(Photo: ATF/Facebook)
Members of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives are not pleased with the National Rifle Association.
Last week the ATF Association, which is comprised of former and current ATF agents, wrote a letter that signaled its frustration with the nation’s gun lobby.
“Recently, some have attempted to cast blame on ATF for not banning devices like the ‘bump slide’ used in the Las Vegas shootings,” states the letter addressed to U.S. Rep. Carlos Curbelo (R-FL), who sponsored a bill to ban the accessory.
“We would like to clarify this confusing issue to protect honorable ATF employees from false allegations that they chose to make this item legal when it was the law that prohibited them from regulating the item,” it continued. We also hope this information will assist you in a better understanding of this issue.”
It’s pretty clear whom the ATF Association is referring to. In the aftermath of the shooting in Las Vegas, the NRA called on the ATF to review the legality of bump stocks for a third time.
“Despite the fact that the Obama administration approved the sale of bump fire stocks on at least two occasions, the National Rifle Association is calling on the [ATF] to immediately review whether these devices comply with federal law,” said the organizations two top dogs Wayne LaPierre and Chris Cox in a joint statement.
During an appearance on CBS’s “Face the Nation,” LaPierre followed up that statement with a more damning critique of the agency.
“It’s illegal to convert a semiautomatic to a fully automatic,” said LaPierre. “A.T.F. needs to do its job. They need to look at this and do its job.”
The ATF Association made it abundantly clear in the letter that the agency did its job and that if there is to be a ban on bump stocks it has to come from Congress.
“The bump slide, and several other similar after-market accessories that increase the rate at which a shooter can pull the trigger, are engineered to avoid regulation under Federal law,” states the letter.
“These accessories DO NOT cause the firearm to shoot more than one shot by the single function of a trigger pull. The notion that ATF chose not to regulate an item it had the authority to regulate is false,” it continued. “The law is very clear and it does not currently allow ATF to regulate such accessories.”
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As a recommendation, the ATF Association said that lawmakers could amend the National Firearms Act to allow for the regulation of “multiburst trigger activators,” as states like California and New York have already done.
“We hope you will support legislation to regulate these multi-burst trigger activators. As noted, the National Firearms Act of 1934 works well with the items that it regulates. We also hope you will not allow the honorable employees of ATF, who followed existing law in their bump stock ruling, to be falsely accused of not doing their job by those who seek to exploit the situation for political gain,” concludes the letter.
Look, I love the National Rifle Association. As I often say, they do more to protect and defend the Second Amendment than any other organization. But when it comes to the whole bump stock saga, Chris and Wayne pointed the finger in the wrong direction. The ATF got it right. Bump stocks shouldn’t be regulated by the NFA based on the letter of the existing law.
What’s worse is the suggestion that federal agencies should go rogue to make up regulations outside of the purview of the law. That sets up a super dangerous precedent. Whether you’re a fan of bump stocks or not, the last thing we want is a politically motivated ATF.
The NRA should be horse whipped for their stupid comments about bump stocks.
What good is it to preemptively surrender to your enemies for NOTHING!
I was so outraged that I sent a check to Gun Owners of America.
In hind-sight the Clinton ere gun restrictions actually made sense,,, but the Dems just see that as a first step to eventually confiscating all guns, so we are left with having to make a stand against the Communist and resist all there attempts to chip away at the 2nd amendment, even the ones that worked because the left lies about what they actually want…..
What planet are you from Glenn? Clinton gun bans worked? Really?
Sorry, but I’ll keep my AR-15 and standard capacity magazines.
No, the Clinton Crime Family era gun restrictions did NOT actually make sense. NO INFRINGEMENTS upon UNALIENABLE RIGHTS actually make sense.
I think the NRA was trying to get out in front of the inevitable criticism they get after every major event where firearms are misused, rather than the usual combative position they take. I may be wrong, but I personally haven’t heard anyone saying this is the NRA’s fault, so maybe it worked.
