How Texas’s gun laws allow Mexican cartels to arm themselves to the teeth

[Rotadom]

Thanks, Abbott.

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2022/oct/17/texas-lax-gun-laws-us-mexico-border

Governor Greg Abbott wants to make the border safe for his state but loose gun laws allow cartels to drive to any Texas gun shop and legally stockpile guns, Mexican officials say

Saying he wants to make the US-Mexico border as safe as possible for his state, Texas’s governor Greg Abbott last month signed an order designating Mexican drug cartels as “terrorist organizations” and urged the Joe Biden White House to do the same.

But the same border that Abbott insists he wants to make safer is actually being destabilized by Texas’s lax gun laws, which the governor defends and which the Mexican cartels exploit to arm themselves – legally – to the teeth, according to officials left to grapple with the situation.


Despite Mexico’s well-documented high levels of violence, legally purchasing guns there is actually quite difficult. The nation of nearly 130 million people has a single store that can legally sell guns.

On a military base in Mexico City, that store was selling fewer than 40 guns a day in recent years, and it’s prohibited from even advertising its wares.

But the infamously violent cartels that Abbott and other Republicans blame for violence along the border have found another route to stockpile weapons: the United States.

Mexican foreign affairs ministry legal adviser Alejandro Celorio Alcántara estimates that half a million guns annually are purchased legally in the US and then brought into Mexico illegally. About 70% of guns seized in Mexico from 2014 to 2018 and submitted for tracing had originally come from the US, according to officials with the American bureau of alcohol, tobacco, firearms and explosives (ATF).

It’s a situation that bewilders leaders of Mexican communities who have collectively grieved more than 150,000 killings – mostly at gunpoint – since 2006.

Chief among them is Carlos Peña Ortiz, the mayor of Reynosa, a Mexican town along the US border which sits just 11 miles away from a Texas gun store where residents and visitors can legally buy guns.

“We are having a problem with high-caliber military weapons,” Peña Ortiz said recently. “We know that most, if not all, of these high-caliber weapons are coming from the United States and a significant amount are likely coming from Texas. The financial incentive to smuggle weapons into Mexico is high and purchasing them in Texas and driving a few miles is too easy.”

As Peña Ortiz has seen, there are many rifles styled after AK-47s that can be purchased relatively cheaply in the US for between $500 and $1,000, then taken to Mexico and resold at three or four times that value.

The easy access to a legal inventory in Texas and then lucrative prices on the secondary market has flooded some Mexican border towns – including remarkably violent ones – with guns.

 

[domroger]

Absolute racism on Abbott's part,they are only brown people and do not matter,as witnessed by his reaction to Uvalde,made it easier to buy guns.

 

[Chobham]

Absolute racism on Abbott's part,they are only brown people and do not matter,as witnessed by his reaction to Uvalde,made it easier to buy guns.

Curious, in a recent Op-Ed in the NYT Charles Blow has reliably informed us that Hispanics are racist and we've been told for decades that it's impossible to be racist against racists.

 

[Rotadom]

Curious, in a recent Op-Ed in the NYT Charles Blow has reliably informed us that Hispanics are racist and we've been told for decades that it's impossible to be racist against racists.

Blow sucks.

 

[Dribble]

Texas also is the port in for 90% of the US Fentanyl and all other synthetic drugs...all under the direction of China using the Cartels. What does China get out of the deal? They get favorable politicians willing to turn a blind eye to get Govt contracts...specifically building and construction contracts. There isn't a Texan politician out there not receiving money made off the Fentanyl sales. It has quietly become the number 1 export product of China.

 

[jaF0]

Curious, in a recent Op-Ed in the NYT Charles Blow has reliably informed us that Hispanics are racist and we've been told for decades that it's impossible to be racist against racists.

Abbott ain't Hispanic.

 

[HisArpy]

Texas also is the port in for 90% of the US Fentanyl and all other synthetic drugs...all under the direction of China using the Cartels. What does China get out of the deal? They get favorable politicians willing to turn a blind eye to get Govt contracts...specifically building and construction contracts. There isn't a Texan politician out there not receiving money made off the Fentanyl sales. It has quietly become the number 1 export product of China.

That's like saying that grocery stores are the main source of global warming because that's where consumers can buy food.

 

[HisArpy]

I also think you dumfuks need to go back to skool about which level of government controls gun sales.

