By David Codrea
USA – -(Ammoland.com)- “U.S. Attorney for New Jersey Bill Fitzpatrick said it was especially important to get assault weapons off the streets,” New Jersey 101.5 reported. They were covering a Camden, Newark and Trenton gun “buyback” hosted in a church/state partnership — something that’s evidently not objectionable when “progressive” virtues are signaled — that netted 4,775 guns.
Taking center stage for the cameras was Chris Christie-appointed Attorney General Christopher Porrino. He bragged about how many more guns were taken in this time than last – more than had been seized by law enforcement in a year. Left unsaid by the crowing police and politicos was how few of those guns were turned in by the criminal element causing the problems, or that no less an authority than the Department of Justice’s National Institute of Justice concluded:
“Buybacks are ineffective unless massive and coupled with a ban [and] In order to have an impact, large capacity magazine regulation needs to sharply curtail their availability to include restrictions on importation, manufacture, sale, and possession.”
So leave it to USA Fitzpatrick to support both, and to utter an asinine sound bite taken straight out of the Bloomberg playbook:
“Those are weapons of war, those are weapons designed to kill as many people as possible as quickly as possible.”
Right. Semi-autos. Tell me he doesn’t know the difference, or that he doesn’t understand that Founding intent, backed by precedent, confirms citizens were meant to keep and bear “ordinary military equipment” to be taken into “common defense” battles. That was the envisioned deterrent.
“Mr. Fitzpatrick has spent his entire professional career in public service, including 19 years as a federal prosecutor,” his DOJ bio page informs us. In other words, he’s been a career trough-feeder who either didn’t understand the oath of office he nonetheless freely swore to, or possibly did but just viewed it as a ceremonial formality that he’s free to ignore.
That page tells us Fitzpatrick’s “acting,” meaning he assumed the top slot in New Jersey following the forced resignation of former USA Paul Fishman after President Donald Trump’s Attorney General Jeff Sessions took over. In his case (and in others’, as a recent War on Guns post shows), Sessions did not go deep enough.
The Trump administration, AG Sessions and Senate Republicans owe it to gun owners who put them in power to ensure their operatives understand a fundamental obligation is “to secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity.” That means they have a fundamental obligation to provide Bill of Rights protections against government infringements.
And that means there should be no room in the DOJ for legal meatheads that spout self-serving crap about “weapons of war” in order to get press and to advance their agendas and careers. Even if a preponderance of useful idiot New Jersey voters approve of being disarmed.
About David Codrea:
David Codrea is the winner of multiple journalist awards for investigating / defending the RKBA and a long-time gun owner rights advocate who defiantly challenges the folly of citizen disarmament.
In addition to being a field editor/columnist at GUNS Magazine and associate editor for Oath Keepers, he blogs at “The War on Guns: Notes from the Resistance,” and posts on Twitter: @dcodrea and Facebook.
JorgeNorberto Pedace comments in Spanish, which I assume is his language. Unfortunately, I do not read Spanish. I view these posts on an older IPad, and I note the lack of a translate button. Please advise. THanks.
The one with the red tie wrap looks like a Vietnam era M16. I agree criminals probably dispose of these weapons and s they are probably stolen. The true owners will never see then because of these asses. But hey it NJ where only the criminals and connected can legally carry arms.
If that is the picture of a NJ turd US Attorney Fitzpatrick, to answer his question ” I would rather have the assault weapon, I know what it does, politicians/lawyers, I don’t know what they do but I know they screw things up no matter what they choose to do.
The police should check all the serial numbers and return any reported stolen firearms to the owner if they can prove it was theirs. Also a great way for a criminal to dispose of evidence used in a crime.
Buy backs should be required to pay Blue Book price on guns turned in. That includes having at least one NRA certified appraiser (No such critter? Well someone from Christie’s or other recognized auction house/broker) paid at least $50.00 an hour for his/her time. The sponsor of the event should be criminally and civilly liable if siblings, parents, children, and/or spouses turn in weapons without the written permission of the actual owner. Unless the person turning in the weapon specifically asks that it be destroyed the weapon should be auctioned to recover the expenses (and if they are paying Blue… Read more »
And this of course is ALL going to be funded bybybe tax dollars that YOUR paycheck contributes weekly to the government fund?
CUANDO VEO ESTAS FOTOGRAFÍAS REALMENTE ME DAN DOLOR DE ESTÓMAGO E INDIGNACIÓN DE PENSAR,QUE ESTA NO ES PARA NADA UNA SOLUCIÓN,AQUÍ LO QUE SE QUIERE,ES DESARMAR A LA
POBLACIÓN,ARGUMENTANDO LAS MÁS VARIADAS HIPÓTESIS,Y HACIENDO PERDER AL PUEBLO LOS
DINEROS INVERTIDOS EN ARMAS,COMO SI GENEROSAMENTE QUIENES PAGARON POR ELLAS TUVIE
RAN QUE PAGAR ESTE TRIBUTO POR SER AFICIONADO,CUANDO LO QUE SE DEBE TENER EN CUENTA
QUE QUIENES ESTÁN REGISTRADOS,NO SON DELINCUENTES.
This ii America, speek English
It is America so why don’t you spell your words correctly?
Jorge posts on this site occasionally but he lives in a Southern American country. He has been with us for a long time and usually has something reasonable to say. Just leave him alone and hit the translate button.
EXACTLY!
