Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.) has just taken a stand for second amendment rights by introducing four new amendments today to the Senate Budget Resolution for Fiscal Year 2016. Each one seeks to protect and preserve the gun rights of law-abiding citizens from efforts such as the failed ammunition ban.
First of the four, Amendment 382, would prevent the ATF from making future efforts to ban popular forms of ammunition that are used for sporting purposes as currently allowed under the Law Enforcement Officers Protection Act. Inhofe says:
"Congress has spoken time and again on its intent to protect Americans’ Second Amendment rights, but the Obama Administration is responding by going around Congress through regulations. This amendment would protect popular ammunition used for sporting purposes from being banned under the current administration."
Amendment 383 would continue to fend off the establishment of a national firearms registry that could potentially be misused by the government, Inhofe explains:
“Currently, a national gun registry is prohibited under federal law, and that’s how it should remain. There is a reason such a registry is outlawed as it has the potential to be misused by the federal government for suppressing Americans' Second Amendment rights.”
Amendment 384 is meant to prevent the federal government from targeting legal firearms dealers through their banks:
“Firearm dealers across the nation have reported efforts by banks to close their accounts due to pressure being placed by the Department of Justice. This shows once again the Obama Administrations overreach and intimidation tactics as they target businesses who participate in completely legal firearm sales. My amendment would protect law-abiding firearms dealers’ from being financially targeted by federal agencies.”
Lastly, Amendment 385, which is co-sponsored by Sen. Jerry Moran (R-Kan.), would prevent taxpayer money from going toward the implementation of the U.N.’s Arms Trade Treaty (ATT), or to organizations that aim to implement the ATT before Senate ratification and implementation legislation passes both the House and Senate. More than 50 countries have ratified the treaty. The U.N., through a secretariat of the U.N. Conference, would be in charge of handling the practical and logistic arrangements in relation to the treaty.
Under the treaty, the U.S. could have to contribute up to 22 percent of the funding – its current contribution to the U.N. as a whole. In regards to the treaty, Inhofe says:
“The UN Arms Trade Treaty is an ambiguous treaty which does nothing to guarantee the protection of personal gun ownership and could potentially interfere with our ability to help our allies. Senator Moran and I have shown that the Senate will not ratify this treaty and therefore, the United States should not be on the hook to fund its implementation.”