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BATFE, Firearm Importation & Federal Firearm Law Reform

Among its duties, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (BATFE) monitors firearm manufacturers, importers and dealers for compliance with record-keeping requirements; conducts traces on the commercial paths of individual firearms at the request of law enforcement agencies; interprets firearm importation law; and administers transfers of firearms regulated by the National Firearm Act of 1934.

The BATFE was used by the Clinton administration to reduce the number of firearm dealers, and by the administrations of presidents G. H. W. Bush and Clinton to restrict “assault weapons” by misinterpreting firearm importation law. The agency’s tracing data, sometimes useful in identifying persons involved in illegally trafficking firearms, have been mischaracterized by gun control supporters in the context of their campaigns against “Saturday Night Specials” and “assault weapons,” and in favor of making state gun laws more restrictive.

BATFE has been widely criticized for its role in the “Ruby Ridge” and “Waco” tragedies, and Operation Fast and Furious, in which the agency knowingly allowed firearms to be bought by straw purchasers and other traffickers, and thereafter smuggled from the United States to Mexico, where they made their way to violent drug cartels.

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Friday, July 20, 2012

Grassley, Issa seek clarification of BATFE acting director's message to employees on reporting agency concerns

Sen. Chuck Grassley and Rep. Darrell Issa today urged the acting director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, ...

News  

Friday, July 20, 2012

BATFE Continues Campaign Against Whistleblowers

In their latest attempt to protect whistleblowers from BATFE reprisal, on July 18 Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) and ...

News  

Thursday, July 19, 2012

Congressmen: BATFE whistle blowers receive 'ominous message' from BATFE head

Whistle blowers blew the lid off Operation Fast and Furious, but  the new head of the Bureau of ...

Friday, July 13, 2012

BATFE Modifies Shotgun Import Ban Study, Still Gets It Wrong

In January 2011, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives released its "Study on the Importability of ...

News  

Friday, July 6, 2012

Grassley letter to Holder demands 'Fast and Furious' accountability

The ranking Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee wants to know who at the Justice Department saw a ...

News  

Thursday, July 5, 2012

Sen. Grassley asks for Justice Department records of field agent memo on Fast and Furious

Senator Chuck Grassley today asked Attorney General Eric Holder Jr. for information about who at the Department of ...

News  

Tuesday, July 3, 2012

Finding Eric Holder in Contempt Was Necessary to Discover the Truth

Attorney General Eric Holder's contempt of Congress is surpassed only by his contempt for the Second Amendment. With ...

Friday, April 27, 2012

Rehberg Amendment to Block Unauthorized Sales Reports Advances on Capitol Hill

This week, the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Appropriations approved, by a vote of 30-19, an amendment ...

News  

Thursday, April 26, 2012

Rep. Young Demands Answers from BATFE

In a letter sent today, Alaskan Congressman Don Young called on the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and ...

News  

Friday, February 24, 2012

“No More Weapons!” Sign Erected Along U.S.--Mexican Border

Last week, Mexican President Felipe Calderon unveiled a “billboard” near the U.S. border made of crushed firearms formed ...

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NRA ILA

Established in 1975, the Institute for Legislative Action (ILA) is the "lobbying" arm of the National Rifle Association of America. ILA is responsible for preserving the right of all law-abiding individuals in the legislative, political, and legal arenas, to purchase, possess and use firearms for legitimate purposes as guaranteed by the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.