A Complete Waste of Space

Is ‘Project Gunwalker’ about to bust wide open?
January 18th, 2011 2:38 pm ET
By David Codrea, Gun Rights Examiner

We’ve recently discussed what I call “Project Gunwalker.” That title is a parody of the “Project Gunrunner” name the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) has assigned to its southwest border initiative on U.S. guns going to the Mexican drug criminals, and refers to sourced information that the bureau has intentionally—and importantly, criminally, and with management cognizance—allowed guns to be transported across the border while keeping Mexican authorities in the dark.

We also touched on allegations regarding the gun used in the recent killing of a Border Patrol agent, and established some key questions for investigators to follow up on.

I must, of necessity, be cryptic in order to protect some insider sources who are putting their careers and potential freedom and lives on the line—that I can say this without hyperbole is something I believe will be borne out in the near future. The bottom line is, insiders are prepared to come forward. Not just with testimony, but with documentary evidence, and it looks like the trail leads to high places in the executive branch.

Reporters have been apprised of this in a general sense, but for the time being, the best strategy for the safety of the sources is to get them whistleblower protection. As such, certain redacted information that does not identify the sources is being shared with the offices of—so far, and that I have first-hand knowledge of—Saxby Chambliss, Jeff Sessions and Charles Grassley. Some House members are also being approached.
Understand at this point, our sources have not been put directly in touch with anyone outside a very close group of colleagues with a need to know—I have not even disclosed to my colleagues anything but carefully redacted information about my newest contact—I don’t mean it to sound cloak-and-dagger, but it’s just that we are being that careful. We need to be able to give them assurances before they reveal themselves to the political contacts, as they are literally taking immense risks with immense repercussions. And so far, the response from the politicos has been less than encouraging in the 24-hours since our renewed effort with new information has been offered to them—I’m told Chambliss’ staffer contact has tried to wash his hands of this saying we should just advise our sources to lawyer up.

We’re holding the reporters in reserve: If the politicians want to play that game, their role in turning a blind eye will be revealed. The preferable route will be to have the news agencies get their information directly from official statements coming out of congressional offices. And those of us in the background will be applying what our sources have told us to keep the process honest.

I’ve seen criticisms of past reports saying the information is presented too cryptically, that it’s not clear what’s going on. Please understand that I am walking eggshells here, trying to parse exactly how much I can say, and with the primary goal being to get the detailed information that will make everything clear out in the open—but before we can do that, we need to ensure the sources are protected.

I’ve seen other thoughtless criticisms suggesting this is some sort of hoax. That’s an easy charge for someone hiding behind a screen name, with no reputation at risk, to make. I and other key colleagues in this have done everything in our power to validate the information and the credibility of our sources and are prepared to have everything asserted to date put to the test.
What can you do?

First, read the latest update on efforts to drag politicians kicking and screaming into doing their damned jobs from Sipsey Street Irregulars: “Senators crawfish on helping agents in Project Gunwalker scandal. See if you can't help concentrate their minds.”
Next, contact your senators and representative and demand to know if they are interested in investigating these most serious allegations, and if not, why not? What possible excuse could they have for not wanting to speak to a verifiable insider who can produce documentation to back up their claims? What possible reason could they give for not offering protection to such a source?

Finally, share the links to this column, and to the Sipsey Street article, far and wide, and urge those without your sphere of influence to follow suit.



Also see:
ATF source confirms ‘walking’ guns to Mexico to ‘pad’ statistics
More information on ATF ‘walking’ guns across Mexican border
Does Texas gun shop tie in with ‘Project Gunwalker’?

Pudfark wrote:Where were the Ak-47's manufactured?