Biden administration closing gun show loophole

Good! At least the administration is trying to do something. We know the GOP could care less about gun violence.

Yeah, I think that is probably an under reported number, lol.

From the article I read this morning...

www.al.com/news/2024/04/president-joe-biden-moves-to-add-background-checks-for-all-gun-sales.html

President Joe Biden on Thursday announced an executive action that will require all gun sellers to conduct a background check.

Currently, a 1993 law requires anyone wishing to purchase a gun from a federally licensed firearms dealer to pass a background check. But loopholes allow many online purchases, gun show purchases and transfers to occur without background checks.

“This single gap in our federal background check system has caused unimaginable pain and suffering,” Vice President Kamala Harris told media, referencing the upcoming 25 year anniversary of the Columbi shooting and other recent deadly shootings.

Under new White House regulation, it will not matter if guns are “sold on the internet, at a gun show, or at a brick-and-mortar store: if you sell guns predominantly to earn a profit,” you must be licensed, and you must conduct background checks, federal officials said Wednesday.

“I’ll say in the years to come, I do believe countless families and communities will be spared the horror and the heartbreak of gun violence by this new rule,” Harris said.

Federal officials say the rule is not a universal background check.

In 2022, Alabama became the 25th state to have permitless carry – sometimes referred to as “constitutional carry” -- despite concerns expressed by many law enforcement officers, including sheriffs, who are typically a strong GOP ally.

In 2023, more than 40,000 people died in the United States from gun-related injuries, and gun injuries became the leading cause of death among children in Alabama.

Federal officials said 60% of recipients of trafficked firearms were previously convicted felons; and hundreds of traffic guns were directly linked to murders and shootings.

“Gun violence has devastated families across the country. For many, this has meant the loss of a parent, child, student, fellow officer or friend. And for their communities, this has meant persistent grief and lasting fear,” Attorney General Merrick Garland said.

This year, the legislature has largely avoided debate about whether to loosen or strengthen state gun laws, but a group of mayors has asked to increase the penalty for firing a gun into an occupied home, business, or vehicle. Local officials have also asked the state to take action on Glock switches, which convert a handgun into an automatic weapon. State Rep. Philip Ensler has introduced a bill in the legislature that would prohibit people from owning parts to convert a weapon into a machine gun.

The new federal rule will make clear the circumstances in which a person is “engaged in the business” of dealing in firearms and required to obtain a federal firearms license, in order to increase compliance with the federal background check requirement for firearm sales by federal firearms licensees.

The Final Rule goes into effect 30 days after the date of publication in the Federal Register.
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I'm all for new laws and doing anything we can to help with gun violence even if it saves just one life, so don't get me wrong when I say "however". LoL

However, if it's as the bolded statement above, that is not going to do anything at all for the friends and family trading and selling guns. I certainly can't come up with a solution for that issue.  I'm all for laws even if I don't believe they will do any good. 

My friend used to work security for gun shows. It never failed a few felons who weren’t allowed to own guns always tried to buy them there. They almost always came across people who had warrants out for their arrest too.

But that's not what was said. What was said: For family and friends who are trading or selling guns to their family and friends, if a gun was used in a crime that they had traded or sold to the person, they should also be punished.

I agree. If you knowing sell to someone who is mentally unstable, planning a crime, and unfit then yes. Be held accountable. But none of those qualifiers were listed. 

I think all gun sales should go through licensed dealers so appropriate background checks should be done. As an individual, I do not have access to the databases that would preclude someone from owning a guns, so would never sell one to anyone. There's a whole lot we don't know about our friends and family and if we want to get serious about having strict background checks, stopping private sales would be a huge step in making sure those checks are actually done. 

Sure - just as there are always people who break and circumvent laws and they should be prosecuted - particularly if that gun is then used in a crime. People will also continue to drink and drive - I'm glad that we now prosecute those who think that's acceptable, particularly when they then kill people 

Reducing gun violence is complicated and can't be solved with just one bill or one executive order. However, this is a step in the right direction. There is no logical reason for there to be loopholes in background checks for gun shows.

Yes, people will always find ways to circumvent the laws. But, that doesn't mean we shouldn't try to make it harder for people who should not have access to guns to get them. And background checks do work, they stopped 300,000 people from getting a gun in 2020. Some of those people may have obtained a gun illegally, but at a minimum, the background check slowed them down. And for impulsive young men in particular, sometimes time is what you need in order for cooler heads to prevail.



www.justice.gov/opa/pr/justice-department-marks-more-500-illegal-firearm-purchases-stopped-new-enhanced-background

apnews.com/article/gun-background-checks-blocked-record-high-sales-e0c3105b6632740b8f15858cd930441a

I also think we need to eliminate immunity for gun manufacturers. If gun manufacturers were held accountable, there would be an incentive to do more to make guns safer like fingerprint locks, a 6 digit code etc. We have the technology to lock phones, we could do that for guns, too.

Class action lawsuits against the tobacco industry prompted a shift in advertising and public health efforts to stop smoking. Car manufacturers developed safety innovations like air bags, anti-lock brakes, brighter and more brake lights etc partly because of civil litigation.

Some states are starting to roll back protection for gun manufacturers, but a federal change would be more effective.