforcement along the Southern border and in High-Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas to combat criminal narcotics activity stemming from the Southern border, of which $10,000,000 shall be transferred to ‘Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Salaries and Expenses’ for the ATF Project Gunrunner.

A large number of jobs for Mexican hit men were “created or saved” as a result of this expenditure.

The original Southwest Border Violence Reduction Act of 2009 was sponsored by Representative Ciro Rodriguez (D-TX). Courtesy of Big Government, here is some video of Rep. Rodriguez dealing with unhappy constituents shortly before the 2010 midterm elections:

[marshabar1]

Justice.gov website located on page 96 a report on this program, 2009, February, the Recovery Act signed into law allocated $10 million to ATF for Project Gunrunner.

Stimulus money paid for this, is what has been discovered.

Stimulus money paid for Fast and Furious.

Ten million was allocated in the stimulus bill to buy machine guns and revolvers and let Mexican drug lords take them across the border back to Mexico and use them.

Stimulus money. That's shovel-ready job stuff. You remember that.

Right here it is, 2009, February, Recovery Act signed into law, allocated $10 million to ATF for Project Gunrunner.

In 2009, June, Supplemental Appropriations Act of 2009 allocated an additional $67 million to the ATF for Project Gunrunner, which means we can trace the money back to Obama, or if you want you could trace it back to Bite Me, who was put directly in charge.



But you can trace the money back to the Department of Justice. They administered the program.

Stimulus money. This is important because now there is a way to follow the money. This is stunning. Fast and Furious funded by the Porkulus bill.

In 2010, August, Emergency Border Security Supplemental Appropriations Bill of 2010 allocated $37.5 million dollars to the ATF for Project Gunrunner.

Just a little over a year ago, another $37.5 million. Just more money from Obama's stash.

So let's add it up, ten million in February 2009, six million in June of 2009, so that's a total of $16 million in 2009, then in 2010, $37.5 million. So $53.5 million dollars spent to buy machine guns and revolvers, $53.5 million dollars, all taxpayer dollars. Isn't that fascinating?

www.rushlimbaugh.com/home/daily/site_070811/content/01125114.guest.html

Shovel ready.

blocked due to malware/_KxT3bZCpsqw/TRaedglqGkI/AAAAAAAAXF0/fjQbuXG7BsI/s1600/58445429.jpg[/img]

Mexico Investigators Discover 59 Bodies In Mass Grave While Checking Abductions

www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/04/07/mexico-mass-grave_n_846032.html


[a href="http://video.foxnews.com/v/1042729415001/more-shocking-details-emerge-in-atf-scandal-part-1/?playlist_id=86858"]http://video.foxnews.com/v/1042729415001/more-shocking-details-emerge-in-atf-scandal-part-1/?playlist_id=86858[/a]

[cereb]

You folks are a bit late to the party festivities." Project gunrunner" has been around since 2005.

[AgeOfEnlightenmentSCP]

Jul 9, 2011 23:30:14 GMT -5 cereb said:

You folks are a bit late to the party festivities." Project gunrunner" has been around since 2005.

You need to cite your sources. The project wasn't authorized until Obama's regime authorized it. It was implemented under Obama's leadership. The idea may have been floated, but the actions, the funding, the whole thing took place starting in 2009, and Obama, being the President, is not bound by 2005 decisions. Obama's regime is responsible, the Democrats are 100% responsible for what happened starting with the funding in 2009.

Own up.

The blame game isn't gonna fly in 2012.

[AgeOfEnlightenmentSCP]

But more to the point, this isn't really much of a discussion thread. The OP is so clear that it turns out that it is really more of a stand-alone statement thread. There's nothing left to discuss. The OP explains what happened. You can post an opinion about what you think about what happened- but we're not (I'm not at least) going to spend any time discussion what happened. What happened was that Democrats, and the Obama regime funded and implemented Project Gun Runner without a single Republican vote.

[marshabar1]

He Hoped To Ban Because They Were Tracked From Cartels

In the Spring of 2009, the Obama administration called for the banning of “assault rifles” and .50 BMG “sniper rifles” due to their use in crimes by Mexican drug cartels.

