Interesting Times

David Codrea published the following tweet earlier today. As he was out of town and wouldn't be available to respond, he said he wouldn't name names. If it turns out to be false, he said it would be on him. That said, remember he was one of the people who broke open Project Gunwalker aka Operation Fast and Furious.

I am away from internet and unable to verify but this is important if it pans out. A credible Source says a highly placed NRA exec has been offered immunity by the New York AG. @aarmark

— dcodrea (@dcodrea) July 31, 2019

This will be very interesting so I plan to keep checking Twitter and doing Google searches over the next few days.

What Is This World Coming To?

A couple of weeks ago I got two emails on the same day from reporters at Bloomberg's TheTrace.org asking about a blog post I had written. While I did give them a clarification on one item, I kinda ignored the request to put them in touch with my sources on the NRA Board of Directors.

Then yesterday, a friend sent me a link to an article in Slate.com regarding Marion Hammer's condescending email about those purged from their committees on the NRA Board. It included this paragraph.

One day later, NRA board member and Soldier of Fortune magazine founder and publisher Robert K. Brown reported on Facebook that he had been removed from the Grassroots Development Committee, the Veteran’s Affairs Committee, and the Legislative Policy Committee. “[Nobody] in the NRA power structure has the guts to explain to me why this was done,” Brown wrote at the time. “NRA leadership lacks any moral character and basically falls under the label of loathsome toads.” (Blogger John Richardson reported that Brown had maintained assignments on the Publications Committee and the Special Contributions Committee. Brown declined to comment to Slate, but said he is a board member.)

What the hell is this world coming to when those with paid jobs in the media have to reach out to us citizen journalists and/or quote our work? I think it would amuse the late Mike Vanderboegh given the work that he, David Codrea, and Dave Workman did in exposing Project Gunwalker aka Operation Fast and Furious.

No More Rights Watch Column At Guns Magazine?

Readers of Guns Magazine will soon notice a longtime feature missing or changed. The Rights Watch column written and edited by David Codrea will be gone.

From David's blog War On Guns:

I received an email this morning from the editor at GUNS Magazine informing me "we are going a different direction with Rights Watch and will no longer need your column." This isn't that much of a surprise. I have actually been expecting the hammer to drop ever since they "parted ways" with my former editor and magazine mentor Jeff John earlier this year.

I know that I write for a niche within a niche and have a feeling that was a factor. It's their right to run their magazine as they see fit and I'll be interested to see what that "different direction" turns out to be.

As a longtime reader and subscriber to Guns Magazine I think this sucks. It was always one column that I didn't miss nor do I think one should miss. Given David's leading role along with the late Mike Vanderboegh and Dave Workman in exposing Operation Fast and Furious, it doesn't make sense to me. 

Document Of The Day

After the murders in Sutherland Springs, Texas by the former airman, the only record you could find about his court martial was a two page summary  The former airman was a prohibited person but the US Air Force neglected to forward the records on to the FBI's NICS System. As I noted at the time, if he had been charged with this crime in a civilian court not only would his records have been sent to the FBI but it was highly likely that he'd still be in prison.

Thanks to the efforts of David Codrea and attorney Stephen Stamboulieh the Air Force was forced to release the entire 610 page court transcript. Codrea had made a request for it under the Freedom of Information Act but the Air Force and the Department of Justice refused to release it. He sued in US District Court for the District of Columbia with the aid of Stephen Stamboulieh. The suit was filed in January of this year and the Air Force has finally released a record of the trial proceedings.

As Codrea noted in an article about the release:

The refusal to comply with the FOIA, forcing the filing of a complaint to obtain requested documents, points to a desire to cover up a record that shows the Air Force knew his crimes rose to the level of required reporting. (An attached motion alleging “illegal pretrial confinement and punishment” is also something they probably weren’t eager to see come to light).

This was clearly a damaged, a violent, and of relevance, a guilty young man, and as we’ve seen in similar cases, the government knew about him. They nonetheless failed to report to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System, allowing the killer to purchase firearms from a Federal Firearms Licensee without the system flagging him.

What this and similar reporting failures acting as catalysts for “Fix NICS” and other legislation fail to account for is that ultimately, being a “prohibited person” cannot stop anyone so inclined from obtaining a gun. If it could, we wouldn’t see regular headlines about “gun violence” from places like Chicago.

