Joe Biden is scheduled for a junket to Monterey Park, Calif., today to roll out his executive order on gun control. The White House reports that Biden will also meet with people who were injured or lost loved ones in the January mass shooting. Stating that Biden has “taken more executive action to reduce gun violence than any other president at this point in their presidency,” the White House fact sheet outlines the latest order.
The steps in the EO include:
- Increasing the number of background checks “by ensuring that all background checks required by law are conducted before firearm purchases, moving the U.S. as close to universal background checks as possible without additional legislation.” This step is to prevent felons or people who have been convicted of domestic violence from purchasing a gun before the background check process is complete. Keep in mind that PJ Media reported last year that the biggest flaws in completing background checks in a timely manner have occurred at the federal level, particularly within the Department of Homeland Security. Biden is also directing the U.S. Attorney General’s office to make sure that firearm sellers who do not know that they need to complete a background check or willfully ignore them are brought into compliance. Every retailer I have ever met is aware of the need for background checks.
- Improving the use of red flag laws. The White House refers to the 19 states and the District of Columbia whose red flag laws allow “trusted community members to petition a court to determine whether an individual is dangerous, and then to temporarily remove an individual’s access to firearms.” Biden will have his Cabinet encourage partnerships between law enforcement, health care providers, educators, and other community leaders, presumably to identify people who could potentially cause problems. He will also ask his Cabinet to work harder to expand education on safe gun storage.
- Directing Pete Buttigieg and the Department of Transportation to work with the Department of Justice to reduce the loss and theft of firearms during shipping. Buttigieg working with Garland on gun issues — what could go wrong? Although I suspect that the Secretary of Transportation will address this task with greater zeal than he employed in seeing to matters in East Palestine, Ohio.
When it comes to the gun industry itself, Biden will have the Attorney General “release the records of those from the inspection of firearms dealers cited for violation of federal firearm laws. This information will empower the public and policymakers to better understand the problem, and then improve our laws to hold rogue gun dealers accountable.” He is also directing the Secretary of Defense to “develop and implement principles to further firearm and public safety practices through Department of Defense acquisition of firearms consistent with applicable law.” Okay, then. Firearm manufacturers had better start looking through their records. Biden is ordering the FTC to examine how gun makers market their products to children and civilians through the use of military imagery. What the sanctions will be for this kind of marketing have yet to be seen.
The order also accelerates the federal reporting process for ballistics data, speeds up and increases the implementation of the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, improves support for people and communities affected by gun violence, and updates and makes permanent the Undetectable Firearms Act of 1988.
Related: West Coast, Messed Coast™: The Left’s Unconstitutional Assault on Guns
Some of this is the usual attempt to appear to be proactive on an issue while in reality doing as little as possible — something at which the federal government excels. But when it comes to background checks, which as mentioned above is a subject on which the government fumbled the ball, red flag laws, which could be rife for exploitation, and the baleful eye cast toward marketing, there will no doubt be a spate of new laws appearing soon, along with even more executive orders. And these will likely not keep guns out of the hands of people who should legitimately not have them nor keep criminals in jail. instead, they will likely keep firearms out of the hands of responsible gun owners.
Besides, with the banking crisis putting everyone on the edge, the stink of the rail accident in East Palestine still in the air, and reports of the Biden family’s ties to China surfacing, what better time for President Biden and his media to talk about guns?
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