gee....
last time this happened was just before the oklahoma city bombing...
we had a dem president back then too...
hmmmmmmmmm....
The ATF started out as the Treasury Department's Prohibition Unit (later renamed to the Bureau of Prohibition), formed to enforce the National Prohibition Act of 1919 (the Volstead Act).
It was later renamed to become the Alcohol Beverage Unit, then again to the Alcohol Tax Unit.
Throughout its history it has been bounced around like a red headed stepchild from the Treasurey Dept. to the IRS, to the FBI, back to Treasury, then to the Department of Justice.
After prohibition ended in 1933 the department was basically out of a job and was effectively disbanded (at least on paper).
But it was saved by congress when they passed the unconstitutional National Firearms Act.
The old Alcohol Tax Unit evolved into the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (ATF) and was charged with enforcement of the new federal firearm laws.
After the muslim attacks on 9/11 the ATF was reorganized and its name was changed to Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives - the BATFE.
Repeal the unconstitutional National Firearms Act and most of the reason for the BATFE to exist will go away too.
ATF is the trailer park trash branch of feral government law enforcement.
Rep. F. James Sensenbrenner Jr. is making a huge first step, and he needs to be applauded for it.
To start with, it is incredibly hard to eliminate any government agency, because bureaucrats create poison pills that will create havoc. So transferring its duties to other agencies is a great start in the path to eventually drop most of these duties completely.
Second, you can’t just hand out pink slips, because the government employees unions will fight tooth and nail. When Reagan took on PATCO, while it was not a large union, it still was a heck of a fight to kill it. How he isolated it from the other unions took some real finesse.
This means that a lot of BATF&E personnel will be laterally transferred to other agencies, creating more problems. So if you can early retire and eliminate with attrition, every one who goes that way will be less hassle.
Trying to prosecute those who broke the law after Barry has left office will also be hard. But not impossible. And this may be key to slashing other government agencies.
That is, make them a deal: “Quit or retire now, and you won’t be prosecuted.”
There are a LOT of scoundrels in the bureaucracy that would jump at this opportunity, if they thought they were going to go down hard if they stayed.
Sensenbrenner introduces Bill to dissolve ATF.
FReep Mail me if you want on, or off, this Wisconsin interest ping list.
Put them in charge of pot growers. That is all.
AT needs to go - along with Homeland Security, Bureau of
Lareau of land management and IRS
Ok, I’m going to take just a little credit here. Sensenbrenner is my Congressman and I have written and called about ending the ATF at least 6-7 times.
It was in Milwaukee that the ATF had the joke of a ‘sting’ location where they lost a for real automatic weapon.
A few years ago I was at a St. George, UT gun show and the ATF had a table there covered with different forms and manned by two men and a woman.
The guys looked like they felt they were in enemy territory - eyes shifting defensively/furtively and shoulders hunched up.
I told them that I couldn’t see why mail orders of pre-1898 reproductions - single shots and levers - had to go through a dealer. The guys just glared at me but the woman said that the best bet was to get a C&R license. That still didn’t answer my question but at least she seemed decent and wanting to help. The guys reinforced the jack-booted thug epithet.