Stay Calm? Hell No!

This story in the WaPo shows how the Bush Administration is reacting to the vigorous and unrelenting protest against the prosecution and incareration of Border Patrol agents Ramos and Campean.

Support Swells for Agents Who Shot Drug Smuggler
Conservatives Lead Movement to Free Ex-Border Patrolmen

Early this week, the Bush administration urged angry conservatives to remain calm over the convictions of two former Border Patrol agents who shot an unarmed Mexican drug smuggler, but petitions for their release continued to flood the White House.

It did not help that one the lawmen, Ignacio Ramos, was attacked by Latino gang members in his cell at the Yazoo City Federal Correctional Complex in Mississippi and beaten bloody. Days after prison officials confirmed the beating on Feb. 8, Department of Homeland Security officials admitted that an inspector general's report erroneously quoted Border Patrol agents as saying Ramos and his partner, Jose Compean, intended to kill Mexicans.

The phrase, "erroneously reported," is Washington-speak for "lied." And why would the White House urge conservatives to remain calm? The reason is simple. We're in another presidential election cycle and there is money to be made pledged and collected.

If my heated remarks to the Republican fund raiser who called me last week are any indication of what they are facing, the White House has a lot to be worried about.

House Could Hear Border Agent Case

Perhaps the case against the border cops is beginning to unravel.

The speaker of the House of Representatives will be asked to hold hearings on the case of two convicted Border Patrol agents for the shooting of a Mexican drug smuggler. The request, which comes on the heels of the Senate's decision to hold hearings last week on the case, was drafted by Rep. Ted Poe, R-Texas, and was sent Wednesday to all House members.

It's about time, but too early to start a happy dance. There must be more light shed on this case.

"Numerous and repeated attempts by Members of Congress to ascertain the facts of this case through inquiries with relevant federal agencies have been unsuccessful. Our requests for information have been delayed or denied, and certain federal investigators have even misled us about this case."

That's what puzzles me about this case. Why all this pressure to get a conviction on two low level cops? Even if the Mexican consulate is hot to trot on this (as mentioned in a previous post) why leave yourself open to charges like this? There is more here than meets the eye.

Rep. John Culberson, R-Texas, on Wednesday also sent a letter to Department of Homeland Security Inspector General Richard Skinner asking for an investigation into his office for misleading Congress about the circumstances surrounding the investigation of the agents.

At a private September meeting, House members from Texas, Poe, Rep. Michael McCaul and Rep. Kenny Marchant, were told by Skinner's office that they had evidence that Ramos and Compean "were out to shoot Mexicans" and that they had admitted to knowingly shooting an unarmed person.

Skinner admitted this month at two House hearings that those statements were false.

It isn't just US Attorney John Sutton who wanted a piece of Agents Ramos and Compean; now the Homeland Security IG has let his ass get dragged into this. Why did these people put the screws to these cops? Why expose themselves to this kind of criticism?

"These congressional hearings are necessary to shed light on the truth of this case," Poe added. "There are many unanswered questions regarding the trial and what happened that day. The Justice Department has no business being the long arm of the Mexican government."

Documents obtained by the Daily Bulletin show that the Mexican consulate was actively involved in the U.S. attorney's prosecution of the Border Patrol agents and a Texas deputy sheriff last year.

The Senate Judiciary Committee has dubbed its investigation in these events as "the Texas Three."

This doesn't make any sense. Illegal campaign contributions from drug trafficking aren't in the picture, even if there are some handsome profits to be made.

Item #1. The smuggler was sneaking almost 800 lbs (worth about $1m) of marijuana. Even if he was making only one trip a week he was smuggling $52m of product a year. He probably was doing more. And most likely he was not the only "mule" for his boss. What was the profit for his boss? Here is one source. Other estimates place the profit margin at 170% or more.

500 pounds of marijuana can be purchased in Juárez, Mexico, for $50,000 and sold in St. Louis, Missouri, for $400,000.

In 1998 Americans spent an estimated $11 billion on marijuana. I imagine some of that found its way into the pockets of Mexican elected officials and cops.

Item #2. Let's not kid ourselves about the nature of "doing bidnez" in Mexico. Corruption is rife. Look at what happened in Tijuana. If something happens to interdict the flow of illegal drugs into the US, you can bet your last dollar that there are plenty of pesos available to bring Mexican public officials into the act.

Item #3. Sutton also went after Edwards County Deputy Sheriff Guillermo F. Hernandez for wounding an illegal alien being transported in a vehicle that tried to run down Deputy Hernandez. From the National Border Patrol Council web site:

The Texas Rangers conducted an independent investigation of Deputy Hernandez' shooting and cleared Deputy Hernandez of any wrongdoing; yet, somehow federal
Prosecutors managed to charge Deputy Hernandez a year and three months after the incident. Judging by the prosecutorial abuses that occurred in the Ramos and Compean case, one can only imagine how poorly the prosecution behaved in the
case against Deputy Hernandez

Why has our government responded so favorably to this manipulation?

The Outrage Continues

The Feds aren't happy with imprisoning two Border Guards, now they let one of them get assaulted, stomped on for several minutes according to his wife, while under the care of the federal prison system.

EL PASO, Texas (AP) -- A former U.S. Border Patrol agent who was convicted of shooting a drug smuggling suspect and then lying about it was beaten by fellow inmates in prison, his relatives and a congressman said Tuesday.

Prison officials did not immediately confirm that Ignacio Ramos had been attacked.

Any prison official in his right mind knows that a former cop must be given special protection in a jail setting. Excuse me, any competent prison official.

