Tag: politics

Congress and the President removed a gun control act from the former administration by passing Public Law No: 115-8 at the end of February.

The name is H.J.Res.40 – Providing for congressional disapproval under chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, of the rule submitted by the Social Security Administration relating to Implementation of the NICS Improvement Amendments Act of 2007.
115th Congress (2017-2018)

In laymen’s terms the previous administration’s law required the Social Security Administration (SSA) to notify the National Instant Criminal History Background Check System (NICS) when benefit payments are made through a representative payee because the individual is determined to be mentally incapable of managing them.

This is a good thing because under the old law, a person would be flagged in NICS without having been adjudicated as a mental defective, but simply because of an administrative decision, outside of due process.  A bureaucrat should not simply be able to deprive someone of the rights that are acknowledged in our Constitution via a check mark on paperwork.  There should be a review in my opinion but it needs to be done within the legal system.

Of course when the AP reported on this story one of their articles mentioned Sandy Hook shooter Adam Lanza, the 20 year old Asperger’s Syndrome and OCD sufferer blamed for the shootings.  I don’t know if he is among those who were receiving SSA payments which were directed to someone else but I do recall the investigation showing that he STOLE the weapons used in the shooting from his mother.  This regulation wouldn’t have applied to him and the use of his actions to garner support for the initial law, and to now cite him again as an example of what could now happen since it has been repealed is simply deceitful and fear mongering.

I’m thankful for the efforts of Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa and others in Congress to get this reversed.

Edward

Webmaster, Manno Firearms

 

In the year leading up to the election, Presidential candidate Donald Trump spoke often about Second Amendment issues on the campaign trail as he was seeking the support and votes of Americans.  For those who value the right to keep and bear arms, and participate in gun ownership and activities using guns, only one of the candidates promised to maintain and preserve those rights.

The American public responded in part by purchasing record setting numbers of firearms in the months leading up to the election.  It’s a pretty good bet that they also responded by supporting and voting for the only pro-gun candidate.  Now that the election has passed and that candidate is in office, is it too soon to be asking President Trump “where are the changes to gun policy you promised?“.

So far President Trump has accomplished a lot of things in his first month in office, but none of his executive actions has directly touched upon the nations’s gun policies that he often commented upon when seeking votes.

Those who would answer the question above “No, it’s not too soon” would likely cite the all too common examples of politicians who’ve made promises and failed to deliver on them, or worse yet, changed their positions once in office.  A man is only as good as is word, and they are just asking that you keep it.  The world is an increasingly dangerous place and delaying changes undermines safety and the ability to defend one’s self and family.

Another response to the question is “Yes, it’s too soon” based on the other things, like getting cabinet positions filled, and submitting a Supreme Court Judge nomination for approval by Congress, that some would argue are more important than direct action on Second Amendment items.  It’s not hard to see how filling the empty position on the Supreme Court could very likely have an effect on the outcome of any gun legislation that comes before them in the future.  It’s also not a stretch to expect that changes to BATF policy will result in critique and political attacks from some and the desire to have the support of a fully staffed cabinet before beginning any sort of contentious actions is understandable.

My personal opinion is that it’s not too soon, but I’m still watching the situation closely.  Decades of election promises that have been broken has fostered a hearty cynicism about politicians, but I still believe that President Trump is very different from the kind of folks whom have been seeking public office in the past.  I can’t wait to see the results of that concerning firearms.

 

Edward

Webmaster, Manno Firearms