Mexico: Why Is U.S. Backing Away From Gun Ban? | Newsweek Voices - Terror Watch

Why is Attorney General Eric Holder backing away from an assault weapons ban?

PHOTOS

Border War

Photos by Ian Martin for NEWSWEEK

How violence from Mexico's drug trade affects the U.S.

By Michael Isikoff and Mark Hosenball | Newsweek Web Exclusive

Mar 25, 2009

Email To A Friend

Please fill in the following information and we'll email this link.

SPONSORED BY

After fierce resistance from the gun lobby and its allies in Congress, Attorney General Eric Holder has dialed back talk about reimposing a federal assault weapons ban to help curb the spiraling violence in Mexico.

As much as 90 percent of the assault weapons and other guns used by Mexican drug cartels are coming from the United States, fueling drug-related violence that is believed to have killed more than 7,000 people since January 2008, according to estimates by Mexican and U.S. law enforcement officials. But the political obstacles to addressing the U.S.-to-Mexico weapons flow are dramatically underscored by Holder's experience in just the last few weeks.

Speaking at a Feb. 25 news conference announcing a roundup of Mexican cartel members in the United States, Holder endorsed reinstituting the ban on assault weapons—a position that President Obama himself supported during last year's campaign. A federal ban on high-powered, semi-automatic assault weapons, originally passed by Congress in 1994, expired five years ago.

"There are just a few gun-related changes that we would like to make, and among them would be to reinstitute the ban on the sale of assault weapons," Holder said in response to a question from a Mexican reporter. "I think that will have a positive impact in Mexico at a minimum." Holder then ducked a follow-up question about whether he expected Congress to act on a renewed ban this year, saying, "I'm not sure exactly what the sequencing will be" on legislative issues that the Obama administration presses on Capitol Hill.

But his comments roused the gun lobby. The National Rifle Association quickly sent out "action alerts" to its members. Sixty-five House Democrats signed a letter saying they would oppose any new ban—as did Montana's two Democratic senators, Max Baucus and Jon Tester. "Senators to Attorney General Holder: Stay Away From Our Guns," read a press release sent out by Baucus's office. In addition, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid both shot down the idea that Congress would take up any new assault weapons ban this year.

txlibertarian: In England the chavs go around beating people up a la Clockwork Orange. Not the best country to compare to.

atvfrank: Assault weapons are not fully automatic as those are controlled by the National Firearms Act of 1936. I'm surprised in your vitriol that you don't even know the gun laws or the legal definition of an assault weapon? The "assault weapon" is basically the semi-auto version of an assault rifle: magazine, pistol-grip, etc (If the SKS were shorter had a pistol grip it'd probably be an assault weapon.)

The cartels can get weapons through ransacking the stockpiles of weapons that WE shipped to them in the '80s to outfit their armies and death squads. What we can do to help is to send arms control people to set up inventory and control practices, and ship excess inventory or have it destroyed in place. I have no doubts that now that all the Latin American countries have settled down, that we can take back lots of weapons from their militaries to keep it from falling into the hands of the cartels.

The United States is a source of semi-auto weapons for the dealers. I'm sure that every foot soldier has a hand gun, and hand guns are probably bought new from the US. Don't focus on assault weapons people! Hand guns kill people too!

And there's ammo, though ammo is expensive on this side of the border due to shortages.

Member Comments

- Reply
- Report Abuse
Posted By: Jimmys Crackhorn @ 11/18/2009 4:44:36 PM
- Reply
- Report Abuse
Posted By: winsettz @ 11/15/2009 8:17:34 AM

txlibertarian: In England the chavs go around beating people up a la Clockwork Orange. Not the best country to compare to.

atvfrank: Assault weapons are not fully automatic as those are controlled by the National Firearms Act of 1936. I'm surprised in your vitriol that you don't even know the gun laws or the legal definition of an assault weapon? The "assault weapon" is basically the semi-auto version of an assault rifle: magazine, pistol-grip, etc (If the SKS were shorter had a pistol grip it'd probably be an assault weapon.)

The cartels can get weapons through ransacking the stockpiles of weapons that WE shipped to them in the '80s to outfit their armies and death squads. What we can do to help is to send arms control people to set up inventory and control practices, and ship excess inventory or have it destroyed in place. I have no doubts that now that all the Latin American countries have settled down, that we can take back lots of weapons from their militaries to keep it from falling into the hands of the cartels.

The United States is a source of semi-auto weapons for the dealers. I'm sure that every foot soldier has a hand gun, and hand guns are probably bought new from the US. Don't focus on assault weapons people! Hand guns kill people too!

And there's ammo, though ammo is expensive on this side of the border due to shortages.
- Reply
- Report Abuse
Posted By: TheDevil @ 10/30/2009 4:18:33 AM

It didn't take 12 months for me to get fed up with the Obama administration. The real problem being ignored by Mexico and the U.S is the inability and lack of desire to control our border.While the U.S. lets tens of thousands of illegal alien Mexicans flood our country with Mexican government support these twits have the gaul to tell us to pass another illegal and unconstitutional gun ban? Get the @#ck outta here. If Mexico would do some enforcement alone the border, thus keeping its invading hordes on its side of the border, they wouldn't have U.S. weapons in their country. Ditto for the U.S. regime. Enforce border policy. Quit molesting US citizens.