That’s Tennessee state representative Mike Stewart (D-Nashville) engaged in a little street theater for the cameras this morning in Music City. The media-whoring stunt he came up with; set up a stand where passers by can refresh themselves with lemonade, a cookie or a delicious AK-47 rifle.
The ostensible purpose — especially since he doesn’t appear to have any actual lemonade or cookies — is to illustrate the ease with which anyone can purchase a gun without a background check in this dangerous day and age. But Rep. Stewart may have already broken the law . . .
According to a report by wrkn.com,
Stewart set up his lemonade stand in front of the old Ben West Library at the corner of Union Street and Polk Avenue at 7:30 a.m.
He brought a newly-purchased, knock-off AK-47 assault rifle to sell along with lemonade and cookies.
Stewart has introduced a bill in the Volunteer State legislature that would restrict all gun sales to licensed FFLs. So you’d expect that when he acquired that “newly-purchased” AK, he filled out a form 4473, just as he’d like to force all of his fellow Tennesseans to do.
If he had, then he answered question 11a which asks if the transferee is “the actual transferee/buyer of the firearm(s)”. In this case, it would seem that Rep. Stewart bought the gun with the intent to turn around and sell it to someone else.
Does that make him a straw purchaser? It’s a fuzzy area, but you could make that argument. Assuming he actually sells the gun, though, no one really expects our friends at the ATF to arrest a state legislator attempting to further his gun control agenda.
Not when people like David Gregory can get away with flaunting contraband on national television and get a free pass. Some people are more equal than others. Again. Still.
[h/t Bob H.]