I would urge readers to go to Ammoland and read the whole article. Then they should start scanning the trial transcript. It makes for interesting reading.

As a refresher, David Codrea and the late Mike Vanderboegh were the citizen journalists who broke the story on the Obama Administration's Operation Fast and Furious which allowed firearms to go to Mexican cartels and which resulted in the deaths of two Federal law enforcement officers and untold numbers of Mexican nationals.

Reclassification Of Bump Stocks By BATFE - Comments Due By January 25th

As many already know, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives anticipates opening a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking with regard to bump fire stocks to clarify whether or not they meet the definition of a machine gun under the National Firearms Act of 1934 and the Gun Control Act of 1968. Before they release any proposed rule, they are seeking comments from manufacturers, retailers, and consumers. These must be received by midnight EST on January 25, 2018.

The Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking with the questions to be answered is here. All comments must include this identification number - 2017R-22. Comments can be submitted online, by fax, or by US Mail. So far, 2,309 comments have been received. Here is the link to submit them online. It also allows you to upload a document.

These are the questions that they have for consumers:

Consumers

21. In your experience, where have you seen these devices for sale and which of these has been the most common outlet from which consumers have purchased these devices (e.g., brick and mortar retail stores; online vendors; gun shows or similar events; or private sales between individuals)?

22. Based on your experience or observations, what is (or has been) the price range for these devices?

23. For what purposes are the bump stock devices used or advertised?

 Gun law attorney Adam Kraut had these suggestions for responding to the ANPRM. Adam has more on the notice here.

Comments vary in form, length, and specificity. However, there are some things that a person submitting a comment will want to consider. Specificity is key. Providing a basis for the support or opposition to a proposed rule is crucial. Citing to studies or other evidence-based information is useful to show the agency why or why not a proposed rule is useful. In the instance of an ANPRM, responding to the specific questions posed by the agency is a particularly good strategy (not to say a commenter could not and should not go broader in their response). Regulations.gov has some more tips.

As important as comment “dos” are, there is one comment “don’t” that should be avoided: the Form Letter. As comment periods are not a measure of “popularity”, flooding the agency with form letters do not serve a useful purpose in the rulemaking process. A comment that is well reasoned is a much better avenue to pursue and not very difficult.

David Codrea has his take on the notice of rulemaking here.

The danger in this anticipated rulemaking is the same as it is with the proposed bills banning bump stocks before Congress:  where does it stop? With the Slidefire Bump Stock or will it go further to mean any modification that could increase the rate of fire of a semi-automatic firearm? Because of this, it is important that we comment.

While it might feel good to tell the BATFE to just f*#k off, go away, and mind the letter of the law, that will get us nowhere. It will be expressly ignored as it includes profanity. I think Adam's approach to address some part of the questions asked is a good one. These cannot be ignored as readily. I think the key thing is to kill the attempt to issue a rule before it gets off the ground. That is better than having to respond to an actual proposed rule which is more likely to be adopted.

David Codrea On Robert Mueller And Gunwalking

David Codrea along with the late Mike Vanderboegh were the two independent journalists who helped bring Operation Fast and Furious to the light of day. I doubt there is anyone around today who has a better knowledge of it than David. Thus, it was with great interest that I saw a post by David at Ammoland.com asking about former FBI Director Robert Mueller's role in the affair.

The key part:

He (Mueller) was asked to stay on beyond his 10-year term by Barack Obama, curiously just as things were starting to heat up on the Operation Fast and Furious investigations by the Senate Judiciary Committee and the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform. “Gunwalking” and the Brian Terry murder took place on his watch, and Mueller’s FBI, with its confidential informants being tracked as suspects by ATF, was up to its neck in things.

Outrageously, there is no reason to expect Congress to be any more successful at exposing the full truth than they have been so far at holding Eric Holder accountable for his Fast and Furious obstruction. Nor, as we see from the preponderance of agenda reporting, lies of omission and outright fake news can establishment media be relied on. As with the original Fast and Furious reporting, expect new revelations to come from independent efforts while those with the mass reach fall back on deliberate indifference and hoping not too many notice.

 David notes that Mueller condemned the Supreme Court's decision in DC v. Heller. It may be just a coincidence and it may be that Mueller along with Eric Holder was helping to pull the strings. We just don't know. However, I will say that David rarely speculates without substantial evidence in hand.

David goes on to add that an independent film that had been shelved dealing with Operation Fast and Furious is being resurrected.

