I always here that Bush Sr, George HW. Bush the guy elected in 1988 and all, the guy that lost to Clinton, the one and only read my lips guy that he made the 1989 Import Ban.

Now I was around and paying some attention to politics in 1989 but I can't remember Bush ever signing an Executive order.  In fact in the late 1990s I began searching for this EO and found that it didn't exist.  Yet the Internet continually told me that Bush Sr. had signed an EO.

So here are his EO's for all four years: G HW Bush EOs

So why was there even an import ban on AKs, FALs, HKs, etc.  We know that prior to this one could buy a HK91 rifle or HK94.  HK didn't complete hate us then so why have the ban?

Well several things happened in the recent time leading up to the "ban" including the Stockton School Massacre in 1988 in which some dumbass used a Chinese AK copy.  This of course led to the first CA assault weapons ban.

But that was a state thing.  There was a lot of anti-gun stuff going on at the time and it seems that in the mid to late 1980s it shifted from "Saturday Night Specials" and handgun bans (which they still wanted) to making assault weapons evil.  And so in 1989 the Import Ban happened but who really made it happen?  

If Bush Sr. did not sign a document that said "Ban the import of evil assault weapons, it's for the childrens" then who did?  

Which leads me to my conclusion.  The President did not sign any "ban" because he didn't have to.  In fact he probably didn't have to do anything but say to the ATF "Hey, read my lips, do something about this gun violence stuff because the libs are eating us alive in the news."  There isn't even evidence that that happened.

What happened was the reinterpretation of the 1968 GCA language something an agency such as the ATF can do at will (according to courts).  And that language was the sporting purposes clause which reads:

is not a weapon covered by the revised National Firearms Act "and is generally recognized as particularly suitable for or readily adaptable to sporting purposes, excluding surplus military firearms"; or

In 1989 ATF decided to reexamine their stance on the Sporting Purposes Clause and determined that rifles/shotguns meeting certain definitions were not sporting.  

Of course with the popularity of 3-gun and other shooting many have argued that those are sports and a HK or FAL is very suitable for 3-gun.  However that kind of shooting is not sporting to the ATF:  See here:  http://www.atf.treas.gov/pub/treas_pub/assault_rifles/typscope.pdf (not hot linked on purpose)

Of course people made rifles to get around the restrictions and still get them imported so ATF reinterpreted the law again in the 1990s to shut off the flow of the modified guns.

So I see no Bush Sr. EO for the Import Ban....so in searching the Ineternet I found I wasn't the only one who said "hey wait, there's no EO" Good info here

Bump

Could it be that Bush Sr. asked the ATF to re-interpret the law?  I don't know, I'm just asking.

I don't know but the Norinco Ban was enacted because they were supporting Iran.

Now our own Air Force is supporting Iran with your money...the Norinco Ban should be dropped:

www.gao.gov/decisions/bidpro/310759.htm

Getting Norinco ammo in here again would sure help.

http://www.atf.treas.gov


I always see the word "treason".

Quoted: Could it be that Bush Sr. asked the ATF to re-interpret the law?  I don't know, I'm just asking.

Here's the only thing I've found so far:

It sites the Office of National Drug Control Policy as its policy driving force, not the White House. If you are looking for a political viewpoint, then this is inconclusive whether or not President Bush (senior) had a direct role in this. However, since it did fall under the watch of his Control Policy, I think it's safe to say he at least gave passive approval.

From the last link in my first post.  The last sentence I quoted also states that he probably gave passive approval to the ATF study.

Funny thing is that Reagen also asked for the same study to be done in 1984 and nothing came out of it.

Clinton was much worse about this in 1997; he basically called the ATF out stating that they totally failed in their 1989 study and that they needed to "review their standards" because some evil guns were still getting through via loopholes.  That is also available in the above links.  

Drug Czar Bennet was at fault for this.


So how has the war on drugs affected you?

Quoted: Drug Czar Bennet was at fault for this. So how has the war on drugs affected you?

The way it's affected everyone else.

Quoted: Getting Norinco ammo in here again would sure help.

Nork ammo was not affected by the '89 Import Ban.

Further reading:

NYT Articles:
US BANS IMPORT OF ASSAULT RIFLES IN SHIFT BY BUSH

IMPORT BAN ON ASSAULT RIFLES BECOMES PERMANENT

Quoted: Further reading: NYT Articles: US BANS IMPORT OF ASSAULT RIFLES IN SHIFT BY BUSH IMPORT BAN ON ASSAULT RIFLES BECOMES PERMANENT

...Larry Pratt, executive director of Gun Owners of America, called today's action ''a slap in the face to millions of Americans who voted for George Bush because of his well-publicized opposition to new gun control

fuckin-A Larry

Always hated Bush1 since this.

Quoted: Further reading: NYT Articles: US BANS IMPORT OF ASSAULT RIFLES IN SHIFT BY BUSH IMPORT BAN ON ASSAULT RIFLES BECOMES PERMANENT

I love how those asshats at the NYT only start putting quotation marks around descriptive terms when the NRA is arguing a point.

And instead, it created a whole new market for American companies to start producing the US compliance parts to build those weapons in a "non-foreign" configuration.