Like our esteemed politicians, the NRA needs to take a remedial course in the English language. It is obvious they have a difficult time comprehending “shall not be infringed.” We either have the unalienable right to keep and bear arms in all of their configurations, or we do not. There is no such thing as “reasonable” gun control laws. After all, criminals do not obey the law. I stopped supporting the NRA in 1968 when they caved on the “Gun Control Act.” Like our elected “representatives,” they have been playing politics with our gun rights ever since. Other than mass murder, we still don’t really know what happened in Las Vegas. The “official story” has already changed and the whitewash by the feds is in full swing. It is because we cannot trust the federal government that the Second Amendment must remain inviolate. It is the only real power that remains in the hands of we the people. And it is the only thing that stands between the tyrannical collectivists and our individual freedom. If we are to remain a free people, then we can give no compromise and no quarter to those who seek to disarm us. Revenue agencies like the ATF were not codified in the United States Constitution for a very good reason. They, like all such agencies, ultimately abuse their power. “Fast and Furious” is just one example. Our first revolution began when the tyrants came for our guns and ammunition. We must remain steadfast and vigilant should they try it again. Sic semper tyrannis!
Abusing power has always been a problem and will always be, I dont care how many in the the status quo think otherwise, I have a very common name and have a felony arrest more than 40 years ago, technally I can not be denied a firarm, no conviction, yet I was put through a wringer by the ATF and at the end was allowed to purchase a 22 mossberg AR style rifle, this being a weapon of mass destruction, I am happy to say that I beat these overpowered morons and thugs and am able to possibly shoot myself in the knee trying to get the terrigle magazine to fire more than 11 rounds. I no longer have any intrest in buying any more firearms due to the already extensive collection I own from before I encountered this bump in the road, and the ammount of time and paperwork I was obligated to endure, it took a year, and I having to their job for them to prove that I was allowed to purchase a firearm. I since tried to purchase a ruger 10/22 and sure enough I was declined, mind you if I would have aquired a PIN number from them I would now be able to do as the mass killer in Vegas did, without any intervention from the ATF or anyone for that matter, what this tells me is they are doing to much in the wrong places and not enough where it counts, bottom line is these laws dont work, and the proof is in the Vegas mass shooting. Why was this madan able to purchase all these ARs and bumpfire stocks and not raise flags? and yet I was denied the ownership of a 200.00 missfiring pea shooter. Well, this is your Lunatics at work with your tax dollars, my fiasco had to had cost the ATF numerous man hours and tons of paperwork to try to deny me of a toy while a lunatic went out and bought a military grade arsenal and the accessories to make them fire multple rounds with out even a raising an eyebrow from the ATF, Ithink you get the picture. They are looking at his through the eyes of a donkey with blinders and pointing fingers at each other, meanwhie going home with a weekly check issued by us the taxpayers. If your going to destroy our rights under the cosntitution, please at least try to get it right, but that would take work, a dirty word in goverment.
What the heck is NRA doing, other than reducing their membership? Wayne and Chris, you have received my last dollar. You have done what no Dem-Com, leftist, gun-grabber could ever achieve, you have created a fizzure in your NRA ranks. The rest will crumble. I encourage all NRA members to send a message. I asked NRA to pull my membership and never contact me again. I joined GOA…they understand, no compromise on 2nd Amendment. Not one inch!
why the he’ll is the ATF saying, “we hope you will support legislation regulating [these devices]”?
the ATF is a political organization now?
NRA, at times, plays both ends. Although I am a Patron (Benefactor Level) I wonder if I should not become more active with the Second Amendment Foundation in Bellevue, WA.
NRA has played this game before causing me to question my loyalty to wishy-washy stance.
SO, riddle me this batman. If all of this is true, then how did they recently rule that that glove device , that does not even attach to the firearm, had to be destroyed and the serial numbered part be sent back to the manufacturer as proof ? Or why they sent a letter out back in 2006 about devices like the hellfire and other devices possibly making firearms NFA devices ? Or banning certain ammo that is legal under federal law? The are talking out both sided of their mouth again !
You beat me to it. I wondered the same thing.
Bumpstocks, Smupstocks.. Dipsticks
Two Planes Three Towers “collapsed”
“Brilliant” 64 year old multimillionaire accountant bad guy who made money his millions playing slot machines.. too poor and stupid to legally obtain automatic weapons.
