Alan Nunnelee: “I want to thank my friend from Pennsylvania for yielding, but also for his leadership on this important issue. I rise in…”

“I want to thank my friend from Pennsylvania for yielding, but also for his leadership on this important issue. I rise in strong opposition to the United Nations Arms Trade Treaty. The Obama administration has a disturbing tendency to favor international regulation over American sovereignty. The Arms Trade Treaty is just the latest example. The Government of the United States was created by ``we the people.'' ``We the people'' established the Constitution in order to limit that government; but as a condition of establishing that Constitution, ``we the people'' insisted that a Bill of Rights be adopted, a Bill of Rights that would guarantee every citizen of our Nation rights. An important plank in that Bill of Rights includes the right to keep and bear arms, and it's guaranteed by our Constitution. Under no circumstances should we ever agree to a treaty that undermines that right. This Arms Trade Treaty encourages nations to collect the identities of owners of imported firearms, which constitutes the core of a national gun registry. The treaty also requires nations to report the data they collect to the United Nations. If that data contains information on individual gun owners, it would be a serious violation of privacy. The treaty could also restrict the ability of the United States to conduct foreign policy and to sell arms to our allies, such as Israel.…”