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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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ATF Releases New Procedures on Certain Retail and Private-to-Private Transactions

News  

Monday, September 14, 2020

ATF Releases New Procedures on Certain Retail and Private-to-Private Transactions

Early this month, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) released two new procedure documents.

The Washington Free Beacon  

Monday, June 15, 2020

Residents Complain D.C.’s Police Department Creating Bottleneck for Handgun Purchases

In an arrangement unique to Washington, D.C., the local police department is the only federally licensed firearms dealer ...

Mexico Demands Explanation for Obama-era Gun-walking Scandal

News  

Tuesday, May 19, 2020

Mexico Demands Explanation for Obama-era Gun-walking Scandal

Nearly a decade has passed since the public first learned of the botched Obama-era gunwalking scandal Operation Fast ...

PJ Media  

Wednesday, May 13, 2020

Mexican Government Demanding Answers About 'Fast and Furious' Gun Smuggling

The arrest last December of a former Mexican security minister in the U.S. on drug charges has compelled ...

Townhall  

Wednesday, June 19, 2019

California Gun Owners Feel The Repercussions Of Illegal Aliens Obtaining IDs

The California Department of Justice on Monday filed an "emergency regulations" proposal. If adopted, Californians would be required ...

Does Shannon Watts want a Ban on all Centerfire Rifle Ammunition?

News  

Friday, May 10, 2019

Does Shannon Watts want a Ban on all Centerfire Rifle Ammunition?

Shannon Watts has developed her persona as a “full-time volunteer” who wants nothing more than to bring “common ...

Yesterday’s Scandal, Today’s Mandate: Anti-gunner Embraces Operation Choke Point as Official Policy

News  

Wednesday, March 13, 2019

Yesterday’s Scandal, Today’s Mandate: Anti-gunner Embraces Operation Choke Point as Official Policy

On Tuesday, U.S. Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) unabashedly embraced the tactics behind one of the most shameful policies ...

News  

Friday, December 21, 2018

NRA Statement on Bump Fire Stock Rule

This week, the Department of Justice announced that it would soon be releasing a final rule classifying “bump-stock-type-devices” ...

The Hill  

Tuesday, October 30, 2018

Retired ATF agent and Giffords employee says AR-15 rifles should be regulated like machine guns

David Chipman, a retired Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) agent, on Monday said AR-15 rifles ...

Associated Press  

Wednesday, October 17, 2018

Ruling: Kansas gun law no defense to federal firearm charges

An appeals court on Tuesday upheld the firearms convictions against two Kansas men who mistakenly believed that a ...

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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.