He would mandate the introduction of handgun vending-machines in airports and schools.
Posted on 03/20/2015 9:31:37 AM PDT by maggief
The director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) is stepping down following controversy surrounding the agency’s proposal to ban certain types of ammunition.
The ATF announced Friday that Director B. Todd Jones is resigning at the end of the month “to pursue other opportunities in the private sector."
“ATF employees are hard-working, dedicated individuals who serve the public to make our nation safer every day,” Jones said in a statement. “I have seen firsthand their extraordinary commitment to combating violent crime, ridding the streets of criminals, and leveraging all available resources to keep our communities safe.”
“I will truly miss leading and working side-by-side with these men and women in their pursuit of ATF’s unique law enforcement and regulatory mission,” he added.
Jones, who in July 2013 became the first ATF director to be confirmed by the Senate and led the agency after a scandal involving the agency's infamousl botched Operation Fast and Furious" gun tracking initiative, is departing shortly after the agency dropped a controversial attempt to ban certain armor-piercing bullets used in AR-15 rifles.
The episode was the latest in a series of flaps that has put the Obama administration's ATF at odds with many congressional Republicans. In recent weeks, GOP lawmakers have introduced legislation seeking to tamp down on the agency's authority — and to abolish the ATF altogether.
Jones’ resignation comes amid a firestorm over the ATF’s proposed bullet ban, which was shelved last week after the agency received tens of thousands of public comments opposing the move.
The ATF argued that banning 5.56mm armor-piercing bullets that can be used in handguns would protect police officers, but emphasized that it was not attempting to ban all types of bullets.
However, congressional Republicans and gun groups beat back the ATF’s proposed bullet ban, calling it an infringement on their Second Amendment rights.
“Second Amendment rights require not only access to firearms, but to bullets,” a group of 53 Republican senators wrote earlier this month in a letter to Jones.
“If law-abiding gun owners cannot obtain rifle ammunition, or face substantial difficulty in finding ammunition available and at reasonable prices because government entities are banning such ammunition, then the Second Amendment is at risk,” they continued.
The ATF backed off the proposed bullet ban the next day.
“The vast majority of the comments received to date are critical of the framework, and include issues that deserve further study,” the agency said. “Accordingly, ATF will not at this time seek to issue a final framework.”
In a statement anouncing Jones' departure, Attorney General Eric Holder lauded him for his service and "groundbreaking" law enforcement initiatives, including an effort to strengthen ballistic imaging technology that recently played a critical role in the investigation of the shooting of two police officers.
"As the first ever Senate-confirmed Director of ATF, his indelible legacy will serve as an inspiring example for all those who follow him," Holder said in a statement.
ATF deputy director Thomas Brandon will take over as acting director until the agency finds a replacement for Jones.
I Second!
Morley Safer ?
Expect a whirlwind, folks.
“The ATF argued that banning 5.56mm armor-piercing bullets that can be used in handguns would protect police officers, but emphasized that it was not attempting to ban all types of bullets.”
That is a lie. By the definition in LAW the Green Tip SS109 and M855 are NOT A.P.
“(B) The term “armor piercing ammunition” means—
(i) a projectile or projectile core which may be used in a handgun and which is constructed entirely (excluding the presence of traces of other substances) from one or a combination of tungsten alloys, steel, iron, brass, bronze, beryllium copper, or depleted uranium; or
(ii) a full jacketed projectile larger than .22 caliber designed and intended for use in a handgun and whose jacket has a weight of more than 25 percent of the total weight of the projectile.”
The SS109 is not intended for use in a pistol any more than a cylinder of pure nitrogen is a poison gas (destructive device) that it can kill a person does not change its INTENDED purpose.
This is great news. I would never have thought that pressure on them could result in something like this. It is now time to double down. Apply more pressure, they are down but not out. And we don’t want them getting back up. We want them out. The BATFEGSHKD.... was put into place during prohibition, well, that amendment has been rescinded, but the BATFEGSHKD just continued, and kept growing. They need to disappear.
0bama probably told him to bail out, since he got “caught” on this ammo-banning deal. 0bama needs someone who can make it work like the DHS deal, where they just go off doing their own enforcement (or lack thereof), and keep it under the radar for as long as possible.
Yes, there are. And barrels are available as short as 7.5" for them. They don't have stocks, but use a buffer tube coming out the back in order to fit the definition of a pistol.
My first thought as well.
They just can't let go of the false meme.
He would mandate the introduction of handgun vending-machines in airports and schools.
I stand corrected. I guess I should have perused the recently received RRA Catalog. I have one of their AR’s. Didn’t realize they’d been able to get rid of the buffer tube. But you have to admit they are not in the category of a concealable pistol.
The only thing they botched was that ‘initiative’ became public knowledge.
They never attempted to track the rifles and never intended to track them. If tracking them in Mexico had been their intention they would have put some kind of tracking device in the rifles and would have sought help from the Mexican government neither of which was done.
Nice puff piece from Hill.
Make sure this guy doesn’t do a Holder and stick around forever.
Now is the time to shut down the ATF.
No more “stern letters.”
Nobody in the government wants F-troop employees if they get shut down. Where does a JBT trained bureaucrat go for employment then?
Still over 18 in. long & 5+ lbs.
Hardly something you’re going to carry around in your pocket or a holster. But it does look scary! /s
Starbucks? Have no fear. They’d still probably qualify for generous govt pensions. Let’s see. Two weeks on the job? You qualify.
Where is the picture of Curly Bill Brocius saying, “Well, Bye”?
why are you letting them know that?
So he’s out, but watch the left hand . . . .
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