14 August 2024

For American gun owners – including the 22.3 million new first-time gun owners since 2020 – the recent shocking news that former U.S. Representative and former Democratic presidential candidate Tulsi Gabbard (D-Hawaii) has been placed on the U.S. Transportation Security Administration (TSA) “Quiet Skies” list is a cause for concern.

Knowing that former Congresswoman Gabbard was on the Quiet Skies list, came to light through whistleblowers worried about political retaliation for their outspoken stance against the Biden-Harris administration. The track record of the federal government and Watch lists are bleakFederal agencies have abused these lists, and they are an excellent way to target political opposition, including Second Amendment supporters and gun owners.

“A clear act of political retaliation”

The short summary is that former Congressman Gabbard recently had some fitting words for the Biden-Harris administration on Fox News and criticized Vice President Kamala Harris, now nominated by the Democrats, is a weak candidate because she represents incorrect positions. That is her right to free speech, and she is free to do so.

Moderator Laura Ingraham pointed out the questionable timing of Rep. Gabbard’s placement on a government watch list, saying, “What exactly did Tulsi Gabbard do to be placed on the terrorist watch list? It happened a day after she criticized the Biden administration… How do you feel about that?”

The former congresswoman was blunt. “Laura, this is a pure act of political retaliation. There is no other way to put it,” said Rep. Gabbard. “The very next day after I spoke to you on the radio and warned the American people about how dangerous a Kamala Harris presidency could be, I was put on this domestic terror list, the Department of Homeland Security’s ‘Quiet Skies’ list… For my own government to now put me on a domestic terror list is deeply upsetting and the ultimate betrayal.”

Representative Gabbard also stated: “everything has changed” for her and her family since they were placed on the watch list on July 23. They have to endure hours of security checks at airports and have several federal air marshals on board. Representative Gabbard explained Her biggest concern is the unknown. She says, “That is the true pain and stress that this whole situation has caused both me and my family… I wonder day and night if and which government institution and agency is monitoring my phone calls, watching my movements and travels, knowing that they may be looking for some excuse or derogatory measure to persecute me.”

Does this sound familiar?

New gun owners, including a Population growth on Florida’s scale since 2020, may be unfamiliar with how some in the federal government handle gun owners, their private information, and financial transactions. This is not limited to the federal government. States hostile to gun laws have their own track record of abusing gun owner “lists.”

In 2022, California officials apologized after a Treasure trove of private personal information of gun license holders were “leaked”. Sensitive information included names, dates of birth, gender, race, driver’s license numbers and addresses of the permit holders. This data leak also included the type of permit issued, indicating whether the permit holder was a member of the police or a judge.

In Washington, DC, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) of the U.S. Treasury Department approved U.S. Senator Tim Scott (RS.C.) declared that it violated citizens’ Fourth Amendment rights when it collected credit card purchase histories from banks and credit card companies of people who purchased firearms and ammunition in the days surrounding January 6, 2020. This all happened while gun control activists and anti-gun media personalities urged the financial institutions implement A Merchant Category Code (MCC) for credit card purchases at gun stores. FinCEN would be the agency that would process all “suspicious activity reports” from credit card companies related to these gun-related purchases.

The Treasury Department’s FinCEN had no reason and sought the information without a warrant to place law-abiding citizens on a government watch list simply because they exercised their Second Amendment right to legally purchase firearms and ammunition. This is also why NSSF supports state and federal legislation to prevent financial institutions from requiring the use of a weapon-specific tracking code.

Lay the table

Americans who support the Constitution and the right to keep and bear arms should pay close attention to what the Democrats have to say about gun control. For Vice President Kamala Harris and her vice presidential candidate: Governor of Minnesota, Tim Walzthe introduction of universal background checks on all weapons purchases and transfers is one of their top priorities They should conquer the White House in November.

However, universal background checks on the sale and transfer of firearms would require a national firearms registry to function. This is unlawful. Nor would it have any impact on criminals, who predominantly obtain firearms through illegal means.

Fortunately, there is a national weapons register forbidden due to the Gun Control Act of 1986 and the Brady Act of 1993, which created the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) and clarified that NICS cannot be used to create a gun registry.

Representative Gabbard is rightly concerned that she could be the victim of political attacks. Government watch lists are vulnerable to abuse and errors. Despite these shortcomings, Senator Chris Murphy urged the use of these lists against Americans to deny them their Second Amendment rights. History has shown that even the late Massachusetts Senator Edward Kennedy falsely added to the list in 2004. It took him and his staff weeks to get his name removed.

Now imagine how long it would take for an ordinary, law-abiding American to be removed from the list simply for exercising their constitutional rights. That government agencies create “lists” of Americans that can be used to target them over political differences is troubling. Gun owners have already seen how these lists can be abused.

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