Congress Acting to Block Obama’s Social Security Gun Ban

Congress plans to take up legislation next week that is designed to block Barack Obama’s gun ban for Social Security recipients who require help with their finances.

On July 18, 2015, Breitbart News reported the Obama administration was fashioning what was then a secretive gun ban for Social Security recipients who needed help with their finances. The Los Angeles Times reported that the ban would be sweeping. They reported that it would cover those who are unable to manage their own affairs for a multitude of reasons — from “subnormal intelligence or mental illness” to “incompetency,” an unspecified “condition,” or “disease” — and would put the Second Amendment rights of such recipients in jeopardy.

On January 5, 2016, Obama incorporated the ban into his executive gun controls. A White House preview of those controls explained that the Social Security Administration (SSA) was busy finalizing rules for how and when to enforce the ban:

Current law prohibits individuals from buying a gun if, because of a mental health issue, they are either a danger to themselves or others or are unable to manage their own affairs. The Social Security Administration (SSA) has indicated that it will begin the rulemaking process to ensure that appropriate information in its records is reported to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS). The reporting that SSA, in consultation with the Department of Justice, is expected to require will cover appropriate records of the approximately 75,000 people each year who have a documented mental health issue, receive disability benefits, and are unable to manage those benefits because of their mental impairment, or who have been found by a state or federal court to be legally incompetent. The rulemaking will also provide a mechanism for people to seek relief from the federal prohibition on possessing a firearm for reasons related to mental health.

In early May 2016, the SSA released a 41-page preview of the ban. Page 19 made clear that beneficiaries who catch the SSA’s attention — by having someone help with finances — could find themselves the subject of an SSA attempt to determine mental health status. The SSA preview shows that the investigation to determine mental health status would become incrementally intrusive and, if a ruling of mental illness sufficient to meet the reporting threshold is issued, the beneficiary would be reported to NICS and prohibited from purchasing firearms.

In the week before Christmas 2016, the Obama administration issued the finalized version of the ban, affecting the Second Amendment rights of at least tens of thousands of Social Security recipients. The Times reported that upwards of “4.2 million” recipients receive help with their finances, which means the number of recipients impacted could actually be in the millions. full story

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About Rhett October 1056 Articles
Rhett October is a man independent of the nanny state. He sees what is obvious but to many others is a successful deception. He has a crush on Tomi Lahren. Follow him on Twitter @RhettOctober "After this, there is no turning back. You take the blue pill—the story ends, you wake up in your bed and believe whatever you want to believe. You take the red pill—you stay in Wonderland, and I show you how deep the rabbit hole goes. Remember: all I'm offering is the truth. Nothing more." -Morpheus