Why are you even responding to the Bumpstock issue…Slam the globalists politically on the absurd and false narrative/s
Don’t Slam the ATF or the NRA.. they are not the problem..
If you play their Game.. “Bump Stocks.. then Magazines, Then.. Your walking down their primrose path towards confiscation.
Mock them.. laugh at them.. Make them explain themselves.. Stay on the issue. The Las Vegas attack by Terrorists and the obvious False Narratives.
I am a Patron member of the NRA, and I am often dismayed at the stances taken by the Association on some gun control proposals. What is a bump stock’s purpose? Supposedly, it was presented as an aid to help handicapped shooters. It’s obvious purpose was effectively demonstrated in Las Vegas on Oct.1, 2017. As reluctant as I am to say it because of the flaming I will take, I oppose any device that can aid a criminal in inflicting that kind of carnage off the battlefield. That includes the bump fire and large cap mags, as well as many other devices dreamed up to fill the inventors pockets with money.
Whenever I hear about a tragedy such as Sandy Hook or Las Vegas I am reminded of Rahm Emanuel saying, “never let a crisis go to waste”. The Democrats ALWAYS just on these tragedies to push their gun control panic measures. I’ve been a member of the NRA for over six decades as a competitor, instructor, RSO, and referee. I believe Wayne and Chris took the wrong stance on this issue by criticizing ATF and, more importantly, by suggesting more regulation on these devices is acceptable. The ATF absolutely did their job when reviewing these bump stocks and made the correct call by deeming them “accessories”. Yes, their design does allow a shooter to increase the rate of fire for the firearm but that is accomplished by manipulating the trigger more rapidly NOT BY MODIFYING THE FIREARM ITSELF! This same increase in rate-of-fire could be accomplished by a skilled operator who can manipulate the trigger on this LEGAL, SEMI-AUTO firearm in rapid fashion. Anybody who has seen Jerry Miculek shoot six shots from his revolver, reload, then fire six more rounds IN TWO SECONDS will better understand what I’m trying to convey. I am absolutely against any expansion of laws regulating accessories or enhancements to firearms that ARE NOT MODIFICATIONS to the firearm which would render them non-compliant under the NFA. I’ve read the proposed regulations and they are so vague as to prevent special triggers used by virtually every pistol or rifle competitor. Same on any legislator who reacts to these panic measures to consider regulations that would impinge on the rights of law-abiding gun owners!
I’ve said it before, & I’ll say it again. The NRA after all these years is good at only a few things: fundraising and being a willing national whipping boy for the anti-gun crowd. Apart from that they have long since regressed into a toothless paper tiger. Spend your pro-gun dollars where they will do some good. There’s a number of them out there who are effective to varying degrees. It’s a Capitalistic society; you want some of your rights back, you’re just going to have to buy them.
If the NRA is attempting to protect our rights and is concerned with things like bump stocks, then why aren’t they making an issue over the two barreled two triggered AR before that one shows up at a mass shooting?
The NRA would have improved their credibility if they had made an issue of these bump stocks prior to the mass shooting. Afterward, it makes them look pathetic!
Why is it so difficult for people to understand the difference between your and you’re?
When a gun writer does that, it makes all of us look like knuckle-draggers.
Stay on the issue
I am pro NRA and this is just my opinion ! The NRA brought up the ATF’s passing this product as legal(which it is) because it does not fit the fully auto criteria to make sure the public knows the left was not going to blame this one on them! (NRA) As stated, the SlideFire system by law is legal for now ! I do not think the NRA is calling for the SlideFire stock to be made illegal ! They just want to clear up why this product is legal . I own one and it is not real practical ! It is a ammo eater and hard to hold on target but it has never killed anyone and never will ! Don’t blame the product; blame the product user !
If you read the article again you may note an important distinction. The ATF doesn’t have the jurisdiction to regulate, “bump stocks” and therefore the couldn’t adjudicate it to as legal or illegal. Congress holds that authority and during the Obama administration the congress was dominated by republicans. Wayne LaPierre is deflecting attention away from congressional Republicans and placing blame on an agency without the authorization to regulate the device in question.
