On March 13, Representative Eliot Engel (D-NY) tried to undercut the sporting uses of the M855 round by labeling it “armor piercing” and tweeting that there is no justification for hunters to possess it. Engel tried to back this up by observing, “I have never seen a deer wear Kevlar.”
What Engel did not do is the same thing the ATF and other Democrats pushing ammo bans have failed to do; namely, he did not put forth any real constitutionally compatible measure or framework for what constitutes “armor piecing.”
For example, is “armor piercing” ammo something that can slice through three-quarter inch steel plates, or is “armor piercing” ammo simply a centerfire rifle round that will go through soft armor? This is an important question because if Democrats are allowed to set the threshold for armor piercing at soft armor, a ban on any .223 or 5.56 round immediately sets up a ban on .300 Win Mag, .300 Win Short Mag, 30.06, and so forth.
On March 10, ATF headquarters announced the M855 ammo ban was being suspended, and Engel’s tweet was part of the push whereby Democrats announced they were picking up where the ATF backed down.
For now, OpenSecrets.org reports that the manner in which the ATF’s M855 ammo ban built up, then fizzled out, is simply more proof that the NRA is still king of the hill. Other gun control proponents–Moms Demand Action, Everytown, Gabby Giffords and her husband–have all emerged to challenge the NRA; however, to this point, the gun control lobby has not reached “parity” with defenders of the Second Amendment.
Follow AWR Hawkins on Twitter @AWRHawkins. Reach him directly at awrhawkins@breitbart.com.