by Bob Adelmann
Attorney General Eric Holder
Professor Tom Woods wrote Nullification: How to Resist Federal Tyranny in the 21st Century back in June 2010 which got a lot of attention – a lot of it favorable, some not so – because it spelled out the constitutional protections against an overreaching federal government.
Some folks in Kansas decided to go for it and passed a law which contained this language:
It is unlawful for any official, agent or employee of the government of the United States, or employee of a corporation providing services to the government of the United States, to enforce or attempt to enforce, any act, law, treaty, order, rule or regulation of the government of the United States regarding a firearm, a firearm accessory, or ammunition that is manufactured commercially or privately and owned in the state of Kansas and that remains within the borders of Kansas. Violation of this section is a severity level 10 nonperson felony.
Let’s look at that again: It is now “unlawful” for “any official, agent or employee” of the federal government “to enforce or attempt to enforce any law…” regarding firearms in the state of Kansas.
This is called throwing down the gauntlet.
Attorney General Eric Holder has picked it up. Here is the relevant part of a letter he just sent to Kansas Governor Sam Brownback:
In purporting to override federal law and to criminalize the official acts of federal officers, [your law] directly conflicts with federal law and is therefore unconstitutional…
I am writing to inform you that federal law enforcement agencies, including the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Drug Enforcement Administration … will continue to execute their duties to enforce all federal firearms laws and regulations.
Moreover, the United States will take all appropriate action, including litigation if necessary, to prevent the State of Kansas from interfering with the activities of federal officials enforcing federal law.
I’m waiting for the next shoe to drop. Let’s see what happens when a BATF agent is arrested in Kansas.
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A graduate of Cornell University and a former investment advisor, Bob is a regular contributor to The New American magazine and blogs frequently at www.LightFromTheRight.com, primarily on economics and politics. He can be reached at badelmann@thenewamerican.com.
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