This is not the first time NRA and those in charge have bit the hand of lawful gun owners. Twice in the 1980’s and onece in the 1990’s they have took the side of Dems and gun grabbers. And they will deny and spend millions covering up their willingness to sell basic freedoms for political gain.
I will NEVER support the NRA in anything they do because you can’t trust them when the going gets tough. The talk a great game and spout how much they have done, but let one IDIOT with a gun shoot up one more concert and they will come out with one more way to surrender some basic freedom to make themselves sound reasonable to the liberal media.
Considering that all the media in America is owned by a handful of billionaires and none of them vote democrat or call themselves liberals, exactly why do you think the media in general is, “liberal”? Because Hannity or Limbaugh said so?
Well, save the last bullet for yourself then, because when everything’s gone you’ll be standing and whining in your rself-righteous indignation with no one with any muscle to defend your dwindling rights. If not for the NRA everything you have right now would have gone the way of the Brits and Aussies years ago. We’ll watch and see how much traction the new gun-rights organization Dionesius backs is able to generate. I won’t hold my breath. The Left must be loving watching you fall for the divide and conquer strategy they excel at — separate the NRA from its followers and dilute its power — stellar, Dion!
I have been an NRA member for a long time. I personally don’t own anything with a bump stock but have friends that do. Bump stocks and other accessories are a personalization of an individuals firearms and this government has no right to impede upon those choices. The NRA needs to stand up for these rights and not bend over to appease these Washington gun grabbers. The stand that the NRA has taken this makes me seriously consider dropping my membership and joining a different gun rights group.
Commenters are correct. You can’t legislate sanity, ethics or morals which is why our prisons and asylums are overflowing, so why continue on with more laws that won’t change anything. If this type of legislation gets passed they will come after all semi-automatic weapons and magazines spouting the same nonsense “you don’t need them to hunt a deer”. Stop electing the people that support such nonsense, and though it pains me to say it we need to continue to support the NRA. If the members start to bail on them the anti-gunners will spin it as an endorsement of the BS they have been spewing for years. We have to remain united or lose it all.
This is by far one of the best comments on this thread. The majority of the CongressCritters who are proposing these fallacious anti-gun bills are from the coastlines of our great country. They are not from the fly-over parts of our country; they are the bastions of liberal-think, those that believe they know better than the rest of us. I have always had a problem with a legislator hailing from these parts of the country, i.e., Chuck Schumer comes to mind, telling me what I need or don’t need on my firearm(s). Chuck hasn’t a clue about what goes on in Texas, just like I don’t know the nuances of New York. His one size fits all approach to gun control is specious and dangerous. Or maybe, just let the Dems flop around like a fish out of water proposing their ‘new’ gun control measures, it makes them appear churlish, like the death throes of a dying party… Molon Labe!
Dude, tell me you’ve seen a map of the United States at some point in your lifetime and recognize that in fact, Texas is a coastal state. I often wonder why people blame coastal state politicians but ignore the fact that the coastal states have the greatest population density. Change your message and/or your approach to garner support from urban and suburban voters or continue down the existing road, grumbling all the way. Like it or not, this is America and except for presidential elections, the majority rules.
ATF and Congress are both idiots. The issue is the rate of fire, not trigger pull. The semi-auto, in the hands of a skilled shooter, can be fired reasonably accurately up to 5 shots per second. (at least this is what I know but I could be wrong). The bump-stock is designed to mimic the full auto trigger by resetting the trigger with no effort by the shooter. Making the gun shoot much faster. I would call it a modification to make the rifle similar to a full auto operation. The Semi-auto function requires full trigger pull with reset, every time.
“(at least this is what I know but I could be wrong) …”
You’re the idiot for declaring that you know something but then immediately pull it back in disclaiming that you might be wrong.
Did you not comprehend the ATF pointing out that the distinction to them is whether or not more than one round is fired with a single pull of the trigger?
