“The NRA does not want terrorists or dangerous people to have firearms,” National Rifle Association Director of Public Affairs Jennifer Baker said last November after the Paris attacks that killed 130 people.
I have no doubt that’s true. After all, why would the NRA want terrorists to have firearms? It’s difficult to imagine a reason.
Baker went on to say: “any suggestion otherwise is offensive and wrong.”
Well, it’s not my intention to offend anyone, but honestly, I don’t care if I do. Because it is increasingly obvious to most rational observers that while the NRA may have good intentions, its actions facilitate domestic terrorists’ acquisition of firearms.
The NRA likes to prattle on about how gun control laws won’t keep guns away from criminals. But in the case of Orlando, Florida shooter Omar Matteen and other terrorists, we’re not talking about mere criminals. We’re talking about enemy combatants: people who have effectively declared war on the United States and seek to overthrow the constitution, including the 2nd amendment the NRA cherishes above all else.
As has been widely reported, the FBI investigated Mateen three times for possible terrorist links and activities. Mateen variously pledged support to ISIS, Hezbollah, and a branch of Al-Quaida called the Nursra Front. These three groups all oppose each other, which illustrates Mateen’s incoherence. However, the groups also all have something in common: they are all hostile to the United States, and the federal government lists them as terrorist organizations.
Nevertheless, Mateen legally purchased two guns from a shop run, ironically enough, by a retired New York City police officer who worked out of the World Trade Center on September 11. Mateen physically acquired the firearms in accordance with Florida law. He laid down his money, and walked out with the Sig Sauer MCX .223 assault rifle, AR-15 style magazine that holds 30 rounds, and enough ammunition to become a mass murderer. In a separate transaction, he purchased a Glock 17, 9mm semi-automatic pistol, commonly used by law enforcement around the world, and took possession of it after a required three day waiting period.
For 10 months, Mateen had been in the FBI’s Terrorist Screening Database, better known as the the terrorist watch list. Despite this, the federal government could not have prevented Mateen from purchasing firearms, including a military grade weapon. It could keep him off of airplanes, but it could not keep him from legally buying guns.
The federal government does not currently have the power to stop would-be terrorists from purchasing weapons if they are American citizens or permanent resident aliens.
What is the NRA’s role in this?
Currently, the NRA opposes any expansion of gun control. Period. Thus, it opposes any gun control law that would empower the federal government to prohibit would-be domestic terrorists from acquiring firearms.
Specifically, the NRA opposes expanding background checks on people who purchase firearms. In its own words: NRA opposes expanding firearm background check systems, because background checks don’t stop serious criminals from getting guns and because NRA opposes gun registration.
The NRA also opposes any regulation of military grade firearms. Indeed, it won’t even write the words “assault weapons” without derisively placing quotation marks around them.
Would-be domestic terrorists should not be allowed to buy any firearms, much less military grade weapons. However, the NRA promotes statements like this: There Really is No Policy Solution to Tragedies Like Orlando, and it Can Hurt to Seek One.
The NRA also says: Anyone Who Would Use Terror as an Excuse to Subvert the Second Amendment Should Be Tarred & Feathered.
So while the NRA assures us it doesn’t want terrorists and dangerous people to have guns, it does everything in its power to stop federal legislation that would prevent domestic terrorists like Omar Mateen from buying firearms. And it jokes(?) that people who advocate for increased gun control against terrorists should be lynched.
The National Rifle Association may have good intentions, but its actions lead me to draw this conclusion: The NRA aids and abets would-be domestic terrorists.