Over 140 House Democrats Demand Ability to Block Veterans from Purchasing Guns; House Democrats Urge VA to Find Gun Rider Workaround

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Over 140 House Democrats Demand Ability to Block Veterans from Purchasing Guns:

More than 140 House Democrats are demanding that the ability to bar veterans from gun purchases/ownership under certain circumstances be added back to the Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act.

For decades, the VA has been reporting veterans to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) for mental issues, and such issues include using a fiduciary to manage one’s VA benefits. But this year, the Clinton-era gun ban was rolled back in the Senate by an amendment put forward by Sen. John Kennedy (R-LA).

Following the adoption of his amendment, Kennedy said, “Unelected bureaucrats shouldn’t be able to strip veterans of their Second Amendment rights unilaterally. The Senate did the right thing for veterans and all freedom-loving Americans by passing my amendment today.”

Democrats in the House are crying foul and demanding the gun ban be added back into the appropriations bill.

🚨BREAKING🚨

140+ House Democrats demand @DeptVetAffairs begin using state gun confiscation laws to disarm veterans in response to the law ending the Clinton-era Veteran Gun Ban that GOA forced Biden to sign last weekend.

See the full letter here.⤵️https://t.co/yLEY85LFjJ pic.twitter.com/WEv1wYSfE4

— Gun Owners of America (@GunOwners) March 15, 2024

The letter, spearheaded by Rep. Mike Thompson (D-CA), says, in part: --->READ MORE HERE

Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call file photo

House Democrats urge VA to find gun rider workaround

Rep. Mike Thompson led nearly 140 lawmakers on a letter urging Veterans Affairs Secretary Denis McDonough to minimize the fallout from a gun-related policy rider included in the fiscal 2024 spending law enacted this month.

The rider included in the six-bill spending package would bar the Department of Veterans Affairs from reporting veterans unable to manage their benefits to the Justice Department for a background check without approval from a judge. Only three Democrats in the House and Senate voted against the package, despite deep misgivings about the provision from some within the party.

“For decades, veterans who are a danger to themselves or others have had their information submitted to the background checks system to help keep them and our communities safe. The Kennedy Amendment ends this practice and would place troubled veterans and our communities at risk,” Thompson, D-Calif., said in a statement, referring to Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., who offered the amendment attaching the provision to an earlier Senate spending bill.

Thompson is chair of the House Gun Violence Prevention Task Force. There are 138 signatories — all Democrats — on the March 13 letter to McDonough, which was obtained by CQ Roll Call.

The new law changes a VA policy in place by statute since 1993, under which the department would report veterans unable to manage their finances and benefits to the FBI. When the FBI’s National Instant Criminal Background Check System sees that an individual has been deemed “mentally incompetent” by the VA, they are barred from purchasing guns and ammunition.

Under the spending package, the VA can no longer report a veteran who needs a financial adviser appointed to manage their benefits to the FBI background check system, unless a judge deems the individual a danger to themselves or others. --->READ MORE HERE

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