I don’t have a bump stock and am neither for nor against them. They’ve been on the market for @10 years and only now has some nut job purportedly used them in a mass murder?
To me, someone intending to mass murder people and expecting to die in the process would convert his semiauto rifles to full auto instead of buying bump stocks.
Bump stocks are being targeted. True 2A defenders and supporters must not give ground; ANY ground!
Two tasks at hand…… Get rid of the BATFE. Get rid of the NRA. Not necessarily in that order.
Whom do you wish to work for you?
Which one of the above do you think works for you?!? Try GOA. Try NAGR. NRA sold out years ago,.
The GOA, NAGR… don’t get shit done. The gun lobby is what gets things done for us. It’s not a perfect system but it’s the system we have.
I watched a CNN town hall where a rep from the GOA attended to defend ownership of semi-auto rifles. I don’t remember his name because he was truly forgettable. He was a very crappy debater who did not represent our interests well. If you’re a grass-roots activist that doesn’t have the money or political clout to lobby effectively, at least be good at debating with those that want to take our rights away.
BTW, in your post above, you refer to the ATF and the Congress as idiots. I couldn’t agree more! But add the NRA to the list.
Why is it everyone gets so defensive? The NRA wants the ATF to “review” their decision on ‘bump stocks.’ The ‘Demorats’ want the ATF to ‘ban’ the bump stock. Seems to me that the ATF should put on their big girl panties and ‘review’ their decision. instead of pointing the finger of blame at everyone else. Yes I remember Ruby Ridge (shoot the dog…shoot the dog!) and Waco (Look Ma…I’m on TV!) and Janet Reno (dyke) Our country is in trouble for a lot of reasons but one of them is the people we hire DON’T DO THEIR JOB!!! Get over yourself…both sides…. and work to make America Great Again!
The ATF doesn’t have regulatory authority over, “bump stocks”. That was the point of the article. Congress hasn’t given them that authority. It’s Congress who need to revisit their decision and determine wether or not to expand upon the NFA.
I don’t see why the ATF or any other government regulatory agencies have been given the ability and authority to to make arbitrary rules without congressional supervision and or approval. By the same token this is an undefensible subject on the the part of the NRA and this accesorie should have shunned from its inception by the NRA. Bump fire stocks have nothing to do with our 2nd Amendment rites they have nothing to do with accuracy or sportsmanship it is nothing more than an accesory for dip shit ‘YAHOOS’ to hoot and howl about. This was an accident waiting to happen there is no right just wrong, it should have never been approved and an should be banned immediately.
Did you read the article? The ATF does NOT have the ability to make up their own rules and regulations. They enforce the National Firearms Act, nothing more. Their decisions about the legality of a manufactured device is based upon the NFA.
Folks we are missing something very important here. The NRA has sold us out. If they would have kept their mouths shut and waited for Congress to stick it’s foot in its mouth again, they might not have been so quick to sell us out because the NRA of all people know that the bump stock issue was not going to stop at just that. It would have seen the rather obvious that the government wants to ban AR or any other weapons deemed scary.
The NRA like all other massive organizations have gotten so big and powerful that it has become corrupt because “Absolute Power Corrupts Absolutely”.
I have been a member for the last 30 + years but not anymore. If the membership would talk with their money then maybe the NRA elites would start to listen to us and not push just their agenda on us JUST LIKE THE GOVERNMENT……
If they would go back to defending our basic rights then I will join again, but until then I’m talking with my wallet.
Tj
“…the rather obvious that the government wants to ban AR or any other weapons deemed scary…”
And to some ALL guns of any kind are scary. They will not stop at AR’s. The truth is many among them want to ban ALL guns. There was just such a faction present at the Dems’ national convention. They got little publicity from a media that wants to portray Dems as just promoting “common sense” gun laws. THAT’s what should be SCARY if you value your 2A rights.
If a change has to be made dur to anti-gun and anti bump/slide stock opinion:
The NRA wants the ATF to only look at that very narrow issue.
The BATFE not wanting to look stupid AND adding other itemsvfor enforcement =$$$$$$$, wants Congress to change the Current Law.
