Michelle Obama, first lady to former President Barack Obama (D), is following in her husband’s footsteps by making absurd claims about firearms ownership and the Second Amendment.
“We are the only developed country on the planet where its citizens can have unfettered access to firearms. That is not a good thing and more of us have to feel strongly about it, in particularly our young people. This is where democracy comes in. Voting, all this stuff is decided in the ballot box,” said Michelle Obama in a CBS Mornings interview.
To start, American citizens do not have “unfettered access to firearms.” This is simply untrue. Federal law requires those who wish to purchase a firearm from any federal firearms licensee (FFL) to fill out Form 4473, certifying that they are not disqualified from owning one. The dealer then contacts the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) to verify this before proceeding with the sale.Those with a felony conviction or other disqualifying factors are prohibited from purchasing or possessing a firearm, which NICS is intended to catch. It should also be noted that lying on a Form 4473 about not being disqualified from acquiring a firearm can be prosecuted as a felony, with a potential penalty of up to 10 years in prison, even if the NICS check stops the transaction.
This is a far cry from “unfettered” access.
Interestingly enough, it was during her husband’s tenure as president of the United States that the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) executed the disastrous Operation Fast and Furious that allowed criminals to buy and transport guns to Mexico.
In the Operation Fast and Furious scheme, ATF “[a]gents would allow suspected illegal purchases of firearms by gun traffickers to take place and then track the guns with the purported goal of uncovering the workings of a larger criminal organization for which these individuals were purchasing firearms. In some cases, concerned FFLs were instructed by ATF to go forward with suspicious transactions. Rather than interdicting these firearms, ATF permitted the guns to flow into Mexico,” reported the NRA Institute for Legislative Action.
Beyond this, the former first lady actually gets one thing right in noting that Americans can make their voices heard at the ballot box. Such is why law-abiding Americans who understand this constitutional freedom have elected representatives across the country to pass legislation protecting their rights.
Consider constitutional carry. A few decades ago, just one state got out of citizens’ way to exercise their rights, but now 27 states have some type of constitutional carry. It seems voters are, indeed, making their voices heard at the ballot box, just not in the way Michelle Obama might like.
Like her husband who recently said that the Second Amendment is “partisan” and “ideological,” Michelle Obama just doesn’t appreciate our freedom.
