Today the House Judiciary Committee led by Chairman Jim Jordan (R-OH) will vote to overturn the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) controversial pistol brace rule.
President Biden instructed the ATF to rewrite its regulations to ban pistol stabilizing devices. The ATF did the President’s bidding, reversed years of ATF opinions, and ruled that millions of pistols with stabilizing devices were now short-barreled rifles (SBRs). Gun owners could register their firearms under the National Firearms Act (NFA), remove the brace so it could not be reattached, or turn their guns in to law enforcement.
This move led to outrage among the greater gun community and kicked off a slew of lawsuits claiming that the ATF lacked the administrative authority to make a de facto law banning firearms with the device. In addition to the cases, members of Congress also have taken the ATF to task for their perceived unconstitutional and politically motivated actions.
Today, the House Judiciary Committee will be hearing H.R. 2640, the Border Security and Enforcement Act of 2023; and H. J. Res. 44. The complete bill will address border security issues at the southern border where thousands of foreigners are streaming across the border illegally. Some of the people coming across the border are drug and human traffickers.
Rep. Andrew Clyde (R-GA) took advantage of the bill and attached a resolution tackling the ATF final rule 2021R-08F, ‘‘Factoring Criteria for Firearms with Attached ‘Stabilizing Braces.’”
The resolution reads: “Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That Congress disapproves the rule submitted by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives relat5 ing to ‘‘Factoring Criteria for Firearms with Attached ‘Stabilizing Braces’ ’’ (ATF final rule 2021R–08F), and such rule shall have no force or effect.”
Rep. Clyde and Rep. Jordan have been staunch critics of the ATF and the Bureau’s actions on behalf of the Biden administration. Both have made gun rights one of their priorities in Congress. Bringing up the resolution shows their commitment since many Republicans would prefer to table the resolutions after the tragedy in Nashville.
The resolution is expected to pass the Judiciary since Republicans have control of the House and some of the strongest Second Amendment supporters in Congress sit on the Committee, including Matt Gaetz (R-FL), Andy Biggs (R-AZ), Thomas Massie (R-KY), and Chip Roy (R-TX). The bill with the resolution will face a tough battle to get through the rest of Congress before heading to the President’s desk.
Even if it does get to Biden’s desk, there is almost no chance that the President will sign it into law since he has been openly hostile to gun rights. The Republicans do not have the votes to override a veto, even if some Democrats switch sides.
That isn’t to say that the resolution isn’t necessary. It ensures that members of Congress know the lengths the ATF will go to when trying to usurp Congress. It also sheds light on the ATF and the millions of Americans affected by the ATF’s unilateral move. The hope is when Republicans do have enough power to take meaningful action; they will have the political will and capital to act.
About John Crump
John is a NRA instructor and a constitutional activist. John has written about firearms, interviewed people of all walks of life, and on the Constitution. John lives in Northern Virginia with his wife and sons and can be followed on Twitter at @crumpyss, or at www.crumpy.com.
It’s like voting to abolish Obamacare. The vote means nothing when the bill will never become law. They need to force the socialists hand, by attaching it to must pass legislation like the debt ceiling, the same way democrats tack stuff on. Have some moral courage and do it.
Time for congress to cut all funding for the ATF and disband the criminal organization. ATF is nothing more than a government sponsored organized crime syndicate.
There is no law that does– or can– allow executive agencies to exercise the powers of Congress. It amazes me that Congress members, both parties, seem to be fine with this arrogation. It is improper under every form of representative government. Congress should immediately step in and slam the door on any agency that acts this way.
Jim Jordan you make me proud of Ohio!!!
The people of the U.S. didn’t vote for civil service employees, they voted for president, senators, and congressmen and women.
Only the members of congress should be a be able to make new laws that effect the citizens.
I am tired of the alphabet agencies having the ability to push rules which are enforced like laws on the people.
Less government is what we need.
I am an ardent foe of omnibus bills and tack-on resolutions, but I’m all for pro 2A resolutions getting tacked to every single bill up for consideration in the house and senate.
It’s time the ATF gets shut down. If we band together then they can’t confiscate a fecking thing. They simply don’t have the boots on the ground to take anything away from 150,000,000 Gun Owners.
And if they for a shot, blow the f**kers away.
Good freaking grief!! What does it take to drive it into someone’s head, that no government agency has any power or authority to make any laws?!?! Our Republican form of government has been so bastardized and flipped around on its head, the FF would be hopping mad if they saw even 1/100th of what this nation has become!! Once more, here’s the “Get out of jail for free card” that EVERY man and woman should be playing when they get ensnared by it! Just demand to see it in writing, that we are guaranteed to actually GET a fair trial!… Read more »
lf l want tto attach a 2×4 to a derringer, l wiII do so. Anyone not Iiking it can F.O.
Instead of men (and women) to be willing to fight for “our” freedom in places like Iraq and Afghanistan as well as the Ukraine which has just recently come to light due to leaked documents, why aren’t we willing to FIGHT FOR IT HERE? After all, we have tried the ballot box and it is totally compromised these days. Anyone who really BELIEVES Chairman Xiden won the 2020 election is daft. And then the soap box is being compromised by censorship all over the place. Forget talking about guns in detail on Youtube or Fascistbook as well as other soap… Read more »