Posted on 10/09/2020 8:21:41 AM PDT by Red Badger
President Trump’s Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, in a move his own son has warned could alienate hardcore supporters, has taken the first step to regulate and tax one of the nation’s most popular weapons for plinkers and hunters, the AR pistol.
Without notice and citing unexplained concerns about “public safety,” the Justice Department’s ATF has ordered the maker of several popular AR pistols to “cease and desist” in the production of the top seller “Honey Badger.”
The order, which maker Q LLC complied with to avoid criminal prosecution, has jarred the gun community.
********************************************************************
Rep. Matt Gaetz @RepMattGaetz In June, my colleagues and I sent a letter to the ATF demanding they stop crafting secret rules restricting the possession of pistol braces by American citizens.
I sent a follow-up letter yesterday after receiving no response. The ATF must stop abusing its enforcement authority. Image Image 3:23 PM · Sep 30, 2020 956 521 people are Tweeting about this
**********************************************************************
While only Q LLC has received a cease-and-desist letter, most AR makers also produce a version of the shorter-barreled Honey Badger pistol. And if all of those guns are reclassified to rifles by the ATF, 3 million to 4 million owners could become felons overnight, according to the industry group Gun Owners of America.
“President Trump needs to do something,” said GOA’s Alan Rice. “This serious stuff. We’re talking about making law-abiding people into felons,” he added.
The ATF told Secrets that only New Hampshire-based Q LLC’s Honey Badger was the target. But, a spokeswoman added, “regarding other firearms or manufacturers, ATF cannot comment until we see the platform and what accessories may be attached to said platform.”
At issue is the National Firearms Act, a holdover from the Prohibition era and gangland machine gun shootings, and the modern AR pistol. Under the act, rifles with barrels shorter than 16 inches are designated “short-barreled rifles” and require a federal permit and a $200 tax. Permits can take months to get, making the weapons unpopular.
Pistols, nearly always with shorter barrels, are not subject to the act. Working with those rules, AR makers developed a special arm “brace” for users to make short-barreled versions into a “pistol,” a difference long endorsed by the ATF.
Technically, the braces, needed because AR pistols are heavier than normal handguns, are not rifle stocks, standard on the regulated short-barreled rifles. Still, some braces are adjustable and can be used on a shoulder like a stock and are, by some hunters, a loophole of sorts.
What seemed to get Q LLC into trouble with the ATF was its marketing campaign. Most AR pistol makers have posted videos showing their AR pistols being used like rifles. AR rifles are the most popular rifles in the world.
The company’s lawyer said the decision was a shock and unjustified.
Gun owners, notoriously suspicious of the ATF, feel the move was a signal of more to come, especially if Trump loses the election to gun control advocate Joe Biden.
“I urge the ATF to step back from what appears to be a snap decision, as it looks to have been made in a vacuum and goes against previous decisions regarding pistol braces. Though there is likely a lot we don’t know about how this decision was made and gun laws are never black and white, perception is reality in the world today. It would help if the ATF would publicly clarify this decision,” said Justin Anderson, the marketing director for Hyatt Guns of Charlotte, North Carolina.
The National Rifle Association and GOA are also fighting to stop the ATF, as are several lawmakers, led by Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz, a close Trump ally. In a letter to Attorney General William Barr, Gaetz said the ATF's decision was made "in secret."
In a recent interview, Donald Trump Jr. told Secrets that it’s not the president who wants any change to the AR pistol rules, but the so-called swamp. “It feels like someone rogue there trying to play games prior to an election on the gun issue.”
Thought I don’t do distance practice any longer, the 300 blackout gives a shooter a wide range of cartridge options, from 110 gr varmigedden to 220 gr subsonic hammer heads, all from the AR 15 platform with just a barrel change. Easily suppressed, too. With any AR lower you can just put together a 30 cal upper.
False they looked at a product that is not consistent with other pistol braces. Specifically it has a adjustable pull length greater than 13’5” , a total length over 26’5” and is adjustable without disassembly of the device. Qs product is a blatant disregard to the limits set for pistol braces and they got burned for it. This is also the same company that has been skirting the laws with suppressors by adding existing serial numbers to new tubes and claiming they are an existing licenced item also a huge no no. The ATF was and is specific about what is different than other brace products the Pearl cluchers are out in force but the simple fact is this company has a history of trying to push the envelope with the ATF and yup they got burned for it.
Sadly, we all get burned for their perfidy. The release device under the brace tube makes using the brace as a brace, ‘painful’. They brace was added as an adjustable stock, not a brace. We all now get the consequences of this Q company trickery.
ATF should be a convenience store, not a Federal Agency. If they are against something, I am probably for it.
Well, now it looks like enough people (probably including #1 son) complained and the big boss heard...Trump is having the new batphucker policy looked at (which means that it is dead if he wins).
And the courts have distorted it, example seat belts, They passed the seat belt laws. But under Ex Post Facto these laws could only be required for all new vehicles being produced after it was passed. Vehicles that were already sold, owned, produced, could not be required to retrofit seatbelts. And tickets cannot be written for not wearing seatbelts in a vehicle that was not required to have seatbelts because it was produced before the law was passed.
It is still this way with seatbelts and it is the constitutional way because Ex Post Facto applies and is observed. It is already this way with many firearms and parts and has been for years now. Based on Ex Post Facto, they can only restrict future manufacturing, imports, or sales. Not those already sold or owned legally. “Pre-ban” is a very common term with firearms and parts because based on Ex Post Facto pre-ban are still legal.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.