See David's post for the complete story on the film and on Mueller.

Another Illegal Mayor Pleads Guilty And Resigns

David Codrea reports that yet another of Mayor Bloomberg's Illegal Mayors has resigned after pleading guilty. This time it was Patterson, NJ Mayor Jose (Joey) Torres who plead guilty to criminal conspiracy for using city workers to perform work on city time at a warehouse owned by his family.

However, former Mayor Torres was not just any old member of MAIG. As David reports, Joey Torres was one that got special recognition.

When he was mayor of New York City, Bloomberg actually called Torres out for special recognition in a “State of the City” address:

“Today, we’re joined by the mayor of Paterson, Jose (Joey) Torres. Mayor Torres, New York City offers its deepest condolences to you and your city. And we’ll also join you in working to bring sanity to gun policy in our nation. Next week, more than 50 mayors from across the country — who are part of our coalition of Mayors Against Illegal Guns — will gather in Washington, D.C., to take up this challenge.

“And I’m happy to say that Mayor Torres will be with us. Our goal will be getting Congress to overturn a wrong-headed law — one that blocks access at the local level to federal data that would let us hold gun dealers accountable for illegally selling to gun traffickers. Mayor Torres and I have a simple message for Congress: It’s time to take ideology out of crime-fighting and time to give mayors — the people who are responsible for policing our streets — the tools we need to protect our citizens.”

In other words, not content to disregard the Bill of Rights in their own ruined corners of the Republic, they’re intent on imposing their edicts everywhere, in Everytown, bending everyone to their will. And as for that “wrong-headed law” Bloomberg and Torres sought to overturn? If they do, they’re likely to screw things up and get people killed:

“Both BATFE and the Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) oppose release of trace data. In fact, BATFE has fought for years in the federal courts to keep trace records confidential, because they contain information (such as names of gun buyers) that could jeopardize ongoing investigations—not to mention law enforcement officers’ lives.”

The "wrong-head law" was the Tiahrt Amendment which put limits on the release of BATFE firearm traces.

When you think about it there are a couple of reasons as to why these mayors are so anti-gun. First, they want to do everything they can to minimize challenges to their power. Second, given their level of criminal misconduct they probably think most people are like them and shouldn't have a gun.

This And That

I was out of town at the end of last week at a company meeting. I missed that the House Oversight and Government Affairs Committee was having a hearing regarding the death of ICE Special Agent Jaime Zapata. However, David Codrea didn't miss it nor the fact that two BATFE officials on their own accord skipped the meeting despite being "invited" to appear.

He (former Agent Vince Cefalu) was referring to Thursday’s appearance (video below) before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Activities by Thomas E. Brandon, Acting Director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. The hearing was held to further explore the ambush murder of Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agent Jaime Zapata by cartel operatives in Mexico, where “straw-purchased” guns allowed by ATF to “walk” across the border were recovered from the scene.

Two of Brandon's agents, Associate Deputy Director Ronald Turk and Dallas Field Division Special Agent in Charge William Temple, were no-shows to the hearing. They decided on their own not to come testify, and Brandon informed Committee Chair Jason Chaffetz that he agreed with their decision.

Recognizing a continuation of the stonewalling that was dragged on for years by ATF and the Department of Justice under the Obama administration, Chaffetz was having none of it. He immediately issued subpoenas for Temple and Turk to appear on March 22.

Ronald Turk, you may recall, is the one who wrote a white paper discussing, among other things, removing suppressors from the NFA. You'd think a guy who is clearly aiming to be named the new Director of BATFE would want some face time with Congress even if it wasn't going to be all favorable.

I also missed that Remington Arms Company is again laying off employees at their Ilion, New York plant due to slowing sales. My friend Rob Morse didn't miss it. He noted:

Remington Arms is moving out of anti-gun New York..one layoff at a time. They expand their production in Alabama during a market increase, and cut from the New York plant during the downturns. I guess elections have consequences as New York voters raised both the price of doing business and of owning a gun in NY.

If you listen to the news lately, you would think that the mainstream media has been teleported to the 1950s with all the hysteria over Russia. It is almost like that 60s move The Russians are Coming! The Russians are Coming! Lest you think that we in the gun culture are exempt from the Russian hysteria, Sebastian discusses a Daily Beast article trying to tie the NRA to Vlad (the Impaler) Putin.

