Representative Dingell Pushes
for NICS Reform
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"...[I]t is because of Rep. Dingell's
involvement with the shaping of this legislation that it became a
positive, productive measure..." |
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Rep. Dingell (D-MI) |
Last week, U.S. Representatives John Dingell (D-Mich.) and Carolyn
McCarthy (D-N.Y.) introduced H.R. 4757. And while a bill with Carolyn
McCarthy's name on it is usually bad news for gun owners, this one would
actually take positive, corrective steps to improve the ailing
National
Instant Check System (NICS). H.R. 4757 seeks to improve the operation
of NICS by pressuring all 50 states to ensure NICS has instant access to
the records of individuals who are prohibited from possessing a
firearm.
Unfortunately, some within the anti-gun community, including members of
the media, are misclassifying this legislation as an expansion of gun
control. However, as Rep. McCarthy told the Los Angeles Times,
"Basically, we're just going to enforce the current gun laws." The
agenda of those who misidentify this legislation as "something of an
expansion," such as Kristen Rand of the extremist Violence Policy
Center, is unclear, but some may be doing so in an attempt to harm
Representative Dingell's reelection campaign by trying to weaken support
for him among gun owners. In fact, it is because of Rep. Dingell's
involvement with the shaping of this legislation that it became a
positive, productive measure.
Regardless of how the anti-gun community wishes to try to spin H.R.
4757, the bill should help to improve NICS performance. By making sure
the system has instant access to any relevant and legally permissible
records necessary to determine if an individual is prohibited from
possessing a firearm, law-abiding gun purchasers should experience fewer
delays, while firearms can be successfully denied to violent criminals
and those adjudicated mentally incompetent.
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