House Oversight Committee Chairman Darrell Issa (R-CA) doubled down on a right wing conspiracy theory this morning, again suggesting that the failed “Fast and Furious” operation was a secret scheme by Democrats designed to promote stronger gun control regulation. But he also admitted that he had absolutely no evidence to back the theory and likely never would.
On ABC’s This Week with George Stephanopoulos, guest host Jake Tapper probed Issa:
TAPPER: You seem to say Fast and Furious may be part of a deliberative attempt by the administration to make the case for stronger gun laws. Here you are in April, speaking at an NRA convention. [CLIP] You really think that there’s a possibility that they were sending guns across the border, not because they were trying to get people in the Mexican drug cartels, not because they were trying to figure out gun trafficking, but because they were trying to push gun control?
ISSA: Two things, quickly. First of all, this was so flawed, that you can’t believe they expected to actually get criminal prosecutions as a result of it. So the level of flaw here is huge. But here’s the real answer, as to gun control. We have emails from people involved in this who are talking about using what they’re finding here to support the — basically — assault weapons ban or greater reporting. So, chicken or egg? We don’t know which came first, we probably never will.
Watch the video:
Issa is more than happy to continue to promote the theory — started and peddled by Mike Vanderboegh, a man who once called for militias to break the windows of members of Congress because of the passage of the Affordable Care Act — even though even he concedes even he does not believe he will ever be able to produce any evidence of the allegations.