Skinner Defends "Out to Shoot Mexicans," a.k.a the Indefensible

Source: Washington Times

The Homeland Security inspector general yesterday said his staffers did not lie when they told Republican congressmen falsely that U.S. Border Patrol agents who shot a drug-smuggling suspect "were out to shoot Mexicans."

Richard L. Skinner said his investigators later learned that the accusation was "inaccurate" and blamed a public uproar over the discrepancy on Rep. Michael McCaul, Texas Republican, a member of the House Homeland Security subcommittee on investigations who sought a briefing on the case.

Skinner goes on to say that McCaul breached the terms of the briefing by going to the media with the "out to shoot Mexicans" allegation against Ramos and Compean.

In a two-page statement, Mr. Skinner said the agents acknowledged that they intended deadly force when they fired shots at the drug-smuggling suspect, thinking he was armed, but there is no explanation how his staffers took that to mean they "wanted to shoot Mexicans."

You see, that's the question that really needs to be answered. How, exactly, did intending deadly force in the attempted apprehension of a suspected drug smuggler equate to wanting "to shoot Mexicans?"

Answer: it doesn't. It was a malicious, unfounded, and irresponsible statement when made by those representing the very government that was prosecuting the Border Patrol agents.

Mr. McCaul said that Mr. Skinner sent his staff to brief him and three other members of Congress on the Border Patrol case and that during the Sept. 26 meeting, they were told that Ramos and Compean had said "they were out to shoot Mexicans." He said Mr. Skinner's staff made the statement several times during the briefing.

*SNIP*

In February, Mr. Skinner retracted the accusation during a follow-up subcommittee hearing.

At that session, Rep. John Culberson, Texas Republican, said Mr. Skinner "admitted under oath" giving false information to Congress "painting Border Patrol agents Ignacio Ramos and Jose Compean as rogue cops who were not in fear for their lives and who were 'out to shoot Mexicans.'"

Whether or not McCaul should have released what was said to the press, it doesn't change the fact the the defamatory and apparently false statement was made, by federal agents to members of Congress. Methinks Skinner is just squirming because he'd rather the American public didn't know about the potent defamatory statements made by his office.

If there was a good explanation as to why intending deadly force magically morphed into out to shoot Mexicans, don't you think Skinner would be trumpeting it on every show from "Today" to "Tonight" that would have him?

Technorati Tags: Ignacio Ramos, Jose Compean, Richard Skinner, Out to Shoot Mexicans, Michael McCaul, Congress