After successfully lobbying for new gun control laws in the wake of three mass shootings, the American anti-gunner lobby is pushing for yet another avenue through which it can continue its assault on the Second Amendment. Those in this camp are renewing calls to compel credit card companies to flag purchases of firearms and ammunition. But, like most of their proposals, this idea would not accomplish its ostensible objective and could lead to more infringements on the right to bear arms.
A Sneakier Gun Control Method
Giffords — a gun-control advocacy launched by former Rep. Gabby Giffords, who survived an assassination attempt — has called on major credit card companies to begin flagging firearm and ammunition purchases to cut down on mass shootings and other forms of violence. In a tweet, the group wrote: “The shooters in at least 5 mass shootings have stockpiled guns & ammo using credit cards and killed 145 people. Visa, Mastercard, and American Express have the power to flag suspicious purchases and save lives. Call on them to act.”
The tweet included a link to an anti-gun campaign called GunsDownAmerica, which noted that “[b]etween 2007 and 2020, the killers in at least five major mass shootings used credit cards to finance their deadly rampages. These individuals exploited the banking system to purchase large quantities of firearms and ammunition — and the financial industry has the power to stop them.”
The campaign explained that it has been urging “the financial industry to prevent bad actors from abusing the banking system to obtain large quantities of firearms and ammunition and using the firepower they purchase on bank credit to take innocent lives.”
The group provided a number of examples to bolster its claims. One involved the gunman who murdered 49 people at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, FL, in 2016. It said he “charged $26,000 on credit cards to purchase guns and ammunition in just 12 days.”
Gabby Giffords (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
Giffords and GunsDownAmerica are not the only ones sounding the clarion call for credit card companies to crack down on firearms purchases. A group of about four dozen New York state lawmakers wrote a letter to Mastercard and American Express, advising them to support a law that would supposedly make it easier to catch questionable weapons sales.
Mastercard places gun and ammunition sales into a “miscellaneous” category, which also includes “magic stores, silk flower shops and bottled and distilled water dealers,” according to the Gothamist. “I think people would be shocked to find that out,” said State Sen. Zellnor Myrie, who led the effort to craft the letter. “I think the public would agree that it’s important for us to keep track of these things.”
Myrie assured that law-abiding citizens buying firearms would “absolutely have nothing to worry about This, I think, is simply using every tool that we have to help to stem gun violence,” he said in defense of the proposal. “And frankly, I’m not sure why anyone would be opposed to this, outside of trying to avoid controversy or the politics.”
Not Everyone Is on Board
Critics have pointed out some glaring issues with this approach. Lawrence Keane, senior vice president of government and public affairs for the National Shooting Sports Foundation, questioned the necessity of such legislation and whether it would even be effective at curbing violence.
(Photo by Artur Widak/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
“I don’t see how it works,” he told the Gothamist. “I don’t see why it’s necessary. And the only reason it’s being advanced is for a political gun control agenda.”
Keane pointed out that in order to buy a firearm, one is already required to undergo a background check. He also noted that sellers can – and do – refuse to do business with individuals who make them feel uncomfortable.
The Gothamist interviewed John Deloca, who owns a gun shop in New York City. He told them that limiting firearm purchases at his store is commonplace. “If a guy came in and he wanted to buy two AR-15s, I would say, ‘You could buy one today. That’s it. You want to buy 300 rounds of ammo? You can buy one box today, but that’s it,’” he said. “That’s my rules and regulations.”
What’s the Real Objective?
Forcing credit card companies to flag weapons sales might appear to be a wise move at first. But what Giffords and other anti-gunner organizations won’t tell you is that federal law already requires financial institutions to report suspicious activity to the government. This includes transactions related to tax evasion, terrorism, money laundering, and even handguns and rifles. To put it simply, this idea would be about as effective at curbing gun violence as stopping President Joe Biden from making gaffes by enlarging the font on his teleprompter.
While those pushing for this legislation contend that it would somehow make it easier for credit card companies to root out pernicious purchases, the truth is that this would lead to a de facto gun registry. The government could use this as a tool to confiscate firearms. Federal law places limits on what information the state is allowed to collect – but private entities don’t necessarily have the same constraints.
It is not farfetched to consider this might be the true objective of anti-gunners calling for this type of law. On the other hand, one could not be faulted for being suspicious of the possibility that this is yet another measure to chill the purchase of firearms. So far, this movement has not gained much traction on a national scale. But chances are it could become a more potent part of the overall gun control conversation.