In a historic move, 26 states filed lawsuits on Wednesday against the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, Explosives and the Justice Department.
On April 19, 2023, the ATF published a final rule that requires thousands of gun owners who follow the law to register as firearms dealers. This rule was derived from a federal anti-gunner act passed in 2022 after several high-profile mass shootings.
On Wednesday in Frisco, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach announced their multistate alliances.
Paxton gave his first press conference after being impeached. Paxton was the first Texas Attorney-General to be impeached, in Texas history.
The states have filed a suit against the ATF and the Department of Justice for a new ATF rule that was published by the Biden Administration on April 19, According to the administration, this rule implements the 2022 Bipartisan Security Communities Act spearheaded by Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas.
The lawsuit was filed by two coalitions led by Texas and Kansas.
The lawsuit has been filed in the U.S. District Court Northern District of Texas Amarillo Division:
Kansas is a member of a coalition that includes Arkansas, Iowa, and Montana. Alaska, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Kentucky, Missouri, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia, and Wyoming.
Paxton referred to the legal battle as a struggle for constitutional rights. He said: “Yet again, Joe Biden weaponizes the federal government bureaucracy to tear apart the Constitution and destroy Second Amendment Rights for our citizens. ”
President Joe Biden has used the ATF to push his anti-gunner agenda after Congress failed to pass the radical anti-gunner laws that he promised while campaigning. Those who sell only a few guns per year would have to register, submit background checks, and maintain records. Normally these requirements are reserved for commercial firearm dealers.
This rule attempts to limit the right to carry arms.
Registration as a firearms seller would require federal oversight and place a heavy financial burden upon individuals. This rule includes hefty penalties and licensing fees to discourage the sale of personal firearms.
The complexity of the world of selling firearms is already difficult enough to navigate. This rule will only make it worse. As Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach highlighted: “Biden’s latest attempt to strip away the Second Amendment rights of Americans through ATF regulations will make many law-abiding gun owners felons if they sell a firearm or two to family or friends.”
Ashley Moody, Florida’s Attorney General, weighed in on this debate. She criticized the rule for its potential to “force thousands of law-abiding gun owners to navigate bureaucratic processes as a precondition to engaging in constitutionally protected activity.”
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