M E M O R A N D U M
TO: Reporters, Editors and Producers
RE: Documents subpoenaed in ATF investigation
DA: Friday, April 1, 2011
Senator Chuck Grassley, Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on the Judiciary, made the following statement after the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform subpoenaed documents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF). The documents were first requested by Grassley as part of his investigation into allegations that the ATF officials allowed guns to “walk” across the border, despite warnings from agents on the ground that the policy would result in somebody getting killed. Grassley has been relentless in his efforts to get answers from the administration on the policy.
Here is Grassley’s comment. Links to Grassley’s letters to the ATF, the Justice Department, Customs and Border Protection, and the Department of State follow the comment.
“I first wrote to seek information about these allegations in January. It’s now April. Despite repeated requests and mounting evidence that the allegations are credible, the administration failed to voluntarily provide even a single page of the internal documents I requested. After this history of stonewalling, the Justice Department is now faced with a subpoena from the House. The department must provide these documents and I expect them to be delivered simultaneously to me at the Senate Judiciary Committee.
“I welcome Chairman Issa joining my efforts to uncover the facts about how this reckless policy was approved.”
Here are links to Grassley’s correspondence.
January 27, 2011 letter to the ATF
January 31, 2011 letter to the ATF, whistleblower retaliation
February 9, 2011 letter to the Department of Justice
March 3, 2011 letter to the Department of Justice and the ATF
March 4, 2011 letter to Customs and Border Protection
March 4, 2011 letter to the Department of State
March 8, 2011 letter to the Council of Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency
March 16, 2011 letter to Customs and Border Protection
March 24, 2011 letter to Customs and Border Protection
March 9, 2011 Oversight hearing of the Department of Homeland Security
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