Obama dubiously alleged that 90% of these weapons were tracked back to the United States, implying that Americans have an obligation to surrender some of our freedoms to keep these weapons from being smuggled illegally over the border and used in Mexican-on-Mexican violence in Mexico.

In this vintage clip, NRA Executive Vice President Wayne LaPierre discusses Obama’s proposals with Glen Beck.

Obama backed off these proposals a month later, noting that such a ban would not be politically feasible at this time.

In Fall of 2009, the Obama Administration conceived Operation Fast and Furious, in which the ATF sold thousands of advanced weapons to Mexican drug cartels in order to track them once they were used in crimes.

This policy perfectly dovetailed with Obama’s gun control arguments.

First of all, by selling guns to the cartels that the ATF could definitely trace back to the US (because they were bought from the ATF), the percentage of guns used in Mexican crimes traceable to American guns would increase.

ATF supervisors rejoiced at their success when they found that these guns were being used for violence in Mexico. . . . . (more) legalinsurrection.com/2011/07/obama-sold-tracked-same-guns-to-cartels-he-hoped-to-ban-because-they-were-tracked-from-cartels/

[djAdvocate]

Jul 10, 2011 9:11:27 GMT -5 AgeOfEnlightenmentSCP said:

Jul 9, 2011 23:30:14 GMT -5 cereb said:

You folks are a bit late to the party festivities." Project gunrunner" has been around since 2005.

You need to cite your sources. The project wasn't authorized until Obama's regime authorized it.

horseshit, Paul. what is with you and your obsession with all things Obama, dude? you seriously need some time off.

www.fbi.gov/news/pressrel/press-releases/fact-sheet-department-of-justice-efforts-to-combat-mexican-drug-cartels

the FBI already had 1400 cases pending against defendants stung in this operation when Obama had less than 90 days in office.

this seems like a really good project to me, btw. putting illegal items out there that can be traced is a classic law enforcement activity. and it has been extremely effective in this case.

[Deleted]

In Fall of 2009, the Obama Administration conceived Operation Fast and Furious, in which the ATF sold thousands of advanced weapons to Mexican drug cartels in order to track them once they were used in crimes.

I'm SHOCKED, SHOCKED! Yes I'm shocked that we didn't sell them a nuke so that we could see who they would use it on.

horseshit, Paul. what is with you and your obsession with all things Obama, dude? you seriously need some time off or medication.

Cereb just to point out I got a warning for a comment just about EXACTLY the same as the one above. You might want to change it because (as I was told) it wasn't nice to say that someone should or needed medication. I figure that you comment will get the same response or maybe worse because well....my comment was about a liberal needing medication.

[djAdvocate]

Jul 10, 2011 13:03:52 GMT -5 @oldtex said:

In Fall of 2009, the Obama Administration conceived Operation Fast and Furious, in which the ATF sold thousands of advanced weapons to Mexican drug cartels in order to track them once they were used in crimes.

I'm SHOCKED, SHOCKED! Yes I'm shocked that we didn't sell them a nuke so that we could see who they would use it on.

horseshit, Paul. what is with you and your obsession with all things Obama, dude? you seriously need some time off or medication.

Cereb just to point out I got a warning for a comment just about EXACTLY the same as the one above. You might want to change it because (as I was told) it wasn't nice to say that someone should or needed medication. I figure that you comment will get the same response or maybe worse because well....my comment was about a liberal needing medication.

fine, i changed it. but i am not cereb. ;]

[verrip1]

Anybody remember Iran-Contra?

[djAdvocate]

Jul 10, 2011 13:09:00 GMT -5 verrip1 said:

Anybody remember Iran-Contra?

all too well. but in this case, we are trying to shut down an insurrection, not engender one.

[verrip1]

Ends/means.

[djAdvocate]

Jul 10, 2011 13:18:25 GMT -5 verrip1 said:

Ends/means.

the differences are more than wallpaper, tho, verrip. the illegalities were well beyond a sting operation in the case of the ICA.

[verrip1]

Yet you appear to assume that is not so in this case, unless I have misinterpreted. Is that based on perceptions of the intents of the persons involved in each, rather than in the actions and the results? After all, you have already concluded that now "we are trying to shut down an insurrection, not engender one". One might well argue that that was Reagan's intent, too, though not the intent of his subordinates.