I did work the GRNC booth Saturday morning at the Asheville Gun Show. While our business was a bit slow, the crowds seemed bigger than this time last year. I don't know whether it was bargain shopping on the part of attendees or because we were supposed to get snow Saturday night.

I didn't check the prices of ARs at the show but they did seem down at the Winston-Salem show I attended the preceding weekend. If anyone is looking for an AR15, now is as good a time as you'll ever get to buy one. I have seen Ruger AR-555s selling under $500 at multiple locations, off-brands for under $400, and the S&W M&P-15 in the low $500 range. If you want to look for deals, check the Reddit sub group called gun deals.

Obituary And Remembrances

Mike Vanderboegh passed away earlier today after a long battle against cancer. His good friend David Codrea published these two remembrances of Mike in AmmoLand and OathKeepers.

You can find the AmmoLand one here and the OathKeepers one here.

David is correct:  the freedom movement did lose an important voice.

The "official" obituary was published in the Birmingham News today. I have reprinted it in its entirety below:

Michael Brian Vanderboegh

July 23, 1952 - Aug. 10, 2016 born July 23, 1952 in St. Joseph, Michigan, resident of Pinson, Alabama, survived by wife, Rosey, son, Matthew Bradley (Nicole) of Wiesbaden, Germany; daughters Hannah Rose (Brandon Vanslambrouck) and Zoe Kate Vanderboegh all of Pinson, Alabama; and grandsons, Mason Brennan of Youngstown, Ohio and Gabriel Michael, and granddaughter Olivia Laura, both of Weisbaden, Germany; mother, Norma Vanderboegh; brother, Dwight Vanderboegh (Cheryl); sister, Teresa Lehman (Jim). He was preceded in death by his father, Donald Vanderboegh and sister, Meri Kay Vanderboegh. Longtime 2nd Amendment activist, author, citizen journalist, and blogger who, with David Codrea, first broke the story of the Fast and Furious scandal in December 2010. Resident of Alabama since 1985, Mike was also an historian, amateur archaeologist, and researcher of Alabama's civil war history, especially the unionists of Winston County. He was the founding historian of La Grange Living History Association, a founding member of the 1st Alabama Union Calvary Company C reenactment unit and active in local historical preservation issues. More recently, Mike was the founder of the National Three Percent Movement and led armed civil disobedience actions from Connecticut to Oregon, smuggling forbidden firearms magazines to states that banned them. Controversial throughout his life, he was constantly devoted to the Declaration of Independence and the Bill of Rights. An adamant enemy of collectivism of all kinds, he was denounced by Bill Clinton on CNN, the Southern Poverty Law Center, the Anti-Defamation League of Bnai Brith, Rachel Maddow of MSNBC, as well as the Ku Klux Klan, the Aryan Nations and various racists and anti-Semitic groups. He was also very unpopular with the ATF and the FBI. In 2005, he served with the Minutemen on the New Mexico border and was always proud to say that he had been on the enemy's list of the past three White Houses regardless of party. As his friend Kurt Hoffmann said, "it is better to be despised by the despicable than admired by the admirable." He described himself as a citizen first, Christian Libertarian who believed in God, free men, free markets, the rule of law under the founder's republic and that the Constitution extended to everyone regardless of race, creed, color, or religion. He lived by the motto that "all evil prospers with the silent consent of the good, therefore I will not be silent". Services to be held at Kilgroe Memorial in Leeds on Saturday, August 13, 2016 at 2PM. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the American Cancer Society . Visit online at www.kilgroefuneralhome.com Kilgroe Funeral Home, Leeds directing.

Published in The Birmingham News on Aug. 12, 2016

Michael Brian Vanderboegh

Click name above for additional details at:
www.kilgroefuneralhome.com.
Arrangements under the direction of:
Kilgroe Funeral Home
1750 Ashville Rd | Leeds, AL 35094 | (205) 699-3181

Read Before Commenting On The Proposed M855 Ban

David Codrea has a habit of getting the answers to questions that the Justice Department and BATFE would rather not answer. Yesterday he got an answer to why the proposed regulation change regarding removing the exemption of SS109/M855 62 grain 5.56x45 ammunition from the armor piercing banned list was never published in the Federal Register.

BATFE says they are exempt.

WTF?

Per Denise Brown of ATF Enforcement Programs and Services in this afternoon’s telephone conversation, this will “not actually be a [regulatory] change, more of a policy along those lines.” Brown said the framework document is a notice only, and will therefore not be published in the Federal Register, characterizing the document’s intent as “information gathering” in order to collect technical information, which could affect the Bureau’s final determination.

