ATF survives another year, minibus jams up DOJ/ATF from doing anything stupid

[terraformer]

Basically the executive branch can not dismantle the ATF in 2012. I know, most of you think "WTF, that's a good thing?" The anti's have started to realize how dumb and ineffectual the ATF actually is and have been bloviating about abolishing it and putting it's function into other justice and treasury departments. They realized that after ATF was gutted in 2003* that it didn't make a lot of sense to have as a standalone organization any longer. They want the FBI to take over ATF's technical and law enforcement functions. Now, this would obviously eliminate the shoestring MG, the chore boy registration requirements and other really funny stupidity we have come to expect from them, it would likely make them far more dangerous to lawful gun owners. Now instead of fighting the ATF, we would be fighting the FBI when it came to "one more law" that is needed which "will fix the problem". That is not good as the FBI has a lot of political clout and get's what they want.

Anyhow, in the craziness of this week's legislative sessions, a bill was put up and will likely pass which will:

• prohibits DOJ from consolidating firearms sales records, from electronically retrieving the records of former firearms dealers and from disclosing information on people who have passed firearms background checks.
• bars Justice from requiring imported shotguns to meet a “sporting purposes” test
• bars transfer of the functions of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives to other agencies
• bars promulgating or implement any rule requiring a physical inventory of any licensed firearms business.

Effective January 24, 2003, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) was transferred under the Homeland Security bill to the Department of Justice. The law enforcement functions of ATF under the Department of the Treasury were transferred to the Department of Justice. The tax and trade functions of ATF will remain in the Treasury Department with the new Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau.

In addition, the agency’s name was changed to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) to reflect its new mission in the Department of Justice.

More here:
http://www.rollcall.com/issues/57_61/Housing-and-Guns-Are-Minibus-Winners-210413-1.html

 

[el duderino]

They need to die, but that wont solve the shoestring mg problems, it will just be another agency committing these atrocities. Fold all agencies into the FBI, CIA, Treasury department and US marshall service. Theres no need for any more than those.

 

[andyc4728]

It's still kind of early, so when I read "minibus" I thought "short bus". Describing the ATF as a "short bus" agency makes logical sense.

Now that I see the true meaning it's kinda funny that it works either way...

 

[pdm]

The problem is, if you fold the ATF into some other agency, you'll just get an agency with a bunch of ATF agents in it. You don't think they'd actually cut headcount, do you?

 

[KMaurer]

The problem isn't so much ATF agents as it is ATF management. Still, as someone once asked back when they were considering merging the DEA into the FBI after a similar series of abuses, what do you get when you mix clean water with dirty water?

Ken