Exercising The Right
Warren Targets Guns With Taxes
Democratic presidential hopeful Elizabeth Warren is seeking to out-flank her primary opposition by moving further left on the Second Amendment. In an August 10 post on Medium, Warren called for higher taxes on U.S. gun manufacturers and wrote that “since 1919, the federal government has imposed an excise tax on manufacturers and importers of guns and ammunition. Handguns are taxed at 10% and other guns and ammunition are taxed at 11%. These taxes raise less in revenue than the federal excise tax on cigarettes, domestic wine, or even airline tickets. It’s time for Congress to raise those rates — to 30% on guns and 50% on ammunition — both to reduce new gun and ammunition sales overall and to bring in new federal revenue that we can use for gun violence prevention and enforcement of existing gun laws.”
Writing in response at Town Hall on August 12, Katie Pavlich warned that “[Warren’s] latest idea is to tax Americans out of gun ownership, which discriminates against poor individuals who can’t afford it. These are the very people Warren claims to be fighting for…. Further, Warren’s plans would actually increase crime…. A tax of any level would do little to dissuade attackers involved in recent tragedies — they would have committed their heinous crimes whether or not they had to pay extra money to buy the ammunition. Much like traditional restrictions on firearms, taxes only affect law-abiding citizens. Those who wish to carry out illegal acts will have no problem buying tax-free guns and ammunition from a black market dealer.”
Philly Shootout Exposes Faults With Gun Control
The Second Amendment Foundation (SAF) Founder and Executive Vice President Alan M. Gottlieb brought attention to the violent shootout in Philadelphia on August 14 in which six officers were injured. “The suspect in Philadelphia has done time for drug and gun law violations, and other crimes…. He’s a walking example of gun control failure and considering his background, we’re wondering why he was even on the streets. His presence in the community underscores the argument for judicial reform, and his ability to obtain firearms shows once again that gun control laws do not prevent determined criminals from getting their hands on guns,” Gottlieb explained. Investigators are still working on the crime scene, but they believe the suspect had an AR-15 and several handguns. “Law-abiding citizens use semi-auto rifles for all kinds of purposes, including self-defense…. However, instead of admitting that their gun control laws have failed, politicians try to exploit cases like Philadelphia to demand more gun laws that also won’t work because criminals don’t obey the law…. You do not prevent criminals from having guns by disarming their intended victims…. But that’s the nature of gun control. It penalizes the good guys and doesn’t stop the bad guys.”
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