Why is Issa refusing to include all gunrunning ops

In an earlier post, the claim was made that looking at gunrunning operations during the Bush administration was "stupid" since everything went so smoothly under the Wide Receiver program.  Well then, if that’s the case, WR should stand up under close scrutiny just fine, shouldn't it?  The operative word here is "if." 

The F&F operation was not conceived in a vacuum. The fact that gunrunning tactics were initially (mis)conceived in 2005-2006 is inescapable, as is the fact that F&F was modeled after a program that had already been in place for several years.  A thorough review of its people, policies and practices, to include an Issa-esque microscopic inspection of every last document it ever generated, would

(1)  Shed light on the ATF mindset already in place when F&F was implemented.  According to the earlier post, WR was a paragon of efficiency back in the day, but linked below is a 142-page report from a Sept 2008 DOJ audit report covering a 59-month period revealing the bureau’s inability to account for missing firearms and laptops (412 to be exact).  I find hundreds of missing computers and firearms during that time span every bit as interesting as missing emails.  This raises all kinds of questions.  Whose computers (what division)?  How many of those went missing between 2006 and 2008?  Were they reported missing, or was that not known until the audit was completed?  From what locations did they go missing?  What programs were the computers’ contents associated with?  Was there any cluster of these descriptive factors identified suggesting a deliberate effort?  How many computers with gunrunning data were among them?  Was the data backed up?  If so, where is it?  If not, why not? 

(2)  Elucidate what motivated John Boehner, Eric Cantor and Kevin McCarthy to appeal to Issa just last month to “slow down.”  Was this strictly based on election year political optics or did it have more to do with concerns over possible legal proceedings that would change the burden of proof dynamics, necessitating a much broader investigation that ultimately would call for inquiries into the former program?  

(3)  Dispel the current witch hunt appearance of the inquiry.  As it stands now, Issa’s focus is not on the operation itself, it’s on Eric Holder.  If the operations were so pristine prior to 2009, why wouldn’t the GOP JUMP AT THE CHANCE to throw that into the mix?  After all, if they could demonstrate effective outcomes prior to 2009 and contrast those with post-2009 mismanagement, wouldn’t that compound the AG’s and president’s humiliation? 

For years, Mexico has been critical of lax US gun laws which they understandably attribute directly to the increase in drug-related violence along the border.  F&F is a small facet of a much larger problem.  If Issa is so concerned with saving US and Mexican lives, there should be a comprehensive congressional investigation into the vast extent of the overall flow of firearms from the US into Mexico.  As a sign of good faith to Mexican officials, they could start with banning the sale of high-powered assault weapons.   

I wonder.  Could this potential unexpected direction Issa's censure movement could take explain Boehner's, Cantor's and McCarthy's "cold feet" back in May?  Just HOW MUCH of a spotlight are they willing to shine on that basket of snakes and how long do they think they can control the national conversation....especially in an election year? 

http://www.justice.gov/oig/reports/ATF/a0829/final.pdf