Biden Plays Ghostbuster … With A Few Ghosts Of His Own

President Biden addressed the nation on the issue of crime and what are called “ghost guns.”  That few minutes of his speech were noteworthy.  After that, he conjured up the ghosts of all the past leftwing gun narratives.  It was typical Biden.  He promised a solution to every real and perceived problem – solutions that have not worked in the past and will not work in the future.  And told a few fibs in the process.

But first, his program for Ghost Guns – those that are obtained by ordering all the parts separately and then putting them together at home – like we used to do with model warships.  Unlike the ships, however, the Ghost Guns actually work and have been used in crimes with deadly results.

Biden will use his regulatory authority – Executive Orders – to require that Ghost Guns come under the same legal restrictions and requirements as real guns.  That means that every part must carry a serial number so that it is traceable.  Those purchasing Ghost Gun parts would have to clear a background check like regular gun buyers.

So far, so good.  I personally do not have a problem with Biden’s proposed regulations – even though they apply to a minuscule number of gun-related crimes.  

I am a little dicey that it is another example of a ruling by an authoritative edict.  As a constitutional conservative, I would prefer that Congress do the lawmaking – but that is a whole ‘nother issue.  To me, this is similar to my support for banning bump stocks that turn semi-automatic rifles essentially into automatic rifles – which are illegal.

So, give Biden a pat on the back (not too hard, of course) for a commonsense regulation on Ghost Guns.  It was after that announcement that his address went into all the ghostly anti-gun narratives of the past.  

There was the renewed call for a ban on what he calls assault rifles – even though there is no such thing as an “assault rifle.”  Those banned in the past were just basic semi-automatic guns that had certain non-operational features and looked like a military gun.  All personal guns come in three basic categories – single shot, semi-automatic and automatic.  Virtually all contemporary domestic weapons are semi-automatic.  That applies to rifles and handguns.

When assault weapons were banned, it was basically on external features, such as a pistol grip on a rifle, a grenade launcher, threaded barrel, etc.  Operationally, however, the banned “assault rifles were no different than the legal semi-automatic rifles.  Furthermore, the chance of banning them is extremely remote – and if they were banned, it would make little difference in the illegal use of guns.

Biden exclaimed his support for additional police funding, BUT (and that is a big “but”) he wants to divert funds from enforcement to the soft policies of social interdiction and community relations.  It sounds like a redux of the old “Officer Friendly” program that did little to reduce crime a generation ago.

Biden also championed the right of convicted felons – promising them jobs, education, and housing assistance as part of his police funding proposal.  I think “felony funding” would be a better moniker.

Biden claimed to be a supporter of the Second Amendment, but he noted that even when it was passed, the Founders put restrictions on what a citizen could own.  Biden has said that in the past.  It was not true then and is not true now.  The Constitution does not limit gun ownership of any kind at any time.  Restrictions and limitations were the results of laws and Supreme Court decisions over the years.

NOW PAY ATTENTION!  There is one major crime-related subject that Biden did NOT address.  And that was the crisis at the southern border – currently a significant contributor to America’s horrific crime statistics.  He did not mention the Democrat governors and mayors who are refusing to cooperate with the border patrol and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) as a matter of policy.  For anyone paying attention, the omission of any statements about crime and drugs crossing the southern border basically nullifies the sincerity of most of Biden’s speech.  It was just more campaign rhetoric ginned up for the upcoming midterm elections.

Biden covered all the bases, but mostly bases that have been covered many times in the past – and on many of them, he has been called out.  Outside of the new regulations on Ghost Guns, nothing is going to change as a result of Biden’s harangue on guns.

So, there ‘tis