New York Governor Kathy Hochul announced today that, among other measures she’ll be taking to fight white supremacy and domestic terrorism after the Buffalo supermarket shooting, she’ll also be working with the New York legislature to pass a microstamping mandate.
After laying out a range of moves she’ll be making to combat white supremacy and domestic terrorism (focusing on domestic terrorism, threat assessment, social media monitoring), she announced what she intends to do about the “weaponization of hate.”
She then held up a couple of .233/5.56 rounds to show the kind of ammunition the Buffalo killer used, then announced . . .
What we don’t have is a way to give each bullet a unique fingerprint. Microstamping allows police to trace bullets and casings back to gun that fired them. That’s just common sense. We’ll work with our legislature to get that done.
What the governor didn’t talk about is exactly how that will work. She didn’t mention the fact that microstamping doesn’t exist yet. She didn’t say that California enacted a microstamping mandate years ago and no gun maker has produced a working model yet.
Neither did she talk about how she sees a prospective microstamping law working in New York. As ardent an anti-gunner as Governor Hochul may be, she’s not likely try to outlaw the millions of standard firearms without microstamping capability — which is all of them — that are currently owned by New Yorkers. Or maybe we’re being too optimistic.
Oh, and the governor also neglected to mention that microstamping would have done precisely nothing to prevent Saturday’s shooting in Buffalo.
Microstamping, however, isn’t her only big-brain idea to do something in the aftermath of Buffalo. After praising the work that Michael Bloomberg’s Everytown and Moms Demand Action civilian disarmament operations did to pass a red flag law in New York, the Governor proclaimed that it’s time to strengthen the currently law.
As such, she’ll be signing an executive order mandating that state police file an extreme risk protection order for firearms confiscation for anyone they believe is a danger to themself or others. That’s now an option under current law. She also vowed to work with the legislature to extend that mandate to local police departments.
Breaking News: Gov. Kathy Hochul issued orders to strengthen New York’s “red-flag” gun control law and target online extremism following the Buffalo mass shooting. https://t.co/TQ6RIsWu66
— The New York Times (@nytimes) May 18, 2022
Hochul also announced that after outlawing “ghost guns” in the Empire State, it’s time to address another class of firearms she said was specifically designed to skirt the law — any other weapons.
She told her audience that . . .
You’ll be shocked when you see type of gun that can be bought in NY, a new category, specifically designed to fall outside regulation…that’s why they exist. Our laws don’t regulate [any other weapons]. They will now.
“A new category.” She then displayed what appears to be an AR pistol which can be considered an AOW in some lengths and configurations . . .
The Governor no doubt expect her audience to be suitably horrified.
It’s concealable, they’re high powered, and they can be modified to take a high capacity magazine. We will revise definition of a firearm to ban them in New York. It’s a loophole so big you can drive a truck through.
She also announced that she’ll sign an executive order requiring New York law enforcement agencies to report recovered crime guns to state authorities within 24 hours for testing and tracing.
We must continue to push forward on new methods to combat gun violence and protect our communities.
I’m calling on the legislature to pass a package of bills that will close loopholes in our laws and provide law enforcement with more tools to fight gun violence. pic.twitter.com/YHOc1GU7J9
— Governor Kathy Hochul (@GovKathyHochul) May 18, 2022
The Governor then cryptically mentioned working on “…background checks and permitting for specific guns. There’s strong interest in being smart about this.” No further details were offered.
Governor Hochul pronounced that New York has . . .
…the toughest gun laws in the nation, but the gun [the Buffalo killer] purchased was legal. But you can go across the border to PA and buy a magazine with 30 bullets in it.
That’s her justification for calling for spreading the kind of New York gun control laws that failed so spectacularly this weekend to the nation as a whole.
I hope this is the wakeup call this country has needed. Parkland, Sandy Hook…Charleston, Pittsburgh, El Paso…enough is enough. We’re doing something right now. That’s my promise to New Yorkers.
That’s when the Governor introduced her next speaker, Al Shartpton, who she thanked “for being the voice we need at this time.” Because when America thinks racial healing and reconciliation, the first name to come to mind is always Al Sharpton’s.
Sharpton echoed Hochul’s comments decrying white supremacy and domestic terrorism before referring to “replacement theory” that apparently motivated the Buffalo killer and about which he wrote in his unhinged manifesto.
Sharpton then declared, addressing racists and white supremacists, that with Governor Hochul’s help . . .
We won’t replace you, but we will disarm you.
If you concentrate really hard, you can feel the healing begin already.