ATF-Mexico Fast and Furious Sting Was About Gun Control

Under the direction of the Department of Justice, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (commonly known as the ATF) has greatly embarrassed itself with an ill-conceived program that allowed weapons to flow illegally from the United States and into the hands of violent drug cartels in Mexico. The program was named Fast and Furious and ran from 2009 to 2011. The ATF claims they were trying to track the weapons in an effort to expose drug cartel networks, but all they really did is arrest some criminal nobodies and allowed the drug cartels to acquire arms illegally.

Some innocent people were killed by criminals using the illegally smuggled weapons. Most notably, US citizen and border patrol agent, Brian Terry was killed in an Arizona border shoot-out involving these weapons.

This whole operation was truly a debacle, a massive failure, and a disgraceful incident that has resulted in needless deaths of innocent people. The ATF is trying to defend itself by stating they were trying to take some short-term losses to gain greater ground in the international drug war, but there are some problems with that position.

Why should the ATF care so much about tracking weapons flowing out of America? Certainly, the ATF has an interest in gun smuggling, even when the weapons are leaving, but why would they run such a risky program that actually placed working weapons in the hands of violent criminals? Furthermore, why is the ATF worrying about the operations of drug cartels in a foreign country? Fast and Furious accomplished very little, and anyone who looks at the program objectively can easily see that there could have been no reasonable expectation that anything could have been accomplished. The operation and its goals just do not make sense.

The reality is the ATF's Fast and Furious program was about providing concrete evidence that guns are being purchased in the United States and going directly into the hands of the cartels in Mexico. If the ATF can provide overwhelming evidence that substantial quantities of weapons are being purchased in the United States for sale to Mexican cartel thugs who are using those weapons to commit murder, the evidence can be used to push for stronger gun laws in the United States.

Imagine what an effective argument the ATF could make in favor of greater intrusions on the Second Amendment if they could demonstrate gun sales in American are ultimately aiding violent criminals in other countries. The ATF could use the data to call for an all-out ban on assault rifles and greater regulations of handguns. They could also make a very effective argument to place limits on the quantities of weapons US citizens can buy.

Fast and Furious was not about exposing Mexican drug cartels. Fast and Furious was about the ATF collecting evidence to erode your Second Amendments rights. Fortunately, the ATF failed in their mission, and this botched operation has been exposed. Unfortunately, this cruel and aggressive attempt to build up ammunition against the Second Amendment has resulted in the spilling of innocent blood on the soil of America and Mexico.