Gun Shows

The following is the text of an e-mail message I sent to President Bush on May 14, 2001. It expresses my concerns about the attempts currently under way to "close" the so-called "gun show loophole", which of course does not exist. I urge all readers of GunBlast.com to write the President (as well as your Congressman and Senators) in opposition to the erosion of our civil rights!

Boge Quinn

Dear Mr. President,

First, I want to thank you for the progress you are making. The former occupant of the White House left the country in a mess in nearly every conceivable way, leaving you quite a task to undertake, and you have come through with flying colors. I knew when you chose Dick Cheney for your #2 man that you were the right man for the job. I enthusiastically supported you through the campaign, and I must say you have exceeded my high expectations.

I am concerned about the push for gun control legislation under the aegis of a "gun show loophole". It seems that most of Congress cannot figure out that no "gun show loophole" exists; ALL transfers of guns from FFL-holding dealers are subject to the same regulations, whether the transfer takes place at a gun show or in the FFL dealer's store. The so-called "gun show loophole" is an attempt by left-wing extremists to regulate transfers of guns between private citizens; it is a dangerous first step towards banning any private transfer of firearms, whether it be a father who wishes to give his son his first .22 rifle, or one who wishes to leave his guns as part of his estate.

Senator Reed's bill, S.767, is particularly offensive in several ways:

Like Senator Lautenberg's predecessor bill, S.767 calls for massive new government powers to register gun show customers, register gun owners, retain information on people who pass criminal records checks when buying firearms, heavily tax both gun collectors and gun sales, and require gun show promoters to police gun show customers, as if they were agents of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms.

The bill is not about "gun shows." Claims that the bill would only "close" the so-called "gun show loophole" by requiring Instant Checks on non-retail sales of guns at gun shows, are patently false. In reality, gun shows are large, public events held in convention centers and banquet halls. But S. 767 defines "gun show" so broadly, that it would include a person's home. Merely "offering" to "exchange" a firearm at an "event" could be banned. The National Matches at Camp Perry and your local gun club's Sunday trap shoot would be defined as "events" subject to the bill's provisions. Even talking about a gun at an "event" could be seen as an illegal "offer" to sell a gun. Even if you are not a dealer, but you display a gun at a gun show, and then months later sell the gun to someone you met at the show, you would be subject to the same requirements as if you completed the sale at the gun show. The restrictions and regulations S. 767 would impose upon real gun shows, and upon gun owners' personal activities the bill would preposterously define as "gun shows" and "events," are unprecedented. Running afoul of S. 767's numerous, far-fetched provisions could send you to prison for years.

Gun show customer registration: a person who attends a show, even without a gun, who even discusses the possibility of selling a gun, would be required to sign "a ledger with identifying information." Gun show promoters would have to retain the ledgers indefinitely for inspection by the BATF.

Absurd requirement on gun show promoters: because a promoter cannot know whether a person who attends his show will discuss the sale of a gun, he will have to require every customer to sign the ledger, and check every customer's ID to verify the information required on the ledger.

Invasion of privacy: in addition to records kept on gun show customers, the bill would allow the FBI to retain, for 90 days, personal information about people who clear instant checks when buying guns.

Gun collector registration: if you are at home with a collection of 50 or more firearms, it would be a five-year felony to "offer" or "exchange" a single gun -- even between family or friends -- unless you first registered with the BATF and paid a fee, the cost of which would be at BATF's discretion.

Taxing guns into oblivion: the bill would allow the FBI to charge an unlimited fee for Instant Checks and allow the BATF to charge an unlimited fee for registering people as "event" sponsors.

Even if S.767 is defeated, as I expect it will be, there will be other, less overt attempts at getting rid of that pesky 2nd Amendment on the horizon. I am trusting you, Mr. President, to stand in the gap for the law-abiding gun owners of this country. I applaud your efforts to step-up prosecutions under current law, and your wish to expend "project exile"; these are meaningful efforts to promote the rule of law and the safety of Americans, while attempts to further regulate transfers (and other "gun safety" issues) are merely attempts by left-wing extremists to circumvent the Constitution and disarm law-abiding Americans.

Thank you, sir, for your attention and your service to our Country. God bless you.

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