Bringing firearms sales into the 20th Century
Recognizing the need to revamp outdated and restrictive gun laws, U.S Senators Mark Begich (D-Alaska) and Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) have introduced the Firearms Interstate Commerce Reform Act. The bill allows for the interstate sale of firearms and removes several antiquated and unnecessary restrictions imposed on interstate firearms transactions.
“Utahns and Americans everywhere have a right to bear arms, and this legislation ensures that onerous and outdated restrictions on everyone’s Second Amendment rights are no longer in place,” Sen. Hatch said. “By removing these restrictions, we can ensure that the constitutional freedoms we seek to protect remain intact.”
Good. And this:
Current laws restricting interstate commerce of firearms not only lag behind common sense and new technology, they are unfair and burdensome
Indeed. Though it does require face to face transfers, so no internet sales, which isn’t quite modern.
October 13th, 2011 at 11:37 am
A) Will Chuckie and Diane try to stop it in the Senate, even if Harry let’s it go to the Floor? B) Will “Golf Buddy ” Boehner allow it in the House? C) Will there be enough Votes to override the Anointed One’s Veto? D) Which Liberal Judges will say it’s “Unconstitutional”, thus tying it up in the Courts?
Don’t get me wrong, I like any “Forward Progress” on the RKBA, but with each day, it seems the DemoCommies are becoming more “Commies” rather than “Democrats,” so I’m not sure it’ll come about.
But I’d like to be mistaken.
October 13th, 2011 at 11:49 am
It’s better to force them to spend their energy fighting bills like this, instead of leaving them with more time and money to do push gun control.
And the more they fight plain and simple reforms like this the more it exposes them as the authortarian thugs they really are.
October 13th, 2011 at 1:24 pm
This strikes me as more rules and restrictions rather than making things easier… Who says modern is better.
October 13th, 2011 at 2:32 pm
Kinda agree with John Smith, they shouldn’t hae to “allow” anything, just repeal useless restrictions.
But this looks like a good thing, in that it’s actually “more freedom” rather than “not-as-much-slavery-as-the-other-guys”.
October 13th, 2011 at 2:47 pm
I still want a national preemptive act.
October 13th, 2011 at 2:55 pm
Les,
My junior Senator (Begich) is an old-school Dem but good on gun rights and other Alaskan issues. They aren’t all lost causes. =)
Uncle,
How would you have an FFL internet sale occur, using NICS, that wasn’t face-to-face on one end or the other for the 4473 and/or physical transfer?
If I were a dealer there is no way in hell I’d take somebodies word that the info they gave me, sight-unseen, over the phone or via email for the NICS check is truly them. Not when liability attaches. And if liability is removed they might as well get rid of NICS entirely, which isn’t going to happen this year, if ever.
That being the case, let’s not let the long-term (and extremely unlikely) perfect be the enemy of the right-now good (that doesn’t hurt the long-term in any way).
Internet sales would be improved regardless with this change. You could buy the pistol online and have it shipped to an FFL where you are vacationing for the transfer, just like buying it in that local guy’s shop, rather than having to have it go to your home state for the receipt.
October 14th, 2011 at 12:40 am
I think that the way the are phrasing this as far as “New Technology” will just open the door for more regulations running thru a central data base making it even easier for them to keep track of you.Next they will be Micro chipping all guns.
October 14th, 2011 at 8:57 am
We should be on the offensive,on multiple fronts.
Interstate RTC reciprocity, of course. Also we need a workable, system for restoration of rights. No more lifetime discharge from the militia for some relatively minor offense committed 30 years ago. The system should provide for mandatory restoration after set periods of time.
Long-term, we should be thinking about dismantling the gun-grabber machine, by downsizing the anti-gun bureaucracies. The present budget crisis is an opportunity. There are battles to be won.
October 14th, 2011 at 10:05 am
This Senate bill has both D and R sponsors, and Harry Reid has always been RKBA-friendly coming from Nevada, so this thing might have a chance of movement in the Senate. What we have to be concerned about are poison-pill amendments offered by Schumer et al.
If that happens, we should have some solid pro-RKBA amendments of our own. Such as an amendment to take away certain functions of ATF, such as repealing the ’86 machine gun ban and removing that agency from that paperwork need.
I’d drop and pass the amendment at the last minute just like Rep. Rangel (D-NY) did to us all those years ago, just to stick it to him…
October 14th, 2011 at 11:07 am
Yeah, but due to CAs assault weapon and limiting weapons to reduced capacity magazines, I still can’t buy the firearms I’d actually prefer…
October 14th, 2011 at 12:00 pm
Baby steps.
Me, I would have knocked out the (federal) difference between longarms and handguns as the first clause, but I can see that would be a harder row to hoe.
October 14th, 2011 at 4:07 pm
“and Harry Reid has always been RKBA-friendly coming from Nevada”
Not in the least true. He’s been that way for the last few years (even inserted a couple of pro-gun items in the Senate Obamacare bill that ended up getting passed and signed) but before the middle of the last decade a large majority of his relevant votes were anti-gun.
October 15th, 2011 at 12:37 am
Just goes to show that a politician makes a decent weathervane.