The Republicans are floating a bill to make gun trafficking more illegal. This is something that ATF and federal prosecutors have crowed about for years, namely that there’s no specific federal trafficking statute, even though all the components that go into trafficking a firearm are already illegal.
During a press event, the bill’s sponsors — Reps. Patrick Meehan (R-Pa.), Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.), Scott Rigell (R-Va.) and Elijah Cummings (D-Md.) — said their legislation would create a single section of federal code to give law enforcement the ability to prosecute gun traffickers.
The thing to watch for is their definition of “gun trafficker,” because if anything like this is poorly drafted, there is the potential for the otherwise law-abiding to get caught up in it. I doubt this is an attempt at screwing us, but is rather an attempt by GOP lawmakers in tough districts (like Meehan) to say they did “something,” without that “something” being things like banning private transfers, registration, magazine or gun bans.
In our communications with lawmakers, I think it should be stressing “No new gun control!” as simply and directly as possible. Something may still get through, given the resources we’ve had lining up against us, but the stronger message we send, the more likely it is we’ll take a slap rather than a punch in the gut. If all the other side gets out of this is a bill making gun trafficking more illegal, they’ll have a tough time spinning that as a real win. Also, see this about the Senate effort:
Barring an unexpected turn of legislative affairs, a ban on military-style semi-automatic assault weapons will not make it into law, top Hill aides and gun policy advocates say […]Â The other three — a universal background check for firearms sales, a federal trafficking law, and a ban on high-capacity magazines — are likely to be part of a final bill, Democratic aides say, though there is growing concern about whether a ban on high-capacity magazines can make it into law.
I am sincerely hoping that the plan is for the GOP to float this trafficking measure as their “See, we did something,” bill and for the Senate to float their bill, and say “See, we did too,” and for each respective body to hew and haw, and for neither body to take up the bill of the other. But that’s a lot of speculation and wishful thinking on my part, and I absolutely would not count on it. Keep calling, especially your Senators. The more people they hear from, the less likely it’ll be that anything horrid comes out of the sausage grinder.
UPDATE: John Richardson doesn’t like the looks of the supporters.
Sad when politics is God here and the rest of America suffers because Washington cares about pushing a liberal , communist agenda! The U.N. has a paper that was written I think in the late 60 early 70’s that says they want to disarm America .
There is a YouTube video on it just do a search for that subject . Everything that’s going on now is setting the stage to ruin this County…..
‘The thing to watch for is their definition of “gun trafficker,‒
Don’t bother watching. Just oppose it all!
Anything at all will expand the power of the government. Period. Once the framework is in place to pursue people you may be happy to persecute, it will only take a few pen strokes somewhere down the road when we aren’t paying attention, to enable the persecution of us, using the same tools.
One thing we need to do is to get off that bullshit “law and order” bandwagon. No one even seems to know how we got lured onto it. As I recall, some decades ago we were sold the idea that if a crackdown on crime reduced it, that would relieve the pressure for more gun control. We have seen that is not true (e.g., our present threat arriving after years of declining crime) while all along legislators being “tough on crime” has been used for cover by our leadership when they were also tough on our guns, and supported incremental “Gun Control Lite.” And, the public is not impressed at all with our professions that we are “against crime.”
Bingo! You can’t go wrong with “No!” as in “No new gun laws. Period.”
Gee, does that mean that all those batfags(and their stupervisors unto the highest levels) who were involved in moving guns from the states to Mexico will be arrested and put on trial?
Didn’t think so,,,
The key for me about this bill is who is listed as supporters. It is like a who’s who of gun banners. From Maloney’s release on it:
Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association, the Association of Prosecuting Attorneys, the Major Cities Chiefs Association, the Police Foundation, the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives, the International Association of Campus Law Enforcement Administrators, the Washington, DC Metropolitan Police Department, the Maryland Chiefs of Police Association, the Baltimore Police Department, Prince George’s County Sheriff’s Office, and the Petersburg Bureau of Police. Also in attendance were representatives from the U.S. Conference of Mayors, the American Bar Association, CeaseFirePA, the Violence Policy Center, and the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence.
You’re better at keeping track of when text is available than I am. Let me know when you have something.
I’m anticipating that it will be virtually word for word for what Maloney and Cummings proposed in the last session. I could be wrong but…
Uh, WTF is this about “Veterans” having to place OUR Firearms in a National Registry? What, because I swore an Oath to Protect the Constitution I’m now considered an “Enemy of the State?”
I think that the very LAST Class of Citizen these Fools want to Screw With are those several MILLION Vets who went through Hell over the last 10 years in the Middle East AND are just as well Trained and Experienced as those who are Active Military and/or LEOs. Not to mention some of us “Elder Statesmen” who can do Good Work, at least on the Defense.
And this IDIOT is a REPUBLICAN?
Pay no attention to what legislators claim a new law will do. Be mindful only of what harm that law could do when it is “interpreted” and abused by law enforcement at all levels.
In my recent e-mails to my congressional delegation (all Republicans; I’m a Kansan), the last paragraph has read “Consider 80 million gunowners, all, by definition, eighteen-years-old and able to vote, whose watchword has become ‘GOP delenda est’.”
Should the Republicans live down to expectations and assist the Democrats in passing any gun control legislation whatsoever, I propose that it go out over the net that every letter, e-mail, blog post, comment to a blog post, or any other communication, especially, but not limited to, anything directed to a politician, end with the words “GOP delenda est!”
I freely place this concept into the public domain, and hope you will forward it wherever and to whomever you might deem it useful or appropriate.
Of course, we’ll have to explain what “delenda est” means to the same bunch of knuckleheads that can’t understand “molon labe” or “shall not be infringed”.
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