Explore The NRA Universe Of Websites

Obama Administration Opposes CMP Handgun Sales

Friday, May 15, 2015

Obama Administration Opposes CMP Handgun Sales

The House of Representatives has approved Congressman Mike D. Rogers’ amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act, which—if accepted in the Senate—could make it possible for Americans who meet stringent requirements to purchase a military surplus handgun from the Civilian Marksmanship Program. 

As NRA High Power and CMP Service Rifle competitors know, the CMP is authorized under federal law to sell surplus rifles and ammunition to U.S. citizens of age, who belong to shooting clubs affiliated with the program, after passing a background check, and satisfying all federal and state laws. Representative Rogers’ amendment would simply extend the authorization to include other firearms.  For example, allowing the Army to provide the program with 100,000 M1911 .45 caliber pistols. This would benefit the Army, the CMP and taxpayers alike.

Of course, there’s a hitch, because if there’s one thing that gun control supporters dislike more than semi-automatic rifles like the M-1s the CMP sells, its handguns!

On Monday, the Huffington Post approvingly reported that the Obama administration opposes Representative Rogers’ amendment, claiming that the CMP would sell the .45s over the “Internet” or by “mail-order,” without background checks. But the Obama administration isn’t telling the truth. Federal law requires the CMP to conduct background checks and to comply with federal and state laws governing firearm sales.

The administration is apparently also claiming that .45s sold by the CMP would be “untraceable.” But this, too, is false. All military firearms have serial numbers, and the CMP keeps records on every firearm it sells.

Finally, Team Obama also says that if Congress wanted the CMP to sell handguns, it should have said so in 1996, when it established the program in its current configuration. But this is Obama’s most frivolous objection of all. As he knows, but doesn’t care, Article I of the Constitution vests all legislative powers in the hands of Congress and Congress alone. That means if Congress now wants the CMP to be able to sell handguns, like it did decades ago, when the program was known as the DCM, Congress has the power to say so.

One final irony is that if any handgun would pass muster with the White House and likeminded anti-gunners, seemingly the M1911 would be it. After all, it was issued with a single-stack, seven-round magazine, a capacity even New York was willing to tolerate with the original version of the execrable SAFE Act. This just demonstrates what we’ve said all along, which is that despite their insistence to the contrary, these folks just don’t like guns or the fact that guns are commercially available under any circumstances.

Like Congress, we too have power. The grassroots power to call or email our U.S. senators, to ask them to support the inclusion of the Rogers amendment in the National Defense Authorization Act. The power to experience the satisfaction of owning a piece of history, when those .45s become available. The power to encourage the Army to transfer the handguns according to Congress’s intent. And the power, on Election Day 2016, to make sure the next president is someone with whom endless arguments related to gun ownership and the limits the Constitution places upon presidential power will not be necessary.

TRENDING NOW
Colorado: Mandatory Storage Bill Passes General Assembly and Semi-Auto Ban Temporarily Removed from Calendar

Tuesday, March 26, 2024

Colorado: Mandatory Storage Bill Passes General Assembly and Semi-Auto Ban Temporarily Removed from Calendar

In a temporary reprieve for Colorado gun owners, the semi-auto ban HB24-1292 has been removed from the calendar. But we cannot let our guard down as gun control advocates can bring it up for a vote at ...

The U.S. Supreme Court Looks at Government “Blacklists”

News  

Tuesday, March 26, 2024

The U.S. Supreme Court Looks at Government “Blacklists”

Much of the attention this past week in the United States Supreme Court was the oral arguments in National Rifle Association of America v. Vullo, No. 22-842, a First Amendment case on whether government officials ...

25 years and one PLCAA Later, Chicago is Still Harassing Gunmakers

News  

Tuesday, March 26, 2024

25 years and one PLCAA Later, Chicago is Still Harassing Gunmakers

On March 19, the city of Chicago filed suit against handgun manufacturer Glock. Seeking to shift responsibility for the city’s woeful governance, Chicago’s lawsuit blames the popular firearm manufacturer for the third-party criminal misuse of ...

Washington: Governor Signs Anti-Gun Legislation

Wednesday, March 27, 2024

Washington: Governor Signs Anti-Gun Legislation

Today, Governor Inslee signed five anti-gun bills into law that were recently passed by the Washington State Legislature. The bills include:

Colorado: Semi-Auto Ban Passes Committee and Sensitive Places Bill Hearing Rescheduled for Today!

Wednesday, March 20, 2024

Colorado: Semi-Auto Ban Passes Committee and Sensitive Places Bill Hearing Rescheduled for Today!

Yesterday the House Judiciary Committee held a hearing on House Bill 24-1292, the semi-auto ban, that lasted over 12 hours where hundreds of patriotic Coloradans overloaded the committee with opposition testimony. The hearing concluded with an ...

NRA Files Amicus Brief Asking Supreme Court to Hear Antonyuk v. James

News  

Second Amendment  

Monday, March 25, 2024

NRA Files Amicus Brief Asking Supreme Court to Hear Antonyuk v. James

In response to the NRA’s victory in Bruen, which secured every American’s right to carry arms, NY passed the “Concealed Carry Improvement Act,” severely restricting carry throughout the state. The 2nd Circuit upheld many of ...

Pennsylvania: Senate Committee Passes Full Inclusion Sunday Hunting

Wednesday, March 20, 2024

Pennsylvania: Senate Committee Passes Full Inclusion Sunday Hunting

On Wednesday, the Senate Game & Fisheries Committee voted 7-4 to pass Senate Bill 67 to the Senate floor for a vote. 

California: DOJ Proposes Emergency Rule that Reauthorizes NRA Instructors

Wednesday, March 27, 2024

California: DOJ Proposes Emergency Rule that Reauthorizes NRA Instructors

On Monday, March 25th, the California Department of Justice published an emergency rulemaking package proposing to amend the Carry Concealed Weapons DOJ Certified Instructors regulations. Under the proposed rulemaking, NRA Certified Instructors would once again ...

Grassroots Spotlight: Michigan Grassroots

Take Action  

Tuesday, March 19, 2024

Grassroots Spotlight: Michigan Grassroots

It's been a busy start to the year in the Wolverine State, as the Michigan NRA-ILA Grassroots Team has been out alerting and educating members and supporters on the critical changes in gun laws and working to stop ...

Kentucky: Credit Card Data Privacy Bill Passed Into Law

Tuesday, March 26, 2024

Kentucky: Credit Card Data Privacy Bill Passed Into Law

Today, Governor Andy Beshear let HB 357, the Merchant Category Code ban legislation pass into law without his signature. Your NRA would like to thank Representatives Derek Lewis (R, H-90), Michael Meredith (R, H-19), and Senator ...

MORE TRENDING +
LESS TRENDING -

More Like This From Around The NRA

NRA ILA

Established in 1975, the Institute for Legislative Action (ILA) is the "lobbying" arm of the National Rifle Association of America. ILA is responsible for preserving the right of all law-abiding individuals in the legislative, political, and legal arenas, to purchase, possess and use firearms for legitimate purposes as guaranteed by the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.