The Great DHS Ammunition Stockpile Myth

Breibart - Big Government ^ | 4-4-2013 | Tom Stilson

[Sir Napsalot]

There are dozens of articles hyping government purchases of ammunition over the last nine months. After spending weeks researching this topic, this is a collection of commonly held myths that are based more on panic than fact.

With the recent release of a letter from the Department of Homeland Security to Senator Coburn, the numbers we calculated independently seem to corroborate the narrative coming from DHS. The concerns surrounding DHS stockpiling ammunition are nothing but more fear-mongering and largely unwarranted. For once, here are the facts to set the record straight:

MYTH: DHS purchased 750 million rounds of several different types of ammunition in August 2012.

FACT: The DHS contract never stated 750 million rounds at any time. It is a five year contract with a maximum purchase of 70 million rounds over the life of the contract. Military Times recently addressed this issue as well.

MYTH: DHS purchased an unprecedented 450 million rounds of .40 S&W 180gr hollow point bullets in 2012.

FACT: This is a standard five year contract that follows a historical purchasing pattern of DHS. Furthermore, it is not an “unprecedented” purchase by DHS. In fact, it is not even a purchase by DHS but by Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

Starting in 2003, orders of 50 million and 225 million .40 S&W hollow point ammunition totaling 275 million rounds were purchased. After the expiration of the five year contracts in 2008, ICE purchased an additional 575 million rounds of .40 S&W hollow point ammunition with two separate orders (200 million and 375 million). Now, with the expiration of the 2008 contract, ICE has ordered a maximum of 450 million rounds over the next five years.

[Sir Napsalot]

No, I am saying nobody in public knows the truth.

Certainly people in the know won’t tell.

[1rudeboy]

Nothing wrong with being sceptical. The information I posted strongly indicates that the MRAPs belong to the Marines, and that they are in the proccess of taking delivery of them. I don’t mind if anybody posts info to the contrary, but it needs to be more than conjecture.

[PeterPrinciple]

Democrat strategists would create such a myth to cause the right to appear totally wacked out. It would fit well with their campaign to make Conservatives all “Extremists” in the eyes of the masses. It would blend with their campaign to nudge the Conservatives to form a third party, and become totally irrelevant to the political scene as so many others albeit mostly single issue/focus parties have become.

I do believe it is a credible tactic of the Left’s.

---

But it may have unintended consequences for the left. If we truly are the cause of the shortage we may want to use the ammo for the purpose our founders intended. shame to waste it.

[esoxmagnum]

guy behind my old shop and a couple doors down used to be a small shop that did brass work. think they had like 4 guys and only worked days. He now works 24/7 and must have over 50 employees (he bought the lot next door for parking). They now make shell casings.

good business to get into if you can I reckon.

[DManA]

You cannot get the straight story from Big Media. I want to know who started spreading the Billion bullet story.

[rockinqsranch]

“But it may have unintended consequences for the left. If we truly are the cause of the shortage we may want to use the ammo for the purpose our founders intended. shame to waste it.”

Who are the champs when it comes to “unintended consequences”? DEMOCRATS. THEY make Wile E. Coyote look like a genius.

[rockinqsranch]

“.......I want to know who started spreading the Billion bullet story”

I understand. Me too. My point is I’d bet IF we ever find the source it will be of Leftist/Democrat origin, and by design as I intimated in my original post.

The Left, the Marxist-Democrats are a devious lot who will use any lie, any contrivance whatsoever to win. Winning no matter the amount of bodies laying about on the path to that win. Humanity, our Nation are all just “collateral damage”, and shouldn’t get in their way is how they perceive the “game”.

Aside: We need to be as brazen if we ever intend to kick their butts, and “win”.

[gaijin]

After Janet said an airliner bomb failed, “because the system WORKED..!” (the bomb fizzled) and, “The border is as secure as it has ever been” you really don’t have to wonder any more about the veracity of all this.

The DHS harbors ill-will towards “civilians” [sic] and it has the same number of people as the USMC and TWICE it’s budget.

