The Other McCain

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Joe Biden Blames Crime Surge on Mythical ‘Rogue’ Gun Dealers

Posted on | June 23, 2021 | Comments Off on Joe Biden Blames Crime Surge on Mythical ‘Rogue’ Gun Dealers

It’s a superstition, a snipe hunt, a pursuit of imaginary phantoms:

President Joe Biden launched a new crime prevention strategy Wednesday in a push to take on soaring gun violence as Republicans blame a rise in crime on calls from progressive activists to cut police funding.
In a speech from the White House, Biden announced a “zero-tolerance policy” for rogue gun dealers and a new focus by the Justice Department to try to stop the illegal sale of firearms. . . .
Biden’s plan includes a new Justice Department policy that will allow the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives to revoke federal licenses of gun dealers the first time they violate federal law. Violations could include selling firearms to a prohibited buyer, failing to run required background checks or falsifying firearm transaction forms or other records. . . .
“We’ll find you and we will seek your license to sell guns,” Biden said of rogue sellers. “We’ll make sure you can’t sell death and mayhem on our streets. It’s an outrage. It has to end, and we’ll end it. Period.”
Biden called for additional federal money to hire more ATF inspectors and agents. He said the ATF also will begin publicizing inspection findings and enforcement actions . . .
The Justice Department plans to target the illegal flow of firearms across state lines through the creation of five new firearms strike forces. Authorities will coordinate with the ATF and cities and states to crack down on significant gun trafficking corridors that have diverted guns into New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, the San Francisco Bay area and Washington, D.C.
“So legal guns sold from the backdoor of a gun shop in Virginia don’t end up in a murder scene in Baltimore,” Biden said.

This is not what is causing the surge of violent crime, and the policies Biden announced will do nothing to reverse the surge. Criminals aren’t acquiring guns through the “backdoor” of legal gun shops, but instead are either (a) acquiring them through straw purchasers or (b) stealing them.

What? You think a burglar or a car thief can’t steal a gun?

ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. — A 22-year-old bicyclist from was arrested on a weapons charge after colliding with a car, authorities said. After the crash, a reportedly witness told police that a handgun dropped out of the bicycle rider’s satchel, an Atlantic City police spokesman said. Detectives found that the handgun had been stolen in North Carolina, according to the police spokesman, Lt. Kevin Fair.

LYNDEN, Washington — On June 16, Whatcom County Sheriff’s deputies responded to a residential burglary report on the outskirts of Lynden, according to a department press release.??The homeowner reported that he had returned home from a trip to discover that the front door of his residence had been forced open. Inside, he found several of his firearm safes had been forced open as well. Upon a quick check on his inventory, he reported 29 stolen firearms. Video surveillance showed two suspects inside the house. Deputies immediately identified the suspects as Darrell Glenman, 51, and Kimberly Belles, 52, both of Blaine. Deputies recovered 27 of the stolen firearms from Glenman, who admitted to selling two of the stolen firearms and provided information on where he sold them. The remaining two firearms were located and recovered.

WOODLAND PARK, Colorado — A 35-year-old man was arrested after he allegedly rammed a stolen car into a Teller County Sheriff deputy’s vehicle and fought with deputies, the Sheriff’s Office said. Robert Anthony Leon was driving a 2019 Nissan Sentra when he struck the back of the deputy’s vehicle, the Sheriff’s Office said. Leon allegedly led deputies, officers and Colorado State Patrol in a car chase that ended at U.S. 24 and Crystola, where he attempted to brake-check a deputy’s vehicle and stuck the highway’s guard rail before bouncing back into traffic, the Sheriff’s Office said. Officers swooped into pin Leon’s vehicle with their own. After a short struggle inside the vehicle, deputies arrested Leon and found a stolen gun he had under his leg, the Sheriff’s Office said.

MERIDEN, Connecticut — Two Meriden residents are facing charges in connection with a home invasion. Police said the incident took place on October 25th, 2020. Officers were called to a home on West Main Street on the report of a home invasion. While no injuries were reported, several guns were reportedly stolen.

FLORENCE, Colorado — A teenager was arrested after an officer received multiple reports that a student allegedly threatened to “shoot up” a school in Colorado. “A few hours later, a Fremont County sheriff’s deputy located and attempted to contact the suspect in Canon City,’ police wrote in a release. “The suspect was detained after a brief foot pursuit, and a stolen firearm was located in his possession. The juvenile was placed in custody by the Canon City Police for possession of the stolen firearm.”

TARPON SPRINGS, Florida — Three teenage boys were taken into custody this week in relation to multiple car burglaries, the Tarpon Springs Police Department reported. Officers began investigating the case at approximately 10:45 p.m., Monday, when responding to a call of an in-progress vehicle burglary in the 700 block of Driftwood Lane. A Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office K9 unit and an air unit assisted TSPD officers and a 17-year-old male was taken into custody. The teen was charged with one count of burglary and the investigation developed two more juvenile suspects. Less than six hours later, at approximately 4:35 a.m., Tuesday, TSPD officers responded to the 700 block of Lincoln Avenue in reference to a report of another vehicle burglary. This incident resulted in the theft of a Smith and Wesson .380 M&P pistol from an unlocked vehicle, reports state.

Such a listing could be extended indefinitely. Criminals like guns. Criminals like stealing. What do criminals like to steal? Guns.

What this “crackdown” on alleged “rogue” gun dealers is really about is increasing ATF harassment of small mom-and-pop businesses. But it’s not the legal gun dealer who’s committing these crimes in America’s cities. The Biden administration doesn’t want to prosecute actual criminals, because the criminals are members of a key electoral constituency (to phrase it as tactfully as possible).

Biden’s “crackdown” won’t do anything to reduce violent crime. Instead, we can predict, it will produce a series of press releases — hyped by the liberal media — about ATF revoking licenses of small firearms dealers who didn’t keep their paperwork in order, so Biden can claim he’s doing something to fight the scourge of “gun violence.” No fewer dead bodies, you understand, but more mom-and-pop businesses being bankrupted for the sake of a political propaganda operation.




 

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