[djAdvocate]

Jul 10, 2011 13:48:45 GMT -5 verrip1 said:

Yet you appear to assume that is not so in this case, unless I have misinterpreted. Is that based on perceptions of the intents of the persons involved in each, rather than in the actions and the results? After all, you have already concluded that now "we are trying to shut down an insurrection, not engender one". One might well argue that that was Reagan's intent, too, though not the intent of his subordinates.

the difference is the Boland Amendment, which specifically barred the activity. i know of no such limitation on this one. but perhaps i have missed something.

i am not assuming anything, verrip. i had never heard about Gunrunner before today. it sounds like a typical law enforcement operation to me (albeit on a huge scale).

i know a s-load about the ICA, on the other hand. comparing a law enforcement activity to the ICA seems strange to me, but i recognize that some of the players are the same.

[marshabar1]

You see, the devious Obama administration is using this criminal use of illegal weapons for their own ANTI-GUN AGENDA of trying to rid the United States of guns. Even though this administration caused this immediate ATF problem – they will use this scenario against our citizen’s right to bear arms. With an anti-gun strategy, Barack Obama will try to use this to BAN guns and gun shows.NO WONDER THEY ARE STONEWALLING; if the blame will be placed on the administration instead of patriotic gun owners like yourself!

sittingduckpolicy.com/tag/project-gunrunner/

April 2009, to make a case for gun control in the United States:

PORT-OF-SPAIN, Trinidad and Tobago -- What's the difference between "recovered" and "traceable" when it comes to firearms seized in Mexico's bloody war against drug cartels?

The White House says none.

But that's a distinction with a difference, even if President Obama used the words interchangeably last week to talk about the role firearms smuggled from the U.S. play in Mexico's stepped up fight against entrenched, well-armed drug cartels.

"This war is being waged with guns purchased not here, but in the United States. More than 90 percent of the guns recovered in Mexico come from the United States, many from gun shops that line our shared border," the president said on the subject in his joint press conference with Mexican President Felipe Calderon on Thursday:

To some, it might sound as if Obama is saying 90 percent of all guns captured from the cartels originated in America. But that's not what the president means, senior National Security Council Spokesman Denis McDonough told FOX News on Saturday.

"By recovered he means traceable, guns traced back to the United States," McDonough said. "These are ATF (Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms) numbers. These are the guns submitted to the ATF for tracing. That's what we mean by recovered."

As FOX News has previously reported, a large percentage of firearms recovered in Mexico from the drug cartels are not submitted to U.S. officials for tracing because they lack the necessary markings.

In 2007-2008, according to ATF Special Agent William Newell, Mexico submitted 11,000 guns to the ATF for tracing. Those 11,000 firearms were part of the 29,000 firearms Mexican officials recovered at crime scenes. According to the ATF, of the 11,000 submitted to U.S. officials for tracing, 6,000 could be traced somewhere because of the serial numbers or other distinctive markings. Of those 6,000 firearms, 5,114 or 90 percent, were found to have been smuggled from the U.S.

The White House stands by the president's use of the word "recovered" in describing the role firearms smuggled from the U.S. play in Mexico's drug war.

"We feel good about these numbers and that's why the president uses the word recovered," McDonough said.

Read more: www.foxnews.com/politics/2009/04/19/obama-repeats-percent-stat-guns-recovered-mexico#ixzz1Rjv57KBy

The progs will say anything, do anything to get guns out of the hands of law abiding Americans.

[cereb]

Jul 10, 2011 9:11:27 GMT -5 AgeOfEnlightenmentSCP said:

Jul 9, 2011 23:30:14 GMT -5 cereb said:

You folks are a bit late to the party festivities." Project gunrunner" has been around since 2005.

You need to cite your sources. The project wasn't authorized until Obama's regime authorized it. It was implemented under Obama's leadership. The idea may have been floated, but the actions, the funding, the whole thing took place starting in 2009, and Obama, being the President, is not bound by 2005 decisions. Obama's regime is responsible, the Democrats are 100% responsible for what happened starting with the funding in 2009.

Own up.

The blame game isn't gonna fly in 2012.

