Joe Nocera is the New York Times’ in-house anti-gunner and he’s is at it again, this time defending the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms’ (ATF) proposed ban on M855 “green tip” ammunition. “Seven or eight years ago, makers of assault rifles like the popular AR-15 began making handgun versions of these powerful weapons [AR-15s]. These handguns use the same bullets as the assault rifles, including some that are armor-piercing…. Quite sensibly, the A.T.F. realized it needed to take another look at the issue of whether certain armor-piercing bullets that had long been associated with rifles were now more problematic because they could be used in these new, more lethal handguns.” Oh dear . . .
Quite sensibly for someone with an anti-gun axe to grind, Nocera didn’t talk to anyone who knows thing one about the rounds in question or the firearms that use them. (Joe also neglected to read TTAG’s numerous posts on the subject). One key fact that escaped his and the Times’ fact-checkers attention: the type of handguns in question can fire OTHER types of rounds that can penetrate Level IIIA Kevlar vests. Another missing factoid: OTHER types of handguns can defeat the vests, too.
On Friday afternoon . . . I spoke to J. Thomas Manger, the chief of the Montgomery County, Md., police department, and the president of the Major Cities Chiefs Association, which supports the A.T.F. effort. “Congress has asked them to make these kinds of decisions, and Congress should heed their recommendation,” he said.
When I mentioned that armor-piercing ammunition used to be called cop-killer bullets, he quickly corrected me.
“They’re still called cop-killing bullets,” Manger said. “I think every cop understands that.”
Mr. Nocera failed to mention that the Fraternal Order of Police, the “voice of our nation’s law enforcement” has announced that the ban is dumb as box of rocks [paraphrasing]. They said it’s not needed. I’ll tell you what else it not needed: anti-gun crusaders masquerading as objective journalists to forward their civilian disarmament agenda. And yet, there he is. [h/t JA]