Biden’s Unconstitutional Overreach on Guns
In a union founded on the principle of limited government, every action taken by the president of the United States must be weighed against the Constitution, the supreme law of the land. However, recent executive orders, such as the one on firearms regulation, reveal an alarming disregard for constitutional boundaries. The latest decree from the Executive Branch, which seeks to coordinate a federal response to “emerging firearms threats,” is fraught with unconstitutional overreach, violating both the letter and the spirit of the Constitution.
Executive Overreach
To begin with, the executive order, announced by the Biden administration on September 26, boldly declares that the president and his administration have “taken more executive action to reduce gun violence than any other administration.” While this might seem laudable on the surface, it raises an important question: Does the Constitution allow the president to wield such unilateral power over gun control?
The short answer is no. Article II of the Constitution defines the powers of the president, and the authority to regulate firearms is not among them. Any legislation governing the ownership, manufacture, or sale of firearms must originate in Congress, as per Article I, Section 8, which grants all legislative powers to the representatives of the people. The president’s role, as outlined in Article II, Section 3, is to “take care that the laws be faithfully executed,” not to create new laws through executive action.
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