House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman Darrell Issa and Senate Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Senator Chuck Grassley today released the first part of the final report on the joint congressional investigation of conduct in Operation Fast and Furious. The report presents evidence detailing numerous errors and decisions by ATF officials and the Arizona U.S. Attorney's Office that led to serious problems including inter agency communication failures between ATF, DEA, and FBI. The failed operation might have contributed to the deaths of U.S. Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry and an unknown number of Mexican citizens. It also created an ongoing public safety hazard on both sides of the border. The failures happened because of conscious decisions not to interdict weapons and not to stop suspects in the hope that they would lead to cartel connections and a larger case.
Read the press release: Office of Senator Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa)