Wednesday, June 22, 2011

Traver Likely to Become Acting Chief of ATF; Not Likely to Get Confirmed

Andrew Traver, the man the White House nominated last November to head up ATF, is in Washington Tuesday to speak to Attorney General Eric Holder Jr. His arrival comes in the midst of a major controversy — or screw up as some might say — involving ATF’s “Operation Fast and Furious”, which encouraged gun dealers to sell to “straw purchasers” — all with the hopes of tracing the guns to the Mexican cartels. What’s expected to happen is that Traver, who heads up the Chicago ATF office, will be appointed acting director of ATF, replacing the acting head Kenneth Melson, who will likely be pressured to resign. After that, what’s also likely to happen is that Traver will never be confirmed. I could be wrong. But the NRA has launched an aggressive campaign to block his confirmation, claiming he’s very anti-gun rights. The confirmation has been stalled in the Senate. The Obama White House doesn’t seem to have the appetite for a fight like that. And it’s not likely to want to spend it’s political capital on Traver — at least not until the 2012 election is over...more

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