President Obama To Announce New Gun Control Initiative

Political Realities | 01/16/13 | LD Jackson

[LD Jackson]

There are a lot of rumors floating around this morning about what President Obama will say during his mid-day speech to announce his new initiative on gun control. We know he will have some of the children who wrote him about gun violence as a backdrop to his speech. We also know he is weighing 19 different actions he can take, via Executive Order, to push for stricter gun control. Speculation on those actions is rampant and according to what I have read, they will include things such as the following items.

(Fox News) Sources say he's weighing as many as 19 possible actions he could take through executive order. Those options could include more aggressively enforcing existing gun laws, beefing up national research on guns and ordering stricter action against people who lie on gun sale background checks. They could include ordering tougher penalties for gun-trafficking offenses and ordering federal agencies to make data on gun crimes more readily available.

Let me state right here that I have no problem with more aggressive enforcement of existing gun laws and the actions taken against those who lie on background checks. I am not sure what good "beefing" up national research on guns will do, except cost us more money. I would also humbly suggest that if the President is serious about enforcing existing gun laws, he should start at his own Attorney General and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms, better known as Fast and Furious.

I will save further speculation about any possible Executive Orders him may or may not issue until we know what those are. One thing we do know is what he will be pushing to happen in Congress. He will almost certainly ask for a new assault weapons ban, as well as a ban on high-capacity magazines. I disagree with both bans, for a couple of very simple reasons.

First, had either ban been in place when the shootings in Newtown, CN, or Aurora, CO happened, the outcomes would have been the same. Let me say it another way. Banning the AR-15 and the magazines used in both shootings would not have saved a single life. People would still have died.

Second, the above mentioned bans do restrict the 2nd Amendment rights of law-abiding American citizens. I am not talking about the right to self-defense, although that is important. I am talking about the part of the 2nd Amendment that says our right to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed. The purpose of the 2nd Amendment is to protect us from a tyrannical government and infringing upon our rights removes a bit of that protection.

It is important to note one thing. Banning so-called assault weapons and magazines that hold over 10 rounds is futile. If either ban is enshrined by Congressional action and is signed into law by President Obama, the only thing that will be accomplished is the infringement of our 2nd Amendment rights. Make no mistake, anyone who really wants a banned weapon or magazine will still be able to buy them. In other words, when you outlaw guns, the only people who will have guns are the outlaws.

So, before any of us jump on the bandwagon of assault weapons and high-capacity magazine bans, just because it is the "right thing to do", let us consider the consequences and where these bans will lead. I do not believe the end result will be anything like we have imagined. If we allow emotion to rule the day, we will also rue the day we allowed our 2nd Amendment rights to disappear, one by one.

[Travis McGee]