27 Anti Gun Groups Beg Obama to Ban FN Herstal 5.7 Handguns

Proving the validity of the “Law of Unintended Consequences again,” Anti gun groups are unwittingly helping to boost the sales of the FN Herstal 5.7 pistol, its ammunition, and high capacity magazines, by asking Obama for an import ban on them. The events of the last 13 months have shown what happens to gun, magazines, and ammunition sales when Americans have good reason to fear draconian changes in our gun laws.

Never failing to further their agendas by using tragedy, 27 anti gun groups have joined together to blame the gun, the ammunition, and the high capacity magazines for the Fort Hood killings. Never mind the mass of evidence that points to the fact that Hasan is a fanatic, Muslim lunatic, and a murdering, Jihadist. Never mind the fact that Hasan was, by all appearances, on a mission "for God" to kill.

Never mind that he probably would have loved to have done the killings with a more traditional Muslim Scimitar, lopping off heads in the Sharia way, or would have used any other weapon he could lay hands on to commit mass murder if he didn't have a FN handgun. Mass murders have been done in Asia with knives.

Never mind the fact that all of his victims were helpless, were unarmed, were in a “gun free zone” that these groups favor, and could not shoot back.

Never mind that, except for the M.Ps, the entrance guards, and during training, loaded guns are absolutely prohibited on the base.

Never mind that murder and assault are against the law.

Never mind that Hasan knew he would face the death penalty for his murders, if he survived, but preferred his “72 virgins.”

This group of 27 gun haters has banded together, believing there is strength in numbers, has written the following letter to President Obama, asking him to ban further importation of the FN Herstal 5.7, the pistol used by Major Hasan at Ft. Hood.

These anti gun groups are in urgent need of some kind of a victory, any kind of an anti gun victory. They are looking for any movement in their thus so far stalled effort toward ending our gun ownership rights. They are seeking any victory, however small or large in the light of their thus far fruitless efforts and failure to totally disarm American citizens. They are becoming desperate.

Will Obama accede to their demands? There’s good reason to believe he will. A ban of importation of this gun would be a further Obama effort to shift away from the politically incorrect blaming of a Muslim terrorist for killing American soldiers. It would be further evidence that Obama blames guns, and not a Muslim terrorist for the killings. He can ban the gun from import, please his political base and contributors, and still seemingly remain opposed to more comprehensive bans. But, wouldn't this be a good first step toward fulfilling his longtime anti gun agenda?

In Obama’s naïve world, what does he have to lose in giving a victory to his lunatic anti gun far left base? Of course, the anti gun groups could use any "victory" as a morale booster for the anti gun liberals. They can use a ban like this in fundraising efforts by saying, "Look what we did. We got a ban on the importation of a gun. Look how powerful we are."

Obama is urged to directly and administratively ban the import of the guns and accessories and bypass Congress. He wouldn’t have to get the irksome Republicans in Congress involved. The Freedom States Alliance says that Obama “ With the wave of his pen could ban the foreign made, armor piercing (sic) handgun used at Fort Hood Massacre.”

These groups want the import stopped because they say that the pistols fall into a category of not being, “generally recognized as particularly suitable for or readily adaptable to sporting purposes.” In typical liberal manner, they brand the gun a “Cop Killer,” just like they do your 30.06 deer rifle.

Here's the letter.

“November 19, 2009

The President

The White House

Washington, D.C. 20500

RE: Request for immediate ban on the importation of military-style firearm used in Fort Hood

shooting

Dear Mr. President:

The undersigned national and state-based gun violence prevention organizations write to urge you to act immediately to halt the importation of FN Herstal 5.7 handguns and any ammunition used in the weapon that may have the potential to pierce body armor. This gun, originally designed for elite military special forces, is the handgun used with tremendous destructive force to kill 13 and wound 34 more in the tragic shooting at Fort Hood, Texas, on November 5th.

While we urge you to join us in pushing for other much-needed policy changes to help

reduce America's epidemic of gun violence that were also relevant to the Fort Hood shooting, such as gaps in the federal background check system that allow suspected terrorists to legally buy guns and the ready availability of high-capacity magazines (including the 20-round magazines used by the Fort Hood shooter), preventing the importation of any more 5.7 handguns is an important step that can be accomplished immediately through administrative action by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF)―without the need for any action by Congress.

Under longstanding federal law, ATF has the clear authority to prohibit the importation

of any firearm or ammunition unless it is “generally recognized as particularly suitable for or readily adaptable to sporting purposes.” (1) This provision of the 1968 Gun Control Act has historically been used to exclude from import many non-sporting firearms, including so-called “Saturday Night Special” handguns, “Street Sweeper” shotguns, and many foreign-made assault weapons. The FN 5.7 handgun is clearly the type of firearm to which Congress intended the import restrictions to apply. (2) ,(3)

____________________________________________

1 18 USC 925 (d)(3).

2 ATF describes the types of firearms eligible for importation as “four narrow categories,”

Department of the Treasury Study on the Sporting Suitability of Modified Semiautomatic Assault Rifles, April 1998.

3 According to ATF, “The legislative history shows that the determination of a weapon's suitabilityfor sporting purposes is the direct responsibility of the Secretary of the Treasury [now the Attorney General].

