BATFE

From TFRWiki

BATFE, BATF, ATF, whatever you want to call it

Mission

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) is a principal law enforcement agency within the United States Department of Justice dedicated to preventing terrorism, reducing violent crime, and protecting our Nation. The men and women of ATF perform the dual responsibilities of enforcing Federal law and regulating the firearms and explosives industries. We are committed to working directly, and through partnerships, to investigate and reduce crime involving firearms and explosives, acts of arson, and illegal trafficking of alcohol and tobacco products.

Vision

Working For A Safer and More Secure America...Through Innovation and Partnerships

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives must protect the public against crime, violence, and other threats to public safety. Our vision will help us chart the course to improve the way we serve and protect the public, provide leadership and expertise, and achieve new levels of effectiveness and teamwork.

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Basis for the BATFE's legal authority

Derive their police powers through Congress' Constitutional mandate to regulate interstate commerce and levy taxes. This link between guns and national trade, while regarded as weak by many legal scholars, has never been tested in court.

The BATFE's legal standing as a taxing body is at best highly suspicious, and at worst blatantly unlawful since their change from a Department of the Treasury agency to a Department of Justice agency. US DOJ is not permitted to issue taxes, currencies, or stamps, and has no right nor purview over Interstate Commerce. This, too, has never been brought up in a court situation.