In recent months, the Second Amendment community has faced unprecedented challenges in the wake of President Biden’s attack on gun rights. One of the most contentious issues has been implementing the “zero tolerance” policy for gun dealers by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF). As staunch defenders of the Second Amendment, a coalition of Federal Firearms Licensees (FFLs) has stepped up to contest what they view as an overreach of government authority. The alliance is led by Eric Blandford, who runs the successful YouTube channel Iraqveteran8888.
“Selling firearms is a perfectly normal business venture, and nobody should have to fear losing their entire life savings over a typo,” Blandford told AmmoLand News.
The announcement was announced on the popular YouTuber’s channel. He was joined in the video by Senior Vice President of GOA, Erich Pratt.
The Biden administration’s “zero tolerance” policy for gun dealers has drawn significant criticism from pro-gun advocates, including FFLs.
President Biden claims that the policy aims to crack down on alleged violations of federal gun laws by firearm dealers. The coalition of FFLs claims the ATF is taking an over-aggressive stance on even minor clerical errors. The members point to the ATF punishing law-abiding FFLs for trivial mistakes and administrative errors leading to the revocation of FFLs. Under the policy, the revocation of FFLs is at a 17-year high.
The FFL coalition argues that the ATF’s “zero tolerance” approach undermines the due process rights of FFLs and could potentially lead to the unjust revocation of licenses. Instead of focusing on rooting out actual criminals, this policy places undue burdens on small business owners who strive to adhere to complex and often confusing regulations. There is also evidence that the ATF is using the revocation process as retaliation against FFLs that sue the Bureau. Moorehouse Enterprises is one of the alleged victims of ATF reprisal. The gun store sued the ATF over the new rule on frames and receivers. After the lawsuit was launched, a local Industry Operations Inspector (IOI) examined the company’s books and found a few errors. Even though the IOI was positive about the inspection, the small local business received a revocation letter. The gun store has now launched a second lawsuit contesting the revocation with the help of Gun Owners of America (GOA).
The legal battle launched by the FFL coalition centers on upholding the principles of due process and fair treatment under the law.
Pro-gun advocates argue that treating minor administrative mistakes with the same severity as deliberate violations disproportionately punishes FFLs who are attempting to comply with an elaborate set of regulations.
The coalition believes that this overzealous approach by the ATF could have far-reaching implications, not only for FFLs but for the broader Second Amendment rights of law-abiding citizens. By contesting the ATF’s “zero tolerance” policy, the coalition seeks to protect not only their livelihoods but also the rights of responsible gun owners across the nation.
The ongoing legal battle between gun stores and the ATF represents a pivotal moment for Second Amendment rights in the United States. The FFL coalition’s efforts are a testament to the enduring commitment of Americans to safeguard their constitutional rights.
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.
good to see this happening, attempting to curb a run-away government agency. the recent litigation in the courts at this time along with this new coalition going after them and recent rulings against the apa should certainly help.
isn’t intent used in deciding criminality? like erich said, batfe cannot even follow the rules they impose on ffl’s. yeah, yeah, the only ones, right?
this is what third world tyrants do, attack their political opponent.
hope they get the ruling atf is unconstitutional
The current federal gov has zero authority, due to fraud in the elections of 2020 and 2022. Further, all so-called laws restricting firearm ownership and possession in specific areas are blatantly unconstitutional infringements. They don’t even pretend to reduce crime anymore, and they were never intended to… only to disarm the citizens and make them defenseless against the government and other criminals.
Funny, I have ZERO tolerance for bullshit.
I would have typed, “We, The People, have zero tolerance for tyranny”, but……it appears that many people do have tolerance for it. The Founding Fathers would have gone kinetic by now.
While this activity is welcomed, I have little faith in the current judicial system. What we must understand and focus on is that if Biden and the Democrats win in 2024, gun ownership as we know it is doomed. Look what they have already done in the less than 3 years they have been in power. We were warned.
It’s about damned time. I cringe whenever I read about someone having their livelihood taken away, perhaps hundreds of thousands of dollars invested in a shop they have to close because the Usurper Bidet’s goon squad caught someone in a paperwork error. It’s not like the AFT has a perfect record themselves…cough.(gunwalking)…
Did the NHTSA sue ford motor company for the pinto? Did they put ford out of business? They did neither.
How many people did the pinto kill? Was ford negligent? Why didn’t they take away their license to manufacture until they came into compliance with what the government wanted?
Just saying.
“The legal battle launched by the FFL coalition centers on upholding the principles of due process and fair treatment under the law.”Note that it is GOA that is helping the FFLs in this fight against tyranny, and for fair treatment. As usual, Negotiating Rights Away since 1871 is AWOL. Perhaps LaTrine and company are anti-fair treatment under the law, and anti-due process?
Is SAF, GOA, and CRKBA involved yet?
This should have happened a while ago.
This has been going on for 2 years now.