Brown confirmed ATF’s decision not to publish in the Federal Register is based on the exemption provision in the APA. That states “Except when notice or hearing is required by statute, this subsection does not apply ... to interpretative rules, general statements of policy, or rules of agency organization, procedure, or practice.” Also exempted is “when the agency for good cause finds (and incorporates the finding and a brief statement of reasons therefore in the rules issued) that notice and public procedure thereon are impracticable, unnecessary, or contrary to the public interest.”

Could the Eric Holder's Justice Department and B. Todd Jones' BATFE say "F-you" any louder?

Read the whole column here. I think it gives a critical perspective on their proposed change and will help in formulating your response that is due by March 16th.

I agree with Michael Bane that this is a well thought out and orchestrated assault on gun owners and the Second Amendment. Along with commenting to BATFE, we need to be sending copies of these comments to our Senators and Representatives. I'd also send a copy of David Codrea's column and ask if the BATFE is not subverting the will of Congress. I'd do the latter in a second letter. The more times we can get this before their radar screen, the better.

I Got Me Them Hickenlooper Blues

Thanks to National Gun Rights Examiner David Codrea and his co-writers Cyd Lantz and David Simpson we have the lyrics to The Hickenlooper Blues. They along with their producer Peter Gould have created this great parody of Gov. John Hickenlooper (D-CO) and his various excuses for bringing gun control to Colorado.

Share this with your friends. David suggests other places to share this video. This is an extremely close election - too close really - and Hick needs to be sent back to his brew pub.

It Was CSGV - I Couldn't Help Myself

The gun prohibitionists at the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence (sic) must think the novel 1984 wasn't merely a novel but the playbook for a future American society. They see themselves as the Thought Police out to punish any and all "thoughtcrimes" or deviations from the party line.

Such is the case now in their petition attempting to get the Maryland State Police to revoke the instructor certification of Wicomico County (MD) Sheriff Mike Lewis. His "thoughtcrime" is his outspoken support for the Second Amendment. Sheriff Lewis has stated that he would refuse to let Federal authorities into his county if they wanted "to come in here and strip my citizens of their right to bear arms."

Inspired by a post by David Codrea on his War On Guns blog saying that all the "right people" were signing the petition, I decided to sign it as well using an appropriate pseudonym. I wanted to choose a name that would express my thoughts about their petition.

David chose Adolph Hitler. I went with Heinrich Himmler. Most people know that Himmler was the head of the Schutzstaffel (SS). Hitler named Himmler Chief of German Police in 1935 which included the Gestapo, the Criminal Police, the SD, and other police agencies. Given how the Gestapo sought out those who deviated from the National Socialist creed, I think he was an appropriate signatory to CSGV's petition.

Felix Dzerzhinsky who directed the All-Russia Extraordinary Commission to Combat Counter-revolution and Sabotage or Cheka would have also have been an appropriate pseudonym to use.

If you want to avail CSGV of your personal disgust at their actions, here is the link to their petition. I'm sure you can come up with a good pseudonym to use.

David Asks An Interesting Question

You may have seen a story recently that actress and model Charlize Theron convinced her new boyfriend Sean Penn to give up his guns. He had them melted down and made into a sculpture by Jeff Koons which generated $1.4 million in a charity auction.

What you didn't hear in the press or see on E! News are the questions that David Codrea raises today in his National Gun Rights Examiner column.

What Penn is even doing with guns in the first place is a mystery, if the reports are true that when partnered with Madonna, he tied her to a chair and beat her up with a baseball bat.

The Lautenberg amendment prohibition on gun ownership applies to those convicted of misdemeanor domestic violence, and according to the New York Daily News, “Penn was also charged with felony domestic assault during his marriage to Madonna. He pleaded to a misdemeanor.”

Was that report in a major metropolitan newspaper accurate, and if so, is Penn a prohibited person, or have his legally-recognized gun rights been restored? How? Those would seem to be fair questions to explore.

While I am not a fan of the denial of constitutional rights based upon a misdemeanor conviction, I am also not a fan of the high and mighty being treated differently than some poor schmuck living in a trailer park.

David asks even more questions and I think the public deserves some answers.

About That Secession Petition You Signed...

