Tripped Up By Lies

A report paints a devastating portrait of ATF's Waco planning -- or, rather, the lack of it

The elements are almost the stuff of comedy. Federal agents get wind of a surreptitious arms hoard. They then set up surveillance of a compound using 40-year-old agents passing as college students. Suddenly a raid on the compound is imminent -- without a detailed plan on how to carry it out. A sketchy plan is then drawn up -- and ignored. Meanwhile, the targets of the raid know something is up, and their watchers know that the targets know but still think surprise is a possibility. That's where the comedy turns to tragedy.

"The decision to proceed was tragically wrong, not...

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