Recess to complicate push to renew plastic gun ban

The law should be allowed to lapse.  It does not serve any useful purpose, and stifles technological advancement.    David Codrea writes about the eager way in which the NSSF is willing to throw the second amendment under the bus on this issue.

The federal law banning undetectable plastic guns expires in two weeks and Congress is on a Thanksgiving vacation, making it likely the law will lapse — and opening up at least a temporary problem.

Gun control proponents say the search for a solution is even more urgent with the expanding capabilities of 3-D printers, which can manufacture plastic guns that can be untraceable through traditional means.

Racing the Dec. 9 deadline, Senate Democrats tried to speed through a bill last week keeping the ban in place, but a Republican objected, arguing the legislation had just been introduced hours before the chamber was scheduled to leave town. That objection halted the bill.

“[T]his is not a good day to move forward with this legislation,” said Sen. Jeff Sessions, Alabama Republican. “We will be glad to give it serious attention. I know it is the kind of thing we probably can clear at some point.”
Sen. Charles E. Schumer, New York Democrat and the bill’s sponsor, said he understood Mr. Sessions’ objection, given the upheaval in the chamber, but said that “this is serious stuff.”

“What makes us need to do this rather quickly is that a few months ago someone in Texas published on a website a way to make a plastic gun, buying a 3-D printer for less than $1,000,” Mr. Schumer said. “There are over 200,000 copies, hits on that website. People hit the website then, so we have to move quickly here. I hope we can move as soon as we get back.”

The State Department in May ordered Texas-based Defense Distributed to take down a 3-D gun model, called the “Liberator,” from its website.
Mr. Schumer’s office said Monday there’s still a chance to pass the renewal since the Senate convenes on the day the act expires, but if it does lapse, they will continue working to get an agreement to advance legislation as quickly as possible.

Federal law also says that gun parts and components must appear clearly when examined by X-ray machines commonly found in airports. The act was first passed by Congress and signed by President Reagan in 1988 and has been renewed twice since then — once under President Clinton and once under President George W. Bush.


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