United States – -(AmmoLand.com)- We have discussed the threat that corporate gun control poses to our Second Amendment rights multiple times. One of the threats is when companies like Salesforce have attempted to leverage their products to force companies to go along with infringements on our right to keep and bear arms. In many ways, the fight for our Second Amendment rights has now expanded to the boardroom and cubicle.
That said, the biggest threat is the financial blacklist. If banks, credit card companies, and credit unions refuse to do business with Second Amendment supporters or the firearms industry, any legal battle won at the Supreme Court can be rendered meaningless.
The good news is that there is legislation that can shut off the financial blacklist. Representative Roger Williams (R-TX) has introduced HR 2079, the Freedom Financing Act. This legislation pretty much tells major banks, credit unions, and credit card companies that they cannot discriminate on the basis of “reputational risks.”
This is an important phrase. The term “reputational risk” has invoked by Andrew Cuomo when he began abusing financial regulations to silence the National Rifle Association. With the passage of this legislation, Cuomo’s campaign would be rendered toothless. That alone would be an important win and could allow the NRA to sort out its internal issues without existential threat.
But this bill doesn’t stop with securing the NRA. The bill extends security to every pro-Second Amendment group, every firearms manufacturer, and even every federally licensed dealer. Because the same “reputational risk” nonsense could be aimed at, say, a company making modern multi-purpose semiautomatic firearms or a local gun store.
If enacted into law, HR 2079 ends the potential for “reputational risk” to be used against our Second Amendment rights. But this legislation also goes further, includes language that explicitly prohibits banks, credit unions, and credit card companies from discriminating against FFLs, be they manufacturers, importers, or dealers. The bill also backs it up with civil penalties of up to $10,000. But the real teeth in the bill is the prohibition of using the Automated Clearing House Network for banks that discriminate against FFLs.
To put it mildly, this is a bill that will make a huge difference in preventing the use of financial blacklisting to attack our rights. It goes without saying that Second Amendment supporters should contact their Representative and Senators and politely urge them to support HR 2079.
About Harold Hutchison
Writer Harold Hutchison has more than a dozen years of experience covering military affairs, international events, U.S. politics and Second Amendment issues. Harold was consulting senior editor at Soldier of Fortune magazine and is the author of the novel Strike Group Reagan. He has also written for the Daily Caller, National Review, Patriot Post, Strategypage.com, and other national websites.
Believe I was just denied a credit purchase by imputed 2A content (yeah, it was a boom stick….) of purchase….based on seller type probably. Intended to use Bank of America credit card for a larger than normal purchase amount. I called BoA Customer Service to pre-alert of the probable upcoming transaction. While being larger than normal monthly purchases, it was less than 1/3 of my credit limit…always pay balance in full every month. Next week, I placed order, but the card was denied. Called BoA to discuss. They wanted to know what was being purchased. I told it was none… Read more »
If you’re going to provide a link to contact your Congresspeople, it ought to be a link that you can actually use to do it. This bill isn’t even on the NRA’s radar, much less their webpage.
Meh. Republicans only do bills like these when they know they won’t pass.
If they want to get the attention of the banks threaten to do away with the FDIC program if they don’t go along.