Mexican President Calderone Lied to Congress

You keep saying it long enough, enough people will start to think it’s true:

Calderon said the increase in violence in Mexico had coincided with the 2004 lifting of a U.S. assault weapons ban.

He said again that 80% of the guns that hae been seized by Mexican officials from criminals originated in the US.

One problem:

Calderone’s claim that more than 80% of guns came from the U.S is a bald-faced lie.

The actual figure is less than 18%, and the number of guns purchased from dealers that made their way to Mexico was only eight percent; the majority of guns traced to the United States were stolen.

The bulk of firearms in the hands of the cartels are military weapons purchased on the black market, with a sizable percentage purchased or stolen from the Mexican government itself.

Since the Pres and his crew have finally got it into their heads that Americans don’t want a new AWB, they’re left trying to pass one off as assistance to Mexico.

Mexico is a huge problem and it’s going to get worse. I still want to see the number of seized guns that were legally sold/given to the Mexican government at some point. Because it’s obvious once they run the numbers.

WA AWB is likely DOA

The bill was named in honor of 18-year-old Aaron Sullivan, who was shot and killed by a SKS 7.62-caliber rifle in Seattle in July. The legislation focuses on “military-style” assault weapons, which can fire rapidly and carry large magazines of ammunition.

The SKS? Large magazines of ammunition?

And I won’t even mention “7.62-caliber,” which would be the main armament of a World War 2 heavy cruiser.

Surprise Surprise Surprise

Mexican officials want a ban, saying that 90 percent of guns seized in drug crimes in Mexico and submitted for tracing to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives originate in the United States, including most assault rifles.

Whoa, cowboy. “Assault rifles”?

No assault rifles in the hands of Mexican drug gangs come from the US civilian market. Zip. Zero. Nada.

The panel also notes that by legalizing most of the illegal immigrants, Mexico should be able to control the flow of illegal immigrants.

Duh.

Why not remove all speed limits on all US roads to cut down on the number of people who violate speed limits?

Via Sebastian.

What?

Even though police say they have not yet determined what weapon was used, Ralph Fascitelli, president of Washington CeaseFire, says he plans to cite [police officer Timothy] Brenton’s murder when lobbying for the bill in the next legislative session.

“Maybe this particular [police victim] wasn’t killed with an assault weapon, but the next one maybe will be,” Fascitelli says, adding that police safety was a key reason that automatic weapons were banned decades ago and that the International Association of Police Chiefs supports a ban on military-style semiautomatic weapons today.

Based on “the next one maybe will be”, this guy is going to take it to the state government. Must be nice to not need any proof or any evidence or even any case to back you up.

S&W Equips Police in Mexico

Smith & Wesson Corp., the legendary 157-year old firearms maker, announced today that it has commenced shipments of its M&P15 tactical rifles to Mexico’s Secretary of National Defense. The duty firearms will be distributed to police agencies including the Commission Federal de Electricidad (Federal Commission of Energy) and El Gobierno del Distrito Federal (Police of Federal District of Mexico).

Smith & Wesson has supplied 820 of its M&P15 tactical rifles to the Police of the Federal District of Mexico, as well as 1,500 of its M&P15 rifles to Mexico’s Department of Energy. The company has commenced armourer’s training for each agency, as well as range training for those specialized officers who will be authorized to carry the new patrol rifles.

The cynic in Murdoc wonders how long it will take for one of these to somehow turn up at a drug gang crime scene and be blamed on lax US laws about “assault weapons.”

Via Caleb

Sestak the Gun Grabber

UPDATE: Bitter points us to Sestak coverage over at PA Gun Rights.

“Three amigos” Mexico summit to focus on trade

Not mentioned in the article about the meeting between US President Barack Obama, Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper and Mexican President Felipe Calderon are the words “assault weapons ban”, which a “senior Mexican official” said Mexico is continuing to push in the United States.

Murdoc respectfully suggests Mexican officials get their own festering shithole in order before telling us how to run our own affairs.

However, in the name of diplomacy Murdoc is perfectly willing to make this concession to prevent the flow of illegal arms:

A heavy-duty wall topped by barbed wire and patrolled heavily 24/7/365 along the entire border is the best way to keep all those guns from flowing into Mexico.

Don’t say Murdoc won’t meet you halfway.

Via the NRA-ILA:

On June 11, the top law enforcement officials of nearly half the states signed a letter to U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder, expressing their opposition to reinstatement of the federal ban on semi-automatic firearms.

“We share the Obama Administration’s commitment to reducing illegal drugs and violent crime within the United States. We also share your deep concern about drug cartel violence in Mexico. However, we do not believe that restricting law-abiding Americans’ access to certain semi-automatic firearms will resolve any of these problems,” the letter said.

The letter notes congressional opposition to bringing back the ban, and calls for increasing enforcement of existing laws.

We encourage NRA members to let these state officials know we appreciate them standing up to the incessant clamor for gun control that is currently coming from anti-gun groups and their media allies.

The 23 state Attorneys General, in alphabetical order, by state, are:
(more…)

The Peanut Farmer

But none of us wants to own an assault weapon, because we have no desire to kill policemen or go to a school or workplace to see how many victims we can accumulate before we are finally shot or take our own lives.

In case anyone wonders if he was just unclear and didn’t really mean that killing police officers is all that “assault weapons” are for, he closes with:

We can’t let the N.R.A.’s political blackmail prevent the banning of assault weapons — designed only to kill police officers and the people they defend.

At least the guy is consistent about always being on the wrong side.

Letter to the Editor in the Arizona Republic:

I’m a Vietnam veteran, a former Navy SEAL with over 70 combat operations, most of which I served as an automatic weaponsman.

I’m also a former federal law-enforcement ranger for the Park Service. I clearly understand how dangerous machine guns and assault rifles are.

While necessary for the military and certain law-enforcement activities, such weapons have absolutely no place in general American society. They are antithetical to responsible hunting, afford no realistic additional protection for individuals, and in spite of the shrill rhetoric of some ideologically blinded gun-rights groups, are not protected by the Constitution’s Second Amendment.

For the greater good, safety and sanity of the American people, I urge Congress, particularly Arizona’s delegation, to support the renewal of an assault-weapons ban that expired in 2004. – Kim Crumbo, Grand Canyon.

The first reader comment online:

Nice letter. I too am a veteran – US Army airborne infantry. I don’t think the average Joe needs automatic weapons for home defense.

You would think that the guys with military experience would realize that the AWB doesn’t apply to “machine guns,” “assault rifles,” or “automatic weapons.”