UN Gun Control Treaty To Be Signed By Obama, Says John Kerry

The UN gun control treaty known as the United Nations Arms Trade Treaty will be signed by President Obama according to Secretary of State John Kerry.

“We look forward to signing it as soon as the process of conforming the official translations is completed satisfactorily,” John Kerry said, adding that the UN gun control treaty is “an important contribution to efforts to stem the illicit trade in conventional weapons, which fuels conflict, empowers violent extremists, and contributes to violations of human rights.”

The aim of the United Nations Arms Trade Treaty is to combat the illicit trade of arms by “tightening regulation of, and setting international standards for, the import, export and transfer of conventional weapons” in order to “close gaps in existing regional and national arms export control systems that allow weapons to pass onto the illicit market.” The UN gun control treaty specifically “reaffirms the sovereign right and responsibility of any State to regulate and control transfers of conventional arms that take place exclusively within its territory, pursuant to its own legal or constitutional systems.”

President Obama also stated he would only sign the UN gun control treaty if there was no impact on the Second Amendment. Besides, the 1957 Supreme Court case Reid v. Covert established that the Constitution supersedes international treaties ratified by the Senate, which would include this UN gun control treaty.

But a bipartisan effort from 130 members of Congress is calling on Obama not to sign the UN gun control treaty:

“As your review of the treaty continues, we strongly encourage your administration to recognize its textual, inherent and procedural flaws, to uphold our country’s constitutional protections of civilian firearms ownership, and to defend the sovereignty of the United States, and thus to decide not to sign this treaty.”

Even if Obama signs the United Nations Arms Trade Treaty two-thirds of the Senate would need to ratify it. This seems very unlikely since more than half of all Senators currently oppose the UN gun control treaty.

What do you think about Obama signing the UN gun control treaty despite Congressional opposition?