WILMINGTON, Delaware — As part of a plea deal, Hunter Biden will plead guilty to two counts of willful failure to pay federal income tax and enter into a Pretrial Diversion Agreement over the “possession of a firearm by a person who is an unlawful user of or addicted to a controlled substance.” The plea deal will see the president’s son avoid any jail time.
The gun charge stems from the younger Biden acquiring a firearm in 2018 while being addicted to crack cocaine. Hunter Biden purchased a Colt Cobra .38spl revolver from a Delaware gun store that year, stating on an ATF Form 4473 that he was not a current user of any illegal substances. Later, the firearm was recovered from a dumpster behind a grocery store, where it was disposed of by his lover, who happened to be his deceased brother’s wife, Hallie Biden. Shortly after, Hunter Biden’s abandoned laptop would be turned over to the FBI and others, showing damning evidence of Hunter Biden’s fondness for crack cocaine and prostitutes. The gun charge could have landed Biden in prison for ten years.
Many on the conservative side of the aisle pointed out the hypocrisy of Biden not being criminally charged while others faced incarceration for the same violation. Others called for the prosecution of Biden for lying on a 4473. While I can understand and sympathize with people that wanted to see Hunter Biden prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law, we must not let our disdain for the corruption in the Biden family dilute our own no-compromise gun rights position.
Biden lied on an ATF Form 4473, and recently, in U.S. v. Holden, the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a conviction of a man who lied on the background check form. A three-judge panel ruled that no matter how constitutionally dubious the 4473 form is, John Holden had no right to lie on a form to acquire a firearm. The panel stated that Holden could have simply not answered the question. The catch is that the gun store would then be unable to sell him the firearm. The court’s answer to this conundrum would be for the prospective buyer to sue the federal government.
Many readers will sympathize with the plight of Holden but celebrate the downfall of Biden. To be true no-compromise gun rights advocates, we must put aside our personal feelings about the Biden family.
Focus on the bigger picture: the constitutionality of the 4473 and the laws prohibiting users of drugs from owning firearms.
First, let’s look at the Seven Circuit’s assertion that Holden could have chosen not to answer certain questions on the 4473. If he didn’t, it is almost certain that the gun store would not have transferred the firearm leaving him no choice but to sue the federal government. Taking on the federal government in court is a costly endeavor and could take years to get the appropriate relief. Very few people can afford such a case. Holden’s only real choices were to lie on the 4473 or give up his God-given right to bear arms for life.
Maybe Hunter Biden was in the financial position to challenge the law, but should he have to fight the government for a right he has that is protected by the Constitution? The Bruen decision states that all gun laws must be consistent with the original text, tradition, and history of the Second Amendment. At the time of the ratification of the Second Amendment, there was no law anywhere in the country that required Americans to fill out a form to be able to purchase a firearm. Likewise, there is nowhere in the Second Amendment that states that you must fill out a form honestly and be subjected to a background check to acquire a gun. In fact, I believe the founding fathers would be horrified to know that we ask for a government permission slip to buy a gun.
Then there is the government’s prohibition of people on various substances from owning firearms. These laws even ban users of marijuana from having guns. The medicinal uses of marijuana are something widely accepted across the medical field. Many states have decriminalized marijuana leading to widespread confusion about gun laws among firearms owners and marijuana users. Yet the federal government refuses to change the law. Prohibition has never worked and never will work.
As no-compromise gun rights advocates, we should oppose more than the prohibition of marijuana users from owning firearms. Choosing to put a substance in your body should not strip you of an inalienable right.
Once again, we look to the original text, history, and tradition of the Second Amendment. The text does not prohibit anyone from owning a firearm because of the substances they choose to ingest. The federal government will be hard-pressed to find historical analogs to show any laws in 1791 banning someone from a core right because they put something that the government doesn’t like into their body. Stripping someone of their right without due process is not only un-American but is also evil.
Some might disagree with my stance on Hunter Biden, but I believe we can point out the hypocrisy of the Biden family without becoming hypocrites ourselves. Will I cry for Hunter Biden? Absolutely not! Do I think that he got off lightly because of his dad? Absolutely! But I will not want laws applied to him that I don’t want to be applied to other Americans.
I am a Gun Rights absolutist. It goes far beyond the Second Amendment. I accept gun rights as human rights. That means being no compromise no matter what my personal feeling are about a person. I believe that the government does not have a role in regulating firearms. I think that all gun laws are inherently evil, and I will not let my feelings toward one individual make me compromise my beliefs.
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.
Mr. Crump fails to address the 800 pound gorilla in the room; equal justice under the law. Both individuals committed the same crime but the results of their prosecutions are totally different.
“I believe we can point out the hypocrisy of the Biden family without becoming hypocrites ourselves.” I understand your point of view. On the other hand, if the elite people in government never have to live up to their own laws, we will never get them changed. Conservatives have traditionally held the high road, but recently we see how apoplectic leftists and mainstream media and the government get when we began using their own tactics against them.
Federal Prosecutors Aggressively Pursuing Those Who Lie in Connection With Firearm Transactions | Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives
https://www.atf.gov/news/pr/federal-prosecutors-aggressively-pursuing-those-who-lie-connection-firearm-transactions
Unless your name is Biden and happen to be the son of the President.
Crumpy, many, not some, may disagree with your stance on Hunter Biden. While we relish the thought that a member of the Biden crime family may have some justice delivered upon them, it is (was) with the belief that they too should face equal consequences in the courtroom that we eagerly hoped for a different outcome. Sure, most of us want to dispose of most if not all gun laws. But that’s not the point with this case. And if you want to eliminate the cannabis connection, which most Democratics should want, get something else from that side of the… Read more »
I have only one question, how many people not with the Biden surname have been allowed to enter a Federal diversion agreement for lying on Form 4473? I heard an interview with a former Obama era DOJ National Security Prosecutor yesterday claim he was involved in 300 of these cases and never once gave a pre trial diversion. Just how common is this practice? The prosecutor did say he thought if the last name was Smith it would have been a different outcome.
“let’s go Hunting” Gun control is un-Constitutional! Defund the BATF(e) Repeal those laws that are un-Constitutional, period.
This is not the question!
The law now is 10 years behind bars. If they were using this to amend the law that would even be questionable. But from this day forth all being prosecuted for this will not be released.
If like on ‘sales’ day you get the “second item of same or lesser value” free, it might be less bitter. In other words tax evasion is being called a misdemeanor. So let him serve 10 years for false claims on a federal document and dismiss the tax fraud.
I have to disagree. I want the laws changed as much as anyone but unless the Biden’s fight this in the court it will be forgotten in a few days. A court battle that puts Hunter in opposition to Joe’s wishes is big news and could do far more for our cause because it exposes the blatant hypocrisy from their side and the unconstitutionality of the law at the same time.
Excellent article and this is exactly what I’ve been trying to tell people. Hunter should not have been charged with either of these “crimes”. Not because I think he didn’t commit them but because NO ONE should be charged with these “crimes”. They shouldn’t even exist in the first place. All arms laws are unconstitutional and taxation is theft. That being said, the law is definitely disproportionately applied and that needs to be remedied. The right way to do that is to abolish victimless, unjust, and unconstitutional “crimes” that are frequently used to oppress otherwise peaceful people. The fewer laws… Read more »
True story. But here is the rub. Folks of the progressive persuasion have woven a web of legislation designed to trap those who are of libertarian leanings. That being so, they should either untangle the we and eliminate laws and regulations or subject themselves to the same equally. The Bible has has a term for this kind of hypocrisy: double mindedness.