Biden's Executive Order Aims At Tighter Gun Control

By Jen Maravegias | Politics | March 14, 2023 |

By Jen Maravegias | Politics | March 14, 2023 |

Joe Biden may not be the Progressive Second Coming that we want but he might be the Moderately Progressive Bureaucrat we need. Later today President Biden will be in Monterey Park, California, the site of one of this year’s 110 mass shootings, to announce his Executive Order aimed at bridging some of the gaps in existing gun safety laws. Since taking office, Biden has spent a lot of time asking Congress to do something, anything to pass more gun control laws: universal background checks, red flags, ban assault rifles and/or high-capacity magazines, maybe close a loophole or two.

But we all know Congress isn’t willing to give up that sweet, sweet, NRA money to do anything to keep us safe. Executive Orders aren’t ideal but at least they’re something. Polling shows that the majority of Americans are for more stringent gun control laws. If Congress won’t act then a President’s gotta do what a President’s gotta do.

Today’s Executive Order will bolster the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act that Biden signed last year. It directs the President’s cabinet to do a few things.

Increase the number of background checks by ensuring that all background checks required by law are conducted before firearm purchases. This is as close to universal background checks as we’re going to get without actual legislation being passed.

Expand existing federal campaigns and other efforts to promote the safe storage of firearms and increase the appropriate use of extreme risk protection (“red flag”) orders.

Address the loss or theft of firearms during shipping.

ATF data indicates an over 250% increase in the number of firearms reported as lost or stolen during shipment between federally licensed firearms dealers, from roughly 1,700 in 2018 to more than 6,100 in 2022.

What?! Where are all of those guns, folks? What kind of guns were they? This is the sort of thing that would be easily addressed by Mark Harmon or Jeremy Sisto punching someone in the face during an arrest on a CBS procedural. But real life is always so much more complicated than television.

The Executive Order also includes instructions to provide the public with more information about federally licensed firearms dealers who are violating the law. I’m all for transparency and maybe if The People had a better understanding of where the problems in the system are they’ll stop saying dumb things like “Oh yeah, well what about Chicago? They have strict gun laws but there’s still violence in that city.” (Seriously, shut up about Chicago already.)

Biden also wants the Department of Defense to buy more guns … for our safety? I guess it keeps them off the streets but I don’t think the government needs any more guns either.

There’s language in the Executive Order about advancing congressional efforts to “prevent the proliferation of firearms undetectable by metal detectors” in part by modernizing and making the Undetectable Firearms Act of 1988 permanent. It also seeks to strengthen federal support for “gun violence survivors, victims, and survivors’ families, first responders to gun violence, and communities affected by gun violence” similar to the way FEMA steps in after natural disasters.

Biden is also instructing federal law enforcement agencies to be more rigorous in their use of The National Integrated Ballistics Information Network which is used to match bullets to the guns they came from. And each agency responsible for the implementation of the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act is being instructed to send a report within 60 days, on “progress toward full implementation of BSCA and additional steps they will take to maximize the benefits of the law, including by increasing public awareness and use of the resources made available by BSCA.”

Finally, the Executive Order also urges the FTC to issue a report on how gun manufacturers market firearms to civilians, and children, through the use of military imagery. Can we also apply this to all of those super classy members of the government who post pictures or send Christmas cards of their whole families lined up with AK47s in front of the tree? Because that would be great.

I’m sure someone, somewhere is already complaining about the Constitutionality of this Executive Order. So Congress, the ball’s in your court. Stop worrying about who’s reading All Boys Aren’t Blue and pass some gun laws already.