Rep. Massie cites Constitution to slam Biden's upcoming 'ghost gun' rule: 'Congress makes laws'

foxnews ^ | Apr 11, 2022 | By Emma Colton

[RandFan]

Rep. Thomas Massie and Second Amendment advocates are pushing back against the Biden administration's upcoming rule on "ghost guns," characterizing the rule to rein in privately made firearms without serial numbers as unconstitutional.

"The Constitution does not authorize the federal government to prevent you from making your own firearm. This a fact that has been recognized for 200+ years. Also, Article 1, Section 1 (literally the first operative sentence in the Constitution) says Congress makes law, not POTUS!" Rep. Thomas Massie tweeted Sunday.

[Amendment10]

All that Rep. Massie or any other patriot has to argue against unconstitutional federal firearm controls is this. The states have never expressly constitutionally given the feds the specific power to regulate peacetime use of non-militia-related guns.

• "Our Constitution never conferred upon the Congress of the United States the power - sacred as life is, first as it is before all other rights which pertain to man on this side of the grave - to protect it in time of peace by the terrors of the penal code within organized states; and Congress has never attempted to do it. There never was a law upon the United States statute-book to punish the murderer for taking away in time of peace the life of the noblest, and the most unoffending, as well, of your citizens, within the limits of any State of the Union [emphases added]. The protection of the citizen in that respect was left to the respective States, and there the power is to-day.” —Rep. John Bingham, Congressional Globe. (See bottom half of third column.)

• "From the accepted doctrine that the United States is a government of delegated powers, it follows that those not expressly granted, or reasonably to be implied from such as are conferred, are reserved to the states, or to the people. To forestall any suggestion to the contrary, the Tenth Amendment was adopted. The same proposition, otherwise stated, is that powers not granted are prohibited [emphasis added]." —United States v. Butler, 1936.

In fact, even in cases where domestic violence involves guns, the delegates to the Constitutional Convention had limited federal involvement in such violence to formal request by state government.

"Article IV, Section 4 (4.4): The United States shall guarantee to every State in this Union a Republican Form of Government, and shall protect each of them against Invasion; and on Application of the Legislature, or of the Executive (when the Legislature cannot be convened) against domestic Violence [emphases added]."

Consider that Justice Joseph Story had explained the domestic violence part of 4.4 as a check against the feds dreaming up any excuse to interfere with a state's affairs.

”§ 1819. It may not be amiss further to observe, (in the language of another commentator,) that every pretext for intermeddling with the domestic concerns of any state, under colour of protecting it against domestic violence, is taken away by that part of the provision, which renders an application from the legislature, or executive authority of the state endangered necessary to be made to the general government, before its interference can be at all proper [emphasis added]. On the other hand, this article becomes an immense acquisition of strength, and additional force to the aid of any state government, in case of an internal rebellion, or insurrection against its authority. The southern states, being more peculiarly open to danger from this quarter, ought (he adds) to be particularly tenacious of a constitution, from which they may derive such assistance in the most critical periods.” —Joseph Story, Commentaries on the Constitution, Article 4, Section 4.

Consider that the reason that federal peacetime gun control laws are now in the books is the following. Simply put, constitutionally limited federal government power-ignoring FDR and the likewise Constitution-ignoring Congress at the time established such laws in blatant defiance of the United States v. Butler excerpt above.

Franklin Roosevelt: The Father of Gun Control

Corrections, insights welcome.

Also, patriots are reminded that they must vote twice this election year. Your first vote is to primary career RINO incumbents. Your second vote is to replace outgoing Democrats and RINOs with Trump-endorsed patriot candidates.

Again, insights welcome.

[Jacquerie]

Scotus has been making laws since a couple decades after the 17th Amendment.

Congress doesn’t like taking the hits for making laws. New laws risk reelection.

Laws are best left to the Administrative State and federal courts.

[jagusafr]

Since when does a Representative have charging authority? That’s an executive branch function.

[mrmeyer]

So was abiding by them

[Blood of Tyrants]

Creating agencies and giving them broad authority to create rules with the rule of law is arguably the most unconstitutional thing Congress has ever done.

[ptsal]

Bkmk guns

[ptsal]

Bkmk guns

[marktwain]

Anyone who is a prohibited person who possesses an uncompleted 80% receiver and a jig for that 80% receiver is considered to be in possession of a firearm.

There will be plenty of litigation on this.

The basic philosophy the ATF is relying on is simple: Guns are bad.

It is not true.

[Yo-Yo]

"Anyone who is a prohibited person who possesses an uncompleted 80% receiver and a jig for that 80% receiver is considered to be in possession of a firearm."

There will be plenty of litigation on this.

There will be litigation. Gun owners of America and the Second Amendment Foundation are already preparing litigation against the "80% receiver/frame plus a jig = 'readily convertible' firearm."

But the point of the rule isn't to prosecute people, it is to dry up the 80% receiver/frame market. Putting Poly80 and other companies out of business.

[Georgia Girl 2]

That was before the 2020 election was stolen by a CCP cyber attack putting an illegitimate rebellious force in power. The US government is currently a captured operation. We are at war right now its just not a shooting war. Its an information war.

[GailA]

Friend’s son was a low level junkie, did some time, in Alabama, got pulled over for a tail light out, he worked as a mechnic, so had a tool box, and a couple of joints. He ended up doing more time for possing a weapon over the screwdrivers in his tool box. So anything can then be classified as a weapon if you’ve done time.

[GailA]

Totally agree

[Ancesthntr]

Even Congress cannot make a law that violates the Constitution...and the regs on “ghost guns” does, in fact, violate the 2A.

There were literally no serial numbers required on any long guns sold to the public by FFLs until 1968 (with the unconstitutional GCA), or until 1934 on handguns and full autos (with the equally unconstitutional NFA).

Individuals making their own firearms (which has been done since the 1700s, at least, in this country) have never been required to put a serial number on their firearms. There is no authority, that’s why it was never done before.

[Fury]

That was before the 2020 election was stolen by a CCP cyber attack putting an illegitimate rebellious force in power.

Of which there is no evidence that has been released to the public in the way of packet captures, etc.