Fast And Furious Exposed

Ken AshfordCrime, Gun ControlLeave a Comment

Forbes, a magazine not known for its liberal leanings, does an old-school journalism investigation of the "Fast and Furious" scandal, and — wait for it — finds it to be little more than Republican hype.  The facts that the wingnuts have been presenting — much of it picked up by Fox and even more balanced mainstream media — turns out to be… what's the word… uh…. "false".

The craziest spin of the Fast and Furious not-scandal is that the ATF under Obama allowed guns to fall into the hands of the Mexican gun cartel so that Obama could come back later when the cartels get out of hand, and ask for gun restrictions.

Never mind the fact that Obama never came back to ask for gun restrictions; let's start with Forbes feature finding: that the ATF never intended to allow guns to end up in the hands of Mexican gun cartels.

It's a long detailed article, full of support.  But the best quote is this:

 

Irony abounds when it comes to the Fast and Furious scandal. But the ultimate irony is this: Republicans who support the National Rifle Association and its attempts to weaken gun laws are lambasting ATF agents for not seizing enough weapons—ones that, in this case, prosecutors deemed to be legal.

Indeed.  But logical or even political consistency is not a trait you find among hardcore rightwingers.  It's just about getting Obama. Period.