In the aftermath of the election, secession petitions for all fifty states (and maybe for the rest of the 57 as well) have sprung up on the White House's petition website and over 800,000 signatures have been collected. There is also a counter-petition asking that anyone who has signed such a secession petition be declared a traitor and then be hung, drawn, and quartered with the remains scattered to the four corners of the earth. Actually, I'm kidding about that last little bit but the true believers are asking for signees to be declared traitors.

In the midst of all of this has come the Department of Defense's Defense Security Service. They are the agency at DOD charged with managing the Secret, Top Secret, and other such security clearances for defense contractors. A few days ago, they issued a notice regarding the secession petitions and whether signing one would be considered a reportable event for contractors.

November 16, 2012

DSS personnel have recently received questions from security personnel at cleared contractors about whether contractors should file adverse information reports pursuant to NISPOM paragraph 1-302 regarding cleared persons who sign petitions to allow a state to withdraw or secede from the United States.

It also appears that erroneous statements have been made to the effect that DSS is directing contractors to treat the signing of such petitions as reportable adverse information.

Please note that DSS has not provided any approved direction or guidance. DSS is not directing any contractor to file adverse information reports regarding persons who have signed secession or withdrawal petitions. This issue is under review and DSS will provide information to contractors when that review is complete.

So while they aren't requiring defense contractors to report employees who has signed such petitions yet, they are still studying the situation. David Martosko of The Daily Caller has more on this story.

David Codrea has written on some of the implications for gun owners of signing these secession petitions at the National Gun Rights Examiner. His advice is to not sign any of these petitions. While it may not equate with renunciation of your citizenship which is a disqualifying event for gun purchases, I wouldn't put anything past the Obama Administration. When it comes to being vindictive and petty, they could have given Richard Nixon lessons.

Vanderboegh And Codrea On Lou Dobbs Tonight

I'm glad to see Lou Dobbs give Mike Vanderboegh and David Codrea the credit they deserve for breaking the story on Operation Fast and Furious. They were interviewed this evening on his Fox Business show about their ethics complaint against Eric Holder as well as what they see coming next for the investigation.



A bit off topic but I think Mike looks good given his recent surgery and the attendant complications. You can tell he's lost some weight. I hope and pray that his recovery continues without any further complications.

Bar Ethics Complaint Against Holder Makes Fox News

The formal ethics complaint filed with the DC Bar by Mike Vanderboegh and David Codrea got some airtime today on Fox News.



William LaJeunesse of Fox discussed the complaint with Brian Darling of the Heritage Foundation and Michael Frisch of Georgetown Law Center. Frisch was formerly senior assistant bar counsel to the District of Columbia Court of Appeals. As might be expected, they differed in the seriousness of the ethics complaint and how it would be treated by the DC Bar.

Darling, who is a Senior Fellow for Government Studies at Heritage, thought the complaint was on solid ground. However, he didn't expect them to take it up until next year.

"It is clearly a reasonable basis for a complaint against Eric Holder to say 'you are in charge of the Justice Department, the Justice Department is refusing to produce documents that were subpoenaed by Congress and as a result you were held in contempt to Congress not once, but twice'," he said.

Frisch, who is an adjunct professor of law at Georgetown, didn't think the DC Bar would take the complaint seriously and would likely dismiss it.

"Because this particular complaint is written as if the attorney general had already been convicted of a crime, I think it will likely be rejected on its face," said Michael Frisch, former member of the D.C. Bar Counsel and current Georgetown Law School professor.

Frisch goes on to add that the DC Bar has the option of deferring any action until such time as a parallel proceeding such as a civil proceeding is completed.

Mike and David fired a shot across the bow and it was a brilliant strategic move. Whether it is squashed or not by the DC Bar is actually irrelevant because it has kept the issue of Holder and contempt alive in the mainstream media.

More On The Unsealed Indictment

ABC News had footage from today's press conference with US Attorney for the Southern District of California Laura Duffy. She is the lead prosecutor in the murder prosecution of the six Mexican nationals charged with Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry. Given the involvement of the US Attorney's Office for Arizona in Project Gunwalker, outside prosecutors had to be brought in.

While it has been rumored for a long time that the Border Patrol Agents responded with less than lethal ammunition (beanbags), I believe this is the first time the government has confirmed it. To me, this is the equivalent of taking a knife to a gun fight.

David Codrea has a different take on the unsealing of the indictment in his National Gun Rights Examiner column today.

