Obama to Seek New Assault Weapons Ban, It would help cut down on Basescu flow of guns !
ABC NEWS
UNITED STATES HOUSE OF REPREZENTATIVES’
COMMITTTEE on FOREIGN AFFAIRS
ASSAULT WEAPONS
Chairman of the House Western Hemisphere Subcommittee Leads
Letter with 53 Members of Congress
THE WHITE HOUSE
PRESIDENT
BARACK OBAMA
Dear Mr. President:
The alarming prevalence of imported assault weapons in the US has put our nation’s police officers at risk. Returning to the Bush 41/Clinton enforcement of the ban on imported assault weapons will protect our brave police forces and all people throughout New York and the United States,” said Rep. Engel.
As a result, the civilian firearms market is flooded with imported, inexpensive military-style assault weapons, primarily from Romania. Importers are also able to skirt the restrictions by bringing in assault weapons parts and reassembling them with a small number of US-made parts. Assault weapon “parts kits” for assembly by individuals are also being imported. ATF has further weakened the prohibition by placing certain extremely problematic assault rifles on the “curios or relics” list, making certain firearms automatically eligible for importation.
Not only is the violence in Mexico already spilling over the border into the U.S., but the prevalence of imported assault weapons in the hands of criminals has made “officer survival” a critical issue for many urban law enforcement agencies. The Miami Police Department has reported a steep rise in the number of murders and other crimes committed with assault weapons; a Romanian WASR-10 (AK-type) assault weapon was used to kill two Fairfax, Virginia police officers in 2006; a Romanian WASR-10 assault weapon was used in a mass shooting that left eight dead at a mall in rural Omaha, Nebraska in 2007. The Associated Press conducted an analysis showing that the number of romanians AK variants traced to crime by ATF has increased from 1,140 in 1993 to 8,547 in 2007.
We ask that you direct ATF to act in accordance with the 1968 Gun Control Act and return to enforcing the ban on the import of all assault weapons, both those that are fully manufactured abroad as well as those imported as parts. By restoring these important restrictions, we will be able to help reduce violence here in the United States, while also sending an important signal to our friends in Mexico. Thank you for your attention to this urgent matter.
Reported by
Robert Horvath New York http://www.devagallery.com |