Here is an informational piece from the ATF. I'm assuming that would be a close enough source for you. Note the date is from 2008. Obama took office in January of 2009.

www.atf.gov/publications/factsheets/factsheet-project-gunrunner.html




Also note in this informational piece where it states "in the past two years" Which brings us down to 2006.

[cereb]

ATF Expands Efforts To Combat Illegal Flow Of Firearms Into Mexico
January 16, 2008

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) plans to add additional staff members, including 35 special agents and 15 industry operations investigators, to the southwest border and deploy eTrace technology in nine U.S. consulates in Mexico in an effort to stem the illegal flow of firearms to Mexico as part of Project Gunrunner, ATF Acting Director Michael J. Sullivan and Director Arthur Doty of the El Paso Intelligence Center (EPIC) today announced. More »
www.atf.gov/firearms/programs/project-gunrunner/

[marshabar1]

Project Gunrunner was first founded under President Bush as a bipartisan effort in 2005, when it had its inception as a pilot run by ATF in conjunction with the Justice Department and the FBI.

While the operation was run by a few dozen officers under Bush, it has since received an infusion of cash from the Obama administration, becoming a full-time project staffed by over 200.

As WND reported, tucked away inside Obama's stimulus was $10 million in funding for the ATF's Project Gunrunner. This is in addition to $11 million already provided to the program under Obama, and another $12 million more requested by the White House for the end of this year.

Project Gunrunner is purportedly meant to stop the sale and export of U.S. guns to Mexico by denying Mexican drug cartels firearms. However, the project allegedly has resulted in allowing thousands of guns to cross into Mexico, where many of the weapons are currently untraceable and in the hands of Mexican criminals.

Read more: Is this why White House funded 'guns-to-drug-lords' scheme? www.wnd.com/?pageId=320809#ixzz1RjzJFXV6

[cereb]

Most of the firearms violence in Mexico is perpetrated by drug trafficking organizations (DTOs) who are vying for control of drug trafficking routes to the United States and engaging in turf battles for disputed distribution territories. Hundreds of Mexican citizens and law enforcement personnel have become casualties of the firearms-related violence. DTOs operating in Mexico rely on firearms suppliers to enforce and maintain their illicit narcotics operations. Intelligence indicates these criminal organizations have tasked their money laundering, distribution and transportation infrastructures reaching into the United States to acquire firearms and ammunition. These Mexican DTO infrastructures have become the leading gun trafficking organizations operating in the southwest U.S.

ATF has dedicated approximately 100 special agents and 25 industry operations investigators to the SWB initiative over the past two years. ATF has recently assigned special agents to Las Cruces, N.M., and Yuma, Ariz. These assignments are part of a broad plan to increase the strategic coverage and disrupt the firearms trafficking corridors operating along the border.

Cases referred for prosecution under Project Gunrunner.
FY 2006 Cases w/Defendants – 122 Defendants referred for prosecution- 306
FY 2007 Cases w/Defendants – 187 Defendants referred for prosecution- 465

Special agents have been deployed to Monterrey to support the work of the attachés in the ATF Mexico Office and assist Mexican authorities in their fight against firearms related violence. Three additional ATF intelligence research specialists and one investigative analyst are planned for the El Paso Intelligence Center (EPIC) to support Project Gunrunner, along with one intelligence research specialist in each of the four field divisions on the southwest border (Phoenix, Dallas, Houston and Los Angeles).


www.usembassy-mexico.gov/eng/texts/et080116eTrace.html

[verrip1]

Interesting bit of irrelevant history.

However, it doesn't change the responsibility for the misuse of the program perpetrated by THIS Administration which led to large numbers of weapons being knowingly turned over to foreign criminals, then lost in the haze of poorly run agency staff.

[cereb]

Jul 10, 2011 16:39:35 GMT -5 verrip1 said:

Interesting bit of irrelevant history.

However, it doesn't change the responsibility for the misuse of the program perpetrated by THIS Administration which led to large numbers of weapons being knowingly turned over to foreign criminals, then lost in the haze of poorly run agency staff.

Funny. It wasn't irrelevant when everyone thought Obama was the mastermind behind the program.

[marshabar1]

7 July 2011

Half a year after the shooting of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-Ariz.), the Obama administration is set to release a series of reforms to the current gun law, White House Press Secretary Jay Carney said on Thursday.