Hint: it ain't the states.

 

[Comshaw]

Curious, in a recent Op-Ed in the NYT Charles Blow has reliably informed us that Hispanics are racist and we've been told for decades that it's impossible to be racist against racists.

Curious, are you going to address the point of the OP's post, or just try to deflect? Can you even address the point? Do you even know what the point was? I await your answers to those questions, but I ain't a gunna hold my breath while I do.

Comshaw

 

[AlexBailey]

I also think you dumfuks need to go back to skool about which level of government controls gun sales.

Hint: it ain't the states.

Oh really?

So laws regarding gun purchase and access are uniform from state to state?

(You're about as sharp as Brandon.)

 

[Comshaw]

I also think you dumfuks need to go back to skool about which level of government controls gun sales.

Hint: it ain't the states.

Hint, try buying a gun in Texas, then one in California. After that, then try to tell me the states have no control over gun sales.

Comshaw

 

[HisArpy]

Oh really?

So laws regarding gun purchase and access are uniform from state to state?

Yes. The minimum legal requirements to buy a gun are specified in Federal law. If states which to impose greater regulations, so long as those regulations don't infringe upon the Constitution, they can do so.

Hint, try buying a gun in Texas, then one in California. After that, then try to tell me the states have no control over gun sales.

Comshaw

You're a fucking dipshit. I CAN'T legally buy a gun in Texas if I'm a California resident. Or vice versa.

And of course, if you want to talk about people buying guns illegally, then why the fuck are we even talking about gun "laws" in the first place?

And you claim to be "knowledgeable"...

 

[AlexBailey]

Yes.

You're a fucking dipshit. I CAN'T legally buy a gun in Texas if I'm a California resident. Or vice versa.

And of course, if you want to talk about people buying guns illegally, then why the fuck are we even talking about gun "laws" in the first place?

And you claim to be "knowledgeable"...

Are automatic weapons available in all states? Do all states have the same waiting laws? Do all states allow the sale of 50. caliber rifles? ...

 

[HisArpy]

Are automatic weapons available in all states? Do all states have the same waiting laws? Do all states allow the sale of 50. caliber rifles? ...

Like I said, if a State wishes to impose GREATER regulations, they can, as long as those greater regulations don't infringe the Constitution. However, it is the Federal government which regulates the purchase of firearms across all 50 States.

In the United States, access to guns is controlled by law under a number of federal statutes. These laws regulate the manufacture, trade, possession, transfer, record keeping, transport, and destruction of firearms, ammunition, and firearms accessories.[1] They are enforced by state agencies and the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF). In addition to federal gun laws, all state governments and some local governments have their own laws that regulate firearms.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gun_l...ressors, and disguised or improvised firearms.

The authority for Fed regulation of guns comes from the National Firearms Act of 1934. Which either already is, or is going to be challeged as unconstitutional.

Also note that in order to buy a gun you're required to fill out a Form 4473 which is a FEDERAL FORM used for identification purposes and is used for a background check.

 

[AlexBailey]

Like I said, if a State wishes to impose GREATER regulations, they can, as long as those greater regulations don't infringe the Constitution. However, it is the Federal government which regulates the purchase of firearms across all 50 States.



The authority for Fed regulation of guns comes from the National Firearms Act of 1934. Which either already is, or is going to be challeged as unconstitutional.

Also note that in order to buy a gun you're required to fill out a Form 4473 which is a FEDERAL FORM used for identification purposes and is used for a background check.

The quote that you provided proves my point that there are differences between states:

"In addition to federal gun laws, all state governments and some local governments have their own laws that regulate firearms."

You may have been a good attorney once upon a time, but so was Rudy Giuliani.

 

[LukSkyFokker]

Poor RAPEY. Too dumb to know when to shut the fuck up.

 

[AlexBailey]

Poor RAPEY. Too dumb to know when to shut the fuck up.

Poor feller is running circles around himself.

 

[LukSkyFokker]

Poor feller is running circles around himself.

He would lose his practice if his clients read the Lit and realized how ignorant he is of the law.

 

[Chobham]

Ahh, the poor, victimized, Mexican government. There's just nothing they can do to rein in the cartels.

 

[AlexBailey]

Ahh, the poor, victimized, Mexican government. There's just nothing they can do to rein in the cartels.