The Secretary was given this discretion largely because Congress recognized that section 925(d)(3) was a difficult provision to implement. Immediately after discussing the large role cheap imported .22 caliber revolvers were playing in crime, the Senate Report stated: [t]he difficulty of defining weapons characteristics to meet this target

without discriminating against sporting quality firearms, was a major reason why the Secretary of the Treasury has been given fairly broad discretion in defining and administering the import prohibition.” Department of the

End Of Page One

_______________________________________________

FN Herstal originally created the novel 5.7X28mm cartridge used in the 5.7 as

the ammunition for a submachine gun, the P-90, which was designed at the invitation of NATO and in response to military needs for a weapon to be used by troops that would be effective against the body armor that had become a standard accoutrement on the battlefield. In the mid- 1990s, FN created a pistol that used the same high-velocity, armor-piercing round and the 5.7 was born.

However, even the manufacturer recognized that the gun was inappropriate for the

civilian market. In 1996, a spokesman for the company described the pistol as designed for antiterrorist and hostage rescue operations and "too potent" for normal police duties. (4)

In 1999, theNational Rifle Association's American Rifleman magazine stated, "Law enforcement and military markets are the target groups of FN's new 5.7 pistol," adding, "Don't expect to see this cartridge sold over the counter in the United States. In this incarnation, it is strictly a law enforcement or military round." (5)

In 2000, American Handgunner magazine assured the public,

“For reasons that will become obvious, neither the gun nor the ammunition will ever be sold to civilians or even to individual officers.” (6)

Yet, as is too often the case, gun industry profits trumped public safety concerns and today the 5.7 is freely available in American gun stores. In fact, the gun is one of the most popular with traffickers supplying Mexican Drug Trafficking Organizations (DTOs) who have nicknamed the gun the “mata policia” or “cop killer.” (7)

FN currently markets a variety of types of 5.7X28mm ammunition rounds for use in the

5.7, some of which clearly have the ability to pierce law enforcement body armor. Ostensibly, the armor-piercing ammunition is not available on the civilian market as the result of a voluntary agreement between FN and ATF. (8)

However, a quick search of the Internet identifies several sources for supposedly banned ammunition.

The ready availability of the 5.7 handgun presents a clear and present danger to

public safety as evidenced by the horrific shooting at Fort Hood. When the 5.7’s

availability is combined with the easy accessibility of complementary armor-piercing

ammunition it becomes not only a direct threat to law enforcement, but a potential national security threat as well.

_____________________________________________________

Treasury Study on the Sporting Suitability of Modified Semiautomatic Assault Rifles, at page 6.

4 “SAS gets handgun that can shoot through walls,” Sunday Times, July 7, 1996.

5 Dan Shea, “Military Small Arms Update: FN’s FiveseveN System,” American Rifleman,

November/December 1999, p.51.

6 Charles E. Petty, “FN Five-seveN,” American Handgunner, January/February 2000, p. 54.

7 See e.g., Indicted: Types of Firearms and Methods of Gun Trafficking from the United States to

Mexico as Revealed in U.S. Court Documents, Violence Policy Center, April 2009.

8 See 2005 ATF statement on 5.7x28mm ammunition at http://www.atf.gov/firearms/firearmstech/

fabriquen.htm

__________________________________________________

We strongly urge your Administration to act today to prohibit the importation of the FN

5.7 handgun as well as any 5.7X28mm ammunition that has armor-piercing capabilities (whether or not that ammunition meets the standard of the weak federal armor-piercing ammunition ban). None of these products meet the “sporting purposes” test that is the prerequisite for importation. We urge you to act before these military-bred weapons are used in another tragic incident. Thank you for your attention to this urgent matter.

Sincerely,

Paul Helmke- Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence

Josh Horowitz- Coalition to Stop Gun Violence

Sally Slovenski- Freedom States Alliance

Robyn Thomas- Legal Community Against Violence

Barbara Hohlt- States United to Prevent Gun Violence

Josh Sugarmann- Violence Policy Center

Executive Director Executive Director-Violence Policy Center

State and Regional Gun Violence Prevention Organizations

Lisa Delity-Chair Ceasefire Maryland

Bryan Miller-Executive Director CeasefireNJ

Shawn Alford-President Ceasefire Oregon

Joe Grace- Executive Director CeasefirePA

Hildy Saizow- Chair Arizonans for Gun Safety

Heather Martens- Executive Director Citizens for a Safer Minnesota Education Fund

Ron Pinciaro- Executive Director Connecticut Against Gun Violence

Alice Johnson- Executive Director Georgians for Gun Safety

Dee Rowland- Chair Gun Violence Prevention Center – Utah

Art Hayhoe- Executive Director Florida Coalition to Stop Gun Violence

Thom Mannard- Executive Director Illinois Council Against Handgun Violence

Karen D’Andrea-Executive Director Maine Citizens Against Handgun Violence

Cathie Whittenburg- Director New England Coalition to Prevent Gun Violence

Jackie Hilly- Executive Director New Yorkers Against Gun Violence

Roxane Kolar- Executive Director North Carolinians Against Gun Violence

Toby Hoover- Executive Director Ohio Coalition Against Gun Violence

Abigail Spangler, Ph.D.- ProtestEasyGuns.com/CampaigntoClosetheGunShowLoophole.org

Laura Hyer- Executive Director Stop Handgun Violence – Massachusetts

Jim Sollo- Executive Director Virginia Center for Public Safety

Jeri Bonavia- Executive Director Wisconsin Anti-Violence Effort Educational Fund

Patti Koltnow- Executive Director Women Against Gun Violence – California”

Let these people know what you think about their letter.