Noting indictments were handed down by a federal grand jury in November, 2011, and the men are still at large, it would seem fair to ask what information Justice has to to be confident they have not automatically condemned the suspects—and that word is key—to violent deaths, whether they are entrenched in Mexico or hiding in the U.S. from ruthless gangs who ignore borders as a matter of course?

If the unsealing somehow forces the suspects in from the cold, the gamble with their lives will have paid off, but that assumes they are still alive and they are guilty. If they are instead caught first by the cartels, the adage “Dead men tell no tales” will certainly fuel further speculation among those who don’t believe the government has been forthcoming about its role in a deadly operation that has already claimed known and untold lives, an unfortunate but logical consequence of earned mistrust.

I think David brings up some very valid questions. I would be surprised if they are ever found, alive or dead.

Ethics Complaint Filed Against Holder With The DC Bar

In the next stage of taking the fight for justice to the belly of the beast, David Codrea and Mike Vanderboegh have filed a formal ethics complaint with the Office of Bar Counsel, Board on Professional Responsibility of the District of Columbia Court of Appeals.

From their press release:

3 July 2012

An ethics complaint against U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder has been filed by David Codrea and Mike Vanderboegh with the Office of Bar Counsel, Board on Professional Responsibility of the District of Columbia Court of Appeals. Codrea and Vanderboegh are the two bloggers who first broke the news of the Fast and Furious scandal in December 2010.

Said Vanderboegh, Eric Holder believes that he will escape serious consequences of the congressional investigations of the Fast and Furious scandal simply by running out the clock on his tenure. We intend this ethics complaint to place him on notice that his lies and malfeasances will follow him until justice is done."

 The letter accompanying their ethics complaint can be found here.

More power to David and Mike. I'd love to see the look on the face of the person who opened that complaint!

Condolences

Condolences to David Codrea and his family on the passing of his father this morning. David's father had been ill for some time. Nonetheless, nothing really prepares one for the loss of a parent.

Also keep Mike Vanderboegh in your prayers as well. He went in the hospital on Monday for what was scheduled to be an out-patient procedure to place a stent in his esophagus. The out-patient procedure turned into an overnight stay and I'm still not sure if he has returned home yet.

It is a cruel twist of fate that the two citizen journalists who broke the news of Operation Fast and Furious were not able to participate in today's events. Without their groundbreaking work and their introduction of certain whistleblowers to Congressional investigators, the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee would never have voted to hold Eric Holder in contempt. We owe them a debt of gratitude for their tireless work on this scandal. We should also keep them and their families in our prayers during this trying time for both families.

Brian A. Terry Memorial Act Passes Senate By Unanimous Consent

Despite not being able to pass a budget in three years, some stuff still does get done in the US Senate. Yesterday, the Senate passed by unanimous consent and without any amendments HR 2668 - the Brian A. Terry Memorial Act. This act will rename the Border Patrol station in Bisbee, AZ, the Brian A. Terry Border Patrol Station, in memory of the fallen Border Patrol agent.

The bill was sponsored by Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA) who had this to say on the Senate's action:

"All of Washington mourned with the Terry family when Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry gave his life in the line of duty in 2010. Today we stand just as unified for the purpose of honoring and preserving his legacy.

"The unanimous support with which the Brian A. Terry Memorial Act passed the United States Senate is a tribute to Agent Terry's career of service to our country and to the Border Patrol's distinguished history of intrepidity and sacrifice for the sake of homeland security.

"We recognize that Agent Terry's untimely passing is a tragedy that never should have happened. And while we continue to pursue answers regarding the circumstances surrounding his death, we resolve that his example of bravery and sacrifice will never be forgotten – especially in the city of Bisbee, AZ where he served."

In his Gun Rights Examiner column today, David Codrea speculates that the bill's passage may create a political dilemma for President Obama.

“When the bill reaches Obama's desk, I expect him to invite Brian Terry's family to the signing,” Katie Pavlich of Townhall.com writes.

That creates an interesting dilemma for the President, particularly because of Terry's mother calling his Attorney General Eric Holder a "coward" and a "joke," and especially since the slain agent’s parents filed a lawsuit against the Justice Department and ATF that “seeks $25 million dollars in compensation for Terry's death.”

David wonders among other things if the White House indeed will invite the Terry family to the signing ceremony or will the lawsuit be used as a reason to just quietly sign the bill without press or family there.