The reforms, which are being crafted by the Department of Justice, come after a series of meetings with relevant stakeholders in the Second Amendment debate. But in a nod to the difficulties of getting legislation through a Republican-run House of Representatives, only executive orders or administrative actions -- and not an actual bill -- are expected to be handed to Congress.

Administration officials were coy on the specifics, from the reforms the Department of Justice would recommend or when it would actually make those recommendations.

"The president directed the Attorney General to form working groups with key stakeholders to identify common sense measures that would improve American safety and security while fully respecting Second Amendment rights," Carney said at Thursday's briefing. "That process is well underway at the Department of Justice with stakeholders on all sides working through these complex issues and we expect to have more specific announcements in the near future."

www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/07/07/obama-unveil-gun-control-reforms_n_892633.html

[cereb]

Well, we shall just have to wait and see on that one marsha. Who knows. I think it's going to be much about nothing.

[cereb]

Jul 10, 2011 13:03:52 GMT -5 @oldtex said:

In Fall of 2009, the Obama Administration conceived Operation Fast and Furious, in which the ATF sold thousands of advanced weapons to Mexican drug cartels in order to track them once they were used in crimes.

I'm SHOCKED, SHOCKED! Yes I'm shocked that we didn't sell them a nuke so that we could see who they would use it on.

horseshit, Paul. what is with you and your obsession with all things Obama, dude? you seriously need some time off or medication.

Cereb just to point out I got a warning for a comment just about EXACTLY the same as the one above. You might want to change it because (as I was told) it wasn't nice to say that someone should or needed medication. I figure that you comment will get the same response or maybe worse because well....my comment was about a liberal needing medication.

I had nothing to do with that comment. I prolly would have said worse.





J/K ;D

[marshabar1]

July 10, 2011
Obama administration approves sale of tanks to Egypt
Phil Boehmke

The Defense Security Cooperation Agency has informed Congress that it has approved the sale of 125 M1A1 Abrams Tanks to the government of Egypt. According to the DSCA website:

Section 36(b) of the Arms Export Control Act (AECA) requires the President to give Congress advance written notification of the intent to sell defense articles, equipment and services.

DSCA prepares and delivers the notifications to Congress only with the approval of the State Department.

Something smells fishy. Selling tanks to Egypt at this moment in time is not unlike pouring gasoline on a forest fire. Is there any reason to believe that the present Egyptian government can be relied upon? Is there any reason to believe that the future government of Egypt can be trusted?

On Friday there was yet another round of anti-government protests in Egypt. Earlier this week Ahmed Ezz al-Arab who leads Wafd (Egypt's largest secular party) revealed his full-on hatred for Israel and the Jewish people. Al-Arab sounded like an Ahmadinejad clone as he spewed his Holocaust denial rhetoric and claimed that 9-11 was made in the U.S.A. The most likely party to gain control of Egypt, the Muslim Brotherhood has been linked to numerous terrorist organizations and has the objective of ending the peace treaty with Israel.

This all begs the question of why Mr. Obama and Mrs. Clinton would be interested in selling tanks to such an unstable nation which is a powder keg of anti-Israeli ambitions. The Jerusalem Post reports:

The Pentagon told Congress - which has 30 days to object to the deal - that the sale of tanks would "contribute to the foreign policy and national security of the United States by helping to improve the security of a friendly country that has been and continues to be an important force for political stability and economic progress in the Middle East."

The Pentagon further stated that the new tanks would "provide Egypt with a modern tank fleet, enhancing its capacity to meet current and future threats."

With mountains of evidence all pointing towards the victory of forces that are openly hostile to our most valued Israeli allies, it would appear that Mr. Obama, Mrs. Clinton and the DOD are either blind to the situation in the Middle East or are intentionally threatening Israel. How much influence does Huma Abedin have with Mrs. Clinton? Ms. Adedin's (aka Mrs. Weiner) mother and brother have been linked to the Muslim Brotherhood in an American Thinker article last month. Will Congress step up to the plate and stop this sale? Mr. Boehner where do you stand?

www.americanthinker.com/blog/2011/07/obama_administration_approves_sale_of_tanks_to_egypt.html