See what happens when guns and money rule?

 

[Comshaw]

Yes. The minimum legal requirements to buy a gun are specified in Federal law. If states which to impose greater regulations, so long as those regulations don't infringe upon the Constitution, they can do so.

You're a fucking dipshit. I CAN'T legally buy a gun in Texas if I'm a California resident. Or vice versa.

And of course, if you want to talk about people buying guns illegally, then why the fuck are we even talking about gun "laws" in the first place?

And you claim to be "knowledgeable"...

Ohhh.,..testy! I never said ANYTHING about buying guns illegally. Actually the OP's post was about guns being bought LEGALLY and shipped to Mexico. Or do you have a reading deficit? Apparently you don't have the metal acuity to understand a comparative question. My bad for thinking you might be able to understand. Let me rephrase to a less figurative type, one that doesn't require as much gray matter.
Comparing a gun purchase in California and one in Texas, which would be an easier buy? Which would be a more difficult buy? Do you even know?

You claim that the states don't have any control over gun sales, IE:

"I also think you dumfuks need to go back to skool about which level of government controls gun sales.

Hint: it ain't the states."

Then you turn around and say:
"...The minimum legal requirements to buy a gun are specified in Federal law. If states which to impose greater regulations, so long as those regulations don't infringe upon the Constitution, they can do so."

So which is it? States have no control over gun sales, or they do have control (by instituting stricter laws). You can't have it both ways. As a claimed lawyer you of all people should know you should be specific, accurate and truthful in any fact you claim. So which "truth" are you gunna claim is a fact? Do the states have control, or don't they? Choose wisely, there isn't any wiggle room.

Comshaw

 

[LukSkyFokker]

Ahh, the poor, victimized, Mexican government. There's just nothing they can do to rein in the cartels.

Now read the article, Ishtard.

 

[Chobham]

Ohhh.,..testy! I never said ANYTHING about buying guns illegally. Actually the OP's post was about guns being bought LEGALLY and shipped to Mexico. Or do you have a reading deficit? Apparently you don't have the metal acuity to understand a comparative question. My bad for thinking you might be able to understand. Let me rephrase to a less figurative type, one that doesn't require as much gray matter.
Comparing a gun purchase in California and one in Texas, which would be an easier buy? Which would be a more difficult buy? Do you even know?

You claim that the states don't have any control over gun sales, IE:

"I also think you dumfuks need to go back to skool about which level of government controls gun sales.

Hint: it ain't the states."

Then you turn around and say:
"...The minimum legal requirements to buy a gun are specified in Federal law. If states which to impose greater regulations, so long as those regulations don't infringe upon the Constitution, they can do so."

So which is it? States have no control over gun sales, or they do have control (by instituting stricter laws). You can't have it both ways. As a claimed lawyer you of all people should know you should be specific, accurate and truthful in any fact you claim. So which "truth" are you gunna claim is a fact? Do the states have control, or don't they? Choose wisely, there isn't any wiggle room.

Comshaw

Let's pick apart the article linked by the OP.

First of all it's primarily a anti-Abbot hit piece. The author used selected facts and then tied those facts together so as to lead the reader into assuming the primary source of the weapons is Texas. This is contrasted by the fact, stated in the article, that the Mexican government has targeted AZ. in it's legal action. And as opposed to the quoted posters statement, the weapons are not 'shipped' into Mexico, they are smuggled. There is no doubt in my mind that Texas is the source of some of those weapons, how many is NOT stated in the article. A severe shortcoming if the author wants to seriously damage Abbot.

Two years ago there was a huge operation put together locally (New Mexico) involving the local police, state, FBI, ATF, and DEA. A black gang out of Memphis, TN had made a deal with a Mexican cartel that involved trading a large amount of firearms for drugs. The deal was to be consummated in Albuquerque. None of those firearms were purchased in Texas. The point of this little story is that with regard to the cartels firearms are a form of negotiable currency and as drugs are a nationwide problem, the source of the firearms are nationwide as well. The cartels control the border and consequently smuggling, both ways, is their stock in trade. As long as we, and the Mexican government, want a porous border nothing is going to change. Blaming a single state or governor thereof is the province of fools.