The more that pres. Trump fires these insufferable bureaucrats, the better it is for ordinary Americans… and entertaining too!
What’s the problem with VOLUNTARY buybacks? It appears only those that don’t want guns sell them. And THAT seems better than them selling or giving them to some gangbanger.
In a perfect world ALL OF YOU would turn ALL GUNS in , and I would be the only one with guns, meaning I would never be rousted by some thug. (At least not more than once…..,)
+1
First of all, the problem is that they are using tax dollars to finance a useless, ineffective action. No criminals turn in working firearms. Law-abiding people who turn in functioning guns are getting ripped off by our government. Law abiding people do not sell guns to gangbangers – sounds like you are projecting here.
Law – Abiding People Who Turn In Functioning Guns Are Getting Ripped Off By Our Government. Perish the thought. Say it isn’t so Joe, say it isn’t so. Government ripping off the citizenry. It couldn’t happen, or could it?
How many of those guns were turned. In by gun dealers that couldn’t sell a particular model? if you look at the photos posted on line from the two days they had the buy back, you do not see gang members, you see older, legal gun owners clearing out the closet or attic. I think the newspapers stated that they only got 1 automatic gun in 4000 guns. What good did it do nothing. What good did it do the last time NJ did a buyback netting thousands of guns? Did it stop the shootings and crime in our big… Read more »
That’s way too much common sense for the average political pundit. They just can’t think that clearly.
anyone who has a gun they don’t want can go find a pawnshop, gun shop. place an advert on GunBroker, talk to someone at yur local gun club, and find a new home for that piece of machinery. Except that guns are somehow empirically “other”, one SHOULD be able to just drop them off at the local Goodwill or equivalent. But here we have public money lavishly wasted to collect them, no compensation given, and they apparently will all be, at FURTHER public expense, destroyed, this reducing the common wealth by the value of those firearms… and with over four… Read more »
“And the People of New Jersey just lap this stuff up…”
Look at the crap they elect.
Buy backs are not necessarily a bad thing. There were a couple of buy-backs in New Mexico several years ago ($50.00 each) and several of us who had worthless parts guns and rusted out relics participated and made enough to buy or partially pay for a nice new or used gun or two afterwards. One of my friends stayed in the parking lot and got some really nice guns for $75 to $100 each.
Time for Pres. Trump to early retire Fitzpatrick. This “pubic servant” talks out of both sides of his mouth.
Nice unintended consequences! The gun-grabbers facilitated an impromptu gun show.
Can i get there phone numbers? I wonder if they will sell them to us in Texas 😉
They are a bad thing when they use my tax dollars on this worthless exercise.
@Joe Martin, I understand what you are saying but every time the government buys a gun they are doing it with taxpayer money. What gives them the right to take our money and give it back to us in the form of taking something that represents one of our rights. Go figure.
Now taking bets on how many of those firearms serial numbers are going to show up in possession of either the officers, politicos, their friends or family and associates somewhere down the road?
Afterall, the ATF claims that they can, “TRACK FIREARMS”! https://Facebook.com/FOBHarmomy
ackshully, BATF cannot “track” firearms.. not past initial sale at retail, anyway. But, I don’t mind that myth being commonly accepted. It reduces the panicked squawking for a registry by some miniscule amount.
It was a rhetorical statement.
The “junk guns” might well end up in the furnace. As for such quality pieces as might have been turned in meeting such fate, I expect that there are 4 chances of such an ending. Fat, Slim, Little and No.
The ATF, like many government officials, and assorted bureaucrats Liew Like The Bigelow Carpet
It’s true…the founding fathers had every intention with leaving the people with weapons of war to use against tyrants and to kill as many of them as possible as fast as possible. Seems to me the safest avenue for the tyrants is to recant their tyranny and leave the little guys ALONE. That would be the safest alternative to looking down the barrel of a high capacity AR 10 rifle. OR you can kiss your pension good bye along with the rest of your life as you enter the next realm and get laid to rest with all of your… Read more »
yeah, the long range use of a real rifle has been a very effective tool for a long time. Even during our war for independence, there were umbersous incidences of colonial patrios using this tactic. In some of those cases, the marksman was so adept at reloading the Regulars actually despatched a small party of soliders to go take out that “nest” of five or more militia they were convinced were firing upon them. Turns out it wasone old man, firing and reloading so fact and accurately he may well have been five militia….. and often operating at range double… Read more »
yeah, the long range use of a real rifle has been a very effective tool for a long time. Even during our war for independence, there were numerous incidents of colonial patriots taking good advantageof their superior marksmanship skills. . In some of those cases, the marksman was so skilled at reloading the Regulars actually would despatch a small party of soliders to go take out those five or more militia they were convinced were harrassing them. Turns out it was one old man, firing and reloading so rapidly and accurately he may well have been five militia….. and often… Read more »
They got assault weapons off of the streets in NJ? I was unaware that there was a war where automatic weapons were being used in NJ. If they mean the AR-15 the AR stands for Armalite who is the manufacturer of the rifle. More spewing by the ignorant ass-hat gun phobes. People really need to get these turds out of office.
VE Veteran: An ideologue never lets facts get in the way of good propaganda.
Yeah I know, but it still gripes my butt when they start spewing their mealy mouthed sh*t just to appease some skirt who got her panties in a bunch because “GASP – its a gun”.
“A sword never kills anybody; it is a tool in the killer’s hand.” – Lucius Annaeus Seneca