U.S. Rep. Tom Tancredo, R-Colo., a vocal supporter of the agents and opponent of illegal immigration, criticized the Bush administration Tuesday for failing to protect Ramos and demanded a full presidential pardon for the two men.

"Not only did the administration choose the side of a foreign dope runner over the agents who stopped him from smuggling a load of drugs into the county _ now they've failed to protect that agent while his case is on appeal," he said in a statement.

There has not been that much press on this case, unlike how the treacherous MSM supports the murderous Mumia Abu-Jamal.

Ramos' wife, Monica Ramos, told The Associated Press on Tuesday that her husband described being attacked late Saturday, when he "let his guard down." She said the attackers kicked and stomped him for several minutes.

He was able to identify one man in the group, Monica Ramos said.

The first time he "let his guard down" was when he tried to do his job in the Border Patrol and stop a drug dealer. He was very fortunate that there were no hand made knives used in the attack.

Officials of the Federal Bureau of Prisons did not immediately return a phone call seeking comment Tuesday.

Of course not. They are too busy protecting terrorists and drug smugglers like Panama ex-strong man Noriega. And don't hold your breath waiting for something to happen to the inmate that Ramos was able to identify.

Politics As Usual

Jose Alonso Compean and Ignacio Ramos are the two Border Patrol cops who are now in prison for shooting a drug dealer. Euphoricreality has put together some more developments in this ongoing saga of how the government screws the very people we need to protect our borders and panders to those who violate the same borders. The name of the article is: "Dirty Texas Politics Taint Border Patrol Agents’ Trial" and was written by Shawn Christopher Phillips at www.patgray.com.

The central perpetrator in this travesty of justice is the U.S. Attorney Johnny Sutton, who has old boy Texas connections from the judge overseeing the case all the way up to President George W. Bush. These connections, though not openly disclosed, have greatly impacted the case, as highly placed government officials look the other way while testimonies, evidence, and statements are manipulated behind the scenes.

Some of the issues which the government has been ignoring is that the drug dealer, Osvaldo Aldrete-Davila, not only was apprehended after trying to smuggle almost 800 pounds of marijuana into Arizona in 2005, several months later he was stopped again trying to smuggle a half ton of marijuana into the US! He was given a car by the authorities to travel into the US for court appearances and stuffs it with drugs! The results of this second incident?

U.S. Attorney Johnny Sutton further extended immunity to this additional felony and sealed the indictment from jurors. Aldrete-Davila’s arrest record was expunged, and a gag order was issued. The jury was not informed of the second smuggling arrest, and Sutton issued a public statement that Aldrete-Davila was “never arrested” on drug charges.

The Bush administration is making a huge mistake in pursuing these two cops and yet letting a real criminal like former National Security Advisor Sandy Berger off with a by-your-leave. A Mexican criminal is caught smuggling almost a ton of dope into this country and skates absolutely free. And this is the part that really makes me sick.

Osvaldo Aldrete-Davila is now suing the US Border Patrol for $5-million for violating his civil rights, and Compean and Ramos are each doing over 12 years hard time. It’s rumored inside the beltway that President Bush will appoint Johnny Sutton to the federal bench before he leaves office on Jan. 20, 2009.

24

There are only 24 hours left until former US Border Agents agents Jose Alonso Compean and Ignacio Ramos begin their 10+ year sentences. Thus far President Bush has ignored hundreds of thousands of emails and the pleas of 55 Congressmen to pardon these two men. Please contact your US representatives and the White House with your requests to have these men pardoned.

This from the Canada Free Press:

"If it can happen to them, it can happen to any one of us. It has definitely had an adverse affect on agents involved in border security." -Mark Parsons, President, Fraternal Order of Police in El Paso, Texas, Customs and Border Protection agent.

President Bush has shown no interest in pardoning these two agents whose sentences will surpass many murderers, rapists and even drug smugglers they have put behind bars. In addition to the obvious, however, the situation involving Compean and Ramos is having a "rippling effect" among border patrol agents and other law enforcement officials who have the increasingly dangerous and difficult task of protecting American citizens.

This will have a chilling effect on border security. And I believe that Bush wants exactly that.

Mr. Parsons stated that the aggressive prosecution, replete irregularities pertaining to the arrest and trial of the two agents, including but not limited to venue issues, restriction of exculpatory testimony and evidence, government corruption and jury misconduct "has made a lot of agents on the front lines 'gun shy' and afraid to do their jobs." He added that "if this can happen to agents Compean and Ramos, it can happen to any one of us."

It is also sending a strong message to illegal aliens, drug smugglers, and potential terrorists illegally crossing the border into the U.S. everyday. Those involved in illegal border activities see this as a victory for them, endangers the safety and welfare of the officers on the front lines and compromises the safety and security of every man, woman and child in the U.S.

These men and women are the first line of defense for our borders. The two agents were not acting in a manner to delibertly deprive an innocent human being of his life and liberty. They were protecting themselves from a perceived threat from a drug smuggler.

Make no mistake, the southern border of the U.S. is a virtual war zone being exploited by enemies of the United States. The demoralizing affect of this lack of prosecutorial discretion in a time of war is questionable at best, begging the questions: how serious are we in securing our borders, and why isn't the U.S. Department of Justice exercising the same zeal in the prosecution of illegal aliens as they are in punishing those front-line agents who are understaffed, out-gunned, and hamstrung by rules of engagement favoring the criminal?

I'm just so disgusted by this. And Sandy Berger gets probation for destroying national security documents!