The recent SCOTUS ruling re. firearms is a game changer. State by state, law by law, firearm restrictions are being dismantled. Yes, the various states can still impose certain restrictions on the purchase of firearms, but their ability to do so is very circumscribed now. If the anti-gunners want to impose serious restrictions on firearm purchase and/or ownership they are going to have to amend or repeal the 2nd. amendment. I don't see that happening in the lifetime of anyone breathing today. That being the case the anti-gunners can sit around wringing their hands and gnashing their teeth and just bitching overall, or they can assess reality and decide to deal with the very real problem, criminal activity.

 

[LukSkyFokker]

Ahh, the poor, victimized, Mexican government. There's just nothing they can do to rein in the cartels.

Now read the article, Ishtard.

Let's pick apart the article linked by the OP.

Good boy.

 

[Comshaw]

First of all it's primarily a anti-Abbot hit piece. The author used selected facts and then tied those facts together so as to lead the reader into assuming the primary source of the weapons is Texas. This is contrasted by the fact, stated in the article, that the Mexican government has targeted AZ. in it's legal action. And as opposed to the quoted posters statement, the weapons are not 'shipped' into Mexico, they are smuggled. There is no doubt in my mind that Texas is the source of some of those weapons, how many is NOT stated in the article. A severe shortcoming if the author wants to seriously damage Abbot.

Firstly the bolded part of your post: It doesn't matter if they were smuggled or put on an open manifest, they were shipped in either instance. Ain't no other way to get them from one point to another. To insist otherwise, as you did, is disingenuous at best. To use one of your terms, you're picking fly shit out of the pepper.

While the lawsuit filed by Mexico mentioned in the article was against dealers in Arizona, a few sentences down there was this:
"But the effect of those rules is limited by the loose gun laws championed prominently by states like Texas, Peña Ortiz and other Mexican officials argue."

It appears Texas is as big a problem as far as supplying guns as Arizona. It may be a hit piece targeting Abbot, but that doesn't make the facts any less true.

Two years ago there was a huge operation put together locally (New Mexico) involving the local police, state, FBI, ATF, and DEA. A black gang out of Memphis, TN had made a deal with a Mexican cartel that involved trading a large amount of firearms for drugs. The deal was to be consummated in Albuquerque. None of those firearms were purchased in Texas. The point of this little story is that with regard to the cartels firearms are a form of negotiable currency and as drugs are a nationwide problem, the source of the firearms are nationwide as well. The cartels control the border and consequently smuggling, both ways, is their stock in trade. As long as we, and the Mexican government, want a porous border nothing is going to change. Blaming a single state or governor thereof is the province of fools.

Since I'm not familiar with this story, haven't seen anything about it, do you have a cite for it? Or are you going to pull the "do your own research" dodge? If so I'm gunna have to call bullshit on it and discount it as a totally fabricated.

The recent SCOTUS ruling re. firearms is a game changer. State by state, law by law, firearm restrictions are being dismantled. Yes, the various states can still impose certain restrictions on the purchase of firearms, but their ability to do so is very circumscribed now. If the anti-gunners want to impose serious restrictions on firearm purchase and/or ownership they are going to have to amend or repeal the 2nd. amendment. I don't see that happening in the lifetime of anyone breathing today. That being the case the anti-gunners can sit around wringing their hands and gnashing their teeth and just bitching overall, or they can assess reality and decide to deal with the very real problem, criminal activity.

And this is EXACTLY what the article is talking about. At this time Texas has fewer firearms laws than it's neighbors, so it stands to reason that Texas would be targeted by gun buyers from Mexico. And yes, Mexican citizens can legally buy guns in the U.S. In case you are unfamiliar with U.S. firearms regulations, read 18 U.S. Code 922 Immigration And Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101 (a) (26) here:

18 U.S. Code 922

All they have to do is enter the U.S. on a non-immigration visa, buy a hunting license and they can buy what ever gun they desire. Now Abbots chin music about the "damned cartels" sounds kind of hollow when you factor in that Texas could stop a lot of the gun traffic to Mexico which goes directly to the cartels, by passing a few regs huh? Nothing like talking out of both sides of your face.

As far as this statement, "Yes, the various states can still impose certain restrictions on the purchase of firearms, but their ability to do so is very circumscribed now." I agree states rights to limit firearms ownership has been somewhat curtailed, but not as much as you try to make it seem. But that's another discussion for another time.

Comshaw