We The People know damn well that once te door is cracked open to Congress (even assigned officially to a Committee), the anti gun politicians and anti gun lobby groups will push to add every restriction, registration and Ban they have wanted for the last 50 years. They may compromise a bit, willing to drop 25 to 50% of their demands. It damn sure won’t be a single issue unless it to repeal the 2A.
I hope this clears up exactly whats at stake here.
Lets also address BATFE LIES. They do regulate not only outside the NFA/CFR but DIRECTLY in conflict with it. One simple example: Read what a AOW is by NFA defination and what it specifically excludes. Then read BATFE’s Letter (of Threat) regarding installation of a vertical forward grip on a handgun. Its been a Letter for over 10 years, never put on the Federal Register for a change to the Law. BATFE makes changes to the Laws all the time but this is still just a Letter listing criminal action for noncompliance of “Their Interpetation” of the Law. A Magistrate already opinioned the ATF position was not supported by te Law and the charge was withdrawn to prevent it from being Case Law and now the ATF says they “don’t recognize the Magistrates Opinion on the Transcript Record!
Proof read your material.
As a firearms enthusiast myself, I agree with the NRA that the reconsideration of the legality of these bump stocks belongs to the ATF. If the ATF recently reclassified the Auto-Glove as a machine gun, it should be intuitively obvious to even the most casual observer that bump stocks should be considered machine guns too. It was an unfortunate mistake when the ATF ruled that bump stocks were legal and that mistake turned into a tragedy some two weeks ago when 59 people lost their lives in Nevada and hundreds more were injured. While it is important for the national government that we all serve to take action to make us safer, we are a nation of laws and that requires these actions to make us safer to happen in specific ways and the bump stocks are in the ATF jurisdiction. Congress should take this opportunity to re-evaluate many of the other glaring deficiencies in our outdated firearms laws and bring us closer in line with every other developed country in the world, like the gun show loophole, universal background checks, magazine capacity limits and maybe – just maybe – finally clarifying that the right to bear arms is a collective right held by the people which allows for the organization of state militias and not an individual right reserved for individual persons. What part of “well-regulated” is so hard to understand?
Hey Blue Dog, the whole NFA is an infringement of our rights. You’re right it’s “outdated”. We don’t need anymore compromise and we don’t need you! If you want to see where you’re mentality will lead us, go visit CA or even the UK; I’ve lived in both places. What part of “shall not be infringed” is so hard to understand?
” not an individual right reserved for individual persons.”
hmmmm…looks like your interpretation of the 2A is screwy.
“Well regulated” in the terminology of the time the second amendment was written does not fit with your current day translation. When our constitution was written, we faced the most powerful military force of the day, the British regulars. The regulars received this title becaus they were very “well regulated” as in well equipped, trained, and maintained. The British government passed laws prohibiting the citizenry from owning the higher grade muskets that their regulars were equipped with. Now you have an idea of what “well regulated” truly is saying in our second amendment. This amendment is not to establish militia groups, that is every male citizen of fighting age (16 at the time we fought the revolutionary war). Our second amendment is in place to allow WE THE PEOPLE to hold the power of self protection and militia action if needed to prevent our governments from stealing our rights away from us either by force or legislation.
Excellent comment, two thumbs up.
The 59th person who lost their life in that incident was the piece of shit criminal himself just before they breached his door. Also, he did not point a bump-stock equipped rifle at his own head. He used a S&W J-frame that was photographed next to him in all the crime scene photos leaked to the media.
We should be working to get rid of the ATF, not give them more power! Anyone remember Waco and Ruby Ridge? I’m a member of the NRA but it’s clear we need new leadership. LaPierre needs to go.
Chris Cox too!
Anyone that blames NRA or ATF or anyone else for Vegas is mistaken, except for the sick creep that murdered and harmed those innocent people. The pathetic search for the guilty and punishment of the innocent, seems stupid and pointless.You can’t regulate or legislate crazy. That persons actions would have been viewed differently if he had crashed one of his airplanes into the crowd. I believe he used the method he did because he wanted to create the exact type of controversy he has, now we have law and regulation by madman.