We believe there are some common sense things we can do that would make the NRA look like a hero and would make the anti-gun people settle down a little bit.
First of all, we need to have background checks on people buying guns, whether they’re buying them at gun shows or not. (I don’t think you should have to pay for a background check when you give or sell a gun to a relative since you know that person. But if that relative uses the gun to kill somebody, should you be morally liable?)
Second of all, we need to make sure the background check program works and is quick and efficient. The system in place is so understaffed and underfunded. There were more than 25 million background checks in 2017. It is not as effective or efficient as it could be. We should be able to complete a background check in an hour and charge $10 or $15. That money could also be used to fund legislation to build a system that protects psychologists and psychiatrists so they can evaluate whether or not a person should be allowed to get a gun purchase approval. (And not be liable if they put them on a don’t buy list. Putting a gun buyer through a background check removes them from the liability of that gun. Why wouldn’t we want to do that?) But there should also be a court system or private hearings to allow mistakes to be taken off the list.
The FBI should be able to trace guns that are used illegally back to the particular gun owner and establish serial numbers for crimes committed with it.
In short, the government has to step up and do its part to get all possible illegal weapons off the street. Everytown for Gun Safety founder (and former New York mayor) Michael Bloomberg’s money would be better spent helping the government on this issue, rather than harassing good, legal and responsible gun owners. Legal gun owners protect America and Americans from unlawful harm.
We should increase stop-and-search, too – both locally and federally. I wouldn’t mind being stopped and searched daily if it saved one life. When we go to the airport, we submit to searches, and we don’t mind, because we know the system is set up to protect us.
