The NRA has become the most powerful lobby in America. It is not so much their 4.5 million members, but that they are right-wing activists suffering various degrees of paranoia and consumed with either killing or practicing killing. The AARP may be bigger but the fear factor concerning millions of grandmas on three wheelers spending their time keeping their hearing aids out of the Fixodent, is about nil. But a politician bucking the NRA not only puts their election in doubt, but will generates so many threats that many have to call in the Secret Service or pay for their own protection. So don’t be looking for any help in this matter from even a Democratic Congress.
First of all let us not forget the man behind this crazyass law, Todd Tiahrt (R – 2PID). Tiahrt vies with Virgil Goode (R-As 2PID as it Gets) for the top slot as Moron in Congress [Daniel Inhofe has held that slot in the Senate now for over a decade]. A few weeks ago Tiahrt was in the news with another of his crazyass laws dissallowing Needle Exchange Programs in Washington DC [with his nose 2000 miles outside his own district in some blood red state I can’t even recall.]. I in the face of all science and all studies that these exchange programs reduce cases of HIV and Hepatitus at no expense to society, Tiahrt explains SOME STUDIES prove otherwise. Indeed I well imagine that if Tiahrt, Virgil Goode, Pat Robertson, and Bozo studied the issue car pooling to a Reverend Moon seminar, they would arrive at whatever results they wanted. This Amendment which is sponsored by the NRA erupts from the same silliness.
The Tiahrt Amendment disallows the ATF to share national criminal gun sales data with police. The NRA argument is that if the ATF could share criminal gun sale trace data, then the identities of police officers and undercover agents would be put in jeopardy, and secondly it could lead to possible lawsuits against the dealers most responsible for their guns ending up in the hands criminals.
The first issue is just a flat out lie as the law already protects the identities of police and undercover agents, but the second issue is right on the money. Big NRA money to protect not only more sales for gun manufacturers and dealers, but for the Republican Party to protect the people and organizations the ATF data trends would spot; racist groups, militias, minutemen, Davidians, Cripps, MS-13, al Qaeda and of course a few million Harris and Klebolds. What is known as the base of the Republican Party. Facts of the matter…