[Boogieman]

“It’s no myth that no one can get ammunition. Even Homeland Security. That fact demands an explanation.”

If people don’t understand simple economics, then it’s their own fault, or perhaps the fault of the public education system. Shortages happen for very well known reasons, in this case, panic buying by the public outstripped production quicker than production could be ramped up to meet demand.

[Boogieman]

“Why would any manufacturer sign a contract like this? They are obligated to invest in plant and materials to have on call massive amounts of product for a customer who might not buy any.”

Because the contracts must be profitable more often than not. This isn’t rocket science.

[Boogieman]

“They are testing common rounds found by US gun owners against body armor.”

Lmao. The body armor manufacturers already do that for them.

[sport]

They have their judas goats and moles working overtime. Anytime the liars and thieves that are now referred by their propganda arm, the mainstream media, “public sservants” put this much effort in denying something, the something must be true.

[Boogieman]

“No blame anywhere but the buyers eh?”

Umm, yeah. When panic buyers cause a shortage, they are the ones who get blamed.

[RWB Patriot]

Funny that a website allegedly explaining what the government is doing doesn’t cover those two very important points.

[Principled]

When panic buyers cause a shortage, they are the ones who get blamed.

No blame with the entity[ies] that cause the panic?

um, okay.

[cherokee1]

It’s a tad more complex than just the price advantage of large purchases. There’s been a technological change in bullet construction in recent times. Instead of forming the bullet jacket from the nose then inserting the lead core from the rear and adding a gas check as a third step it has, in recent times, gotten more practical and cheaper to form the jacket from the rear, insert the core from the front, then close the nose partially. The partial closing leaves a small pocket that looks like a hollow point but is not really designed for expansion on impact. While they are not true hollow points they look like them so they are allowed only for target/training. Our military buys them for training and each box is marked to keep them completely out of combat zones. The serious target shooters find that the gap-nose performs just as good as the solid nose spitzer in long range shooting so they are widely used now. But they are not sold as hollow ponts even tho they look like them.

Please keep this blurb on file so I don’t have to write it again. I’ve noted the question has come up a lot lately but everyone relax——no one is getting a steal deal on actual expandable hollow points.

[lacrew]

The one thing I don’t understand....why can’t we (the public) pin down exactly what is being bought, and how much is being paid for it. Senators are asking for this information - so why can’t these agencies compile a concise, easy to read list?

We shouldn’t even have to get the information on the backside, either. We (the public) only know about these things when an advertisement goes out, saying some agency wants to buy ammo. Shouldn’t we get to decide on the front end how much ammo our government buys, through, I dunno, a BUDGET, approved by our representatives?

No wonder we don’t believe what they are telling us. Its deliberately convoluted, and it doesn’t have to be.

[Boogieman]

“No blame with the entity[ies] that cause the panic?”

People aren’t automatons, they chose to panic. So, why blame someone else? Aren’t we about personal responsibility around here?

[Cheerio]

An ID/IQ contract from the Government only sets out the terms of the contract and the pricing for any “FUTURE” delivery orders (DOs) during the 5 year duration of the contract. I have seen ID/IQ contracts with a NO MIN purchase. All DOs that are place against that ID/IQ contract must be individually funded and bear an appropriation citation traceable back to a Congressional appropriation. So if anyone wants to get excited about this story CHECK WITH YOUR CONGRESSCRITTER.

These are the folk enabling Zero - they have had every chance to stop the spending and refuse, citing 'oh we cannot shut the Gov down', and 'OH we cannot dare to have another debt downgrade from S&P', or whatever other lame excuse one desires to hear and hang their hat on. BLAME CONGRESS and in particular the GOP Led House where all appropriation bills originate. The GOP had every opportunity to stop this nonsense, but are no different than the RATs when it comes to certain issues. Not to mention the party wearing the pants in the 2010s are the RATS - the current GOP leadership are spineless sissies.

[Sir Napsalot]

The conspiracy nut side of me saying ‘if they come right out and say things, we (the public) won’t believe them’?

It IS deliberately making it too convoluted, you are right on.