Time To Stop Gun Trafficking

In 2015, Elijah E. Cummings said: “ (…) the United States must do more to stem the flow of guns into Mexico. In March, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms reported that more than 100,000 guns were recovered in Mexico and submitted for tracing from 2009 to 2014. Of those, 70% originated in the United States. Guns that are entering Mexico are being trafficked from the United States. This is one reason I am a proud cosponsor of the Gun Trafficking Prevention Act, which is being reintroduced today on a bipartisan basis by our colleague, Congresswoman Maloney. If we can stem illegal gun trafficking in the United States, there is no doubt the positive effects will be seen by our neighbor to the south”. And the truth is that this is not only a threat to America but the rest of the world.

Almost all crime gun researchers agree that diversions from the primary and secondary markets for firearms are a source of crime guns in the United States and can point to examples of gun control policy hurting the supply of crime guns. Beyond endangering safety and public health, the United States’ lax gun laws may adversely impact its neighborhoods, leading to escalating gun trafficking and violence in Mexico and Canada. According to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), approximately 87 percent of firearms seized by Mexican authorities over 2004–2008 originated in the United…