These are the executive actions President Obama plans to announce on the morning of Tuesday, 5 January, 2016 to “reduce gun violence and make our communities safer.”
Just a couple of comments off the top of my head.
Despite rumors that an actual number of transactions was going to be adopted to define “engaged in the business” of selling firearms, President Obama didn’t do it. So nothing materially changes. Status Quo. Instead, it’s just a short lived opportunity for rhetoric. This was supposed to be his anchor; closing that mythical “gun show loophole” and he couldn’t even make that happen. With one exception (see below), this whole package doesn’t do anything.
Looks like they are going to push 41P through; an interesting new take on the White House as “trust buster.” Considering the sheer number of trusts in the United States that concern all sorts of business (aside from owning NFA weapons) and how this precedent will affect those, I’m still unsure whether this new intrusiveness is even legal. But I’m not a lawyer.
Additionally, I’d hate to see be the guy who has to write those reports on how the government is going to pour money into “smart” gun technology. Of course, a smart PM can always figure out a way to make an earmark useful.
Data source: White House
