The Firing Line Forums - View Single Post - Mexican President Calderon Calls for Reinstatement of the AWB

Bartholomew Roberts · May 24, 2010, 04:15 PM

On May 20, President Calderon addressed a Joint Session of Congress and said:

"And if you'll look carefully, you will notice that the violence in Mexico started to grow a couple of years before I took office, in 2006. This coincides with the lifting of the assault-weapons ban in 2004. One day, criminals in Mexico, having gained an access to these weapons, decided to challenge the authorities in my country. Today, these weapons are aimed by the criminals not only at rival gangs, but also at Mexican civilians and authorities. With all due respect, if you do not regulate the sale of these weapons in the right way, nothing guarantees that criminals here in the United States with access to the same power of weapons will not decided (sic) to challenge American authorities and civilians."

I won't bother going into the factual inaccuracies in his statement since those are already covered in this blog post by the Heritage Foundation.

It does raise an interesting question though. Why does Calderon want the AWB reenacted? From the standpoint of Mexican law, it doesn't ban even a fraction of the weapons that Mexican law bans. If there is really an issue with cross-border weapons trafficking, it seems that asking Congress to ratify the already-signed CIFTA treaty would be more productive from Mexico's standpoint. So why would the President of Mexico ask Congress to reauthorize a ban on cosmetic features that doesn't affect weapon functionality?

It just strikes me as a strange request given his stated concerns. "Would you please reinstate an obscure domestic gun control law that won't solve my problems in the least?" I wonder if Calderon understands what that law did?

May 24, 2010, 04:15 PM	#1
Bartholomew Roberts member Join Date: June 12, 2000 Location: Texas and Oklahoma area Posts: 8,462	Mexican President Calderon Calls for Reinstatement of the AWB On May 20, President Calderon addressed a Joint Session of Congress and said: "And if you'll look carefully, you will notice that the violence in Mexico started to grow a couple of years before I took office, in 2006. This coincides with the lifting of the assault-weapons ban in 2004. One day, criminals in Mexico, having gained an access to these weapons, decided to challenge the authorities in my country. Today, these weapons are aimed by the criminals not only at rival gangs, but also at Mexican civilians and authorities. With all due respect, if you do not regulate the sale of these weapons in the right way, nothing guarantees that criminals here in the United States with access to the same power of weapons will not decided (sic) to challenge American authorities and civilians." I won't bother going into the factual inaccuracies in his statement since those are already covered in this blog post by the Heritage Foundation. It does raise an interesting question though. Why does Calderon want the AWB reenacted? From the standpoint of Mexican law, it doesn't ban even a fraction of the weapons that Mexican law bans. If there is really an issue with cross-border weapons trafficking, it seems that asking Congress to ratify the already-signed CIFTA treaty would be more productive from Mexico's standpoint. So why would the President of Mexico ask Congress to reauthorize a ban on cosmetic features that doesn't affect weapon functionality? It just strikes me as a strange request given his stated concerns. "Would you please reinstate an obscure domestic gun control law that won't solve my problems in the least?" I wonder if Calderon understands what that law did?