The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has placed gun restrictions on thousands of veterans without due process, and Congress needs to address the matter. It is quite ironic that under VA policy, the men and women who protected our nation in the armed forces are effectively becoming disarmed by unaccountable government employees.
Nearly a decade after the failed assassination attempt on President Reagan, which occurred in 1980, Congress passed the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act to try and prevent mentally ill people from committing acts of gun violence. (The law was dedicated to a key member of the president’s staff who was critically injured in that shooting).
One government policy born from this landmark law directed the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF) to identify people who were a danger to themselves or others, and to label these individuals “mentally defective.” The ATF can now use this power to make determinations that certain people are mentally defective and thus prohibit individuals in this category from owning or purchasing firearms or ammunition.
Several federal agencies, most notably the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), are responsible for tracking and administering federal laws in order to protect the public from gun violence. The intent of these laws is to create a safe public environment and is for the good of society.
Read More: The Hill
Featured Image – The forgotten motto of the Department of Veterans Affairs – Labeled for Reuse – Google Images
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