U.S. Senate Shoots Down UN Arms Trade Treaty

From The Heritage Foundation:

The U.S. Senate responded decisively today to Secretary of State John Kerry’s recent signature on the U.N. Arms Trade Treaty (ATT). In a bipartisan letter led by Senators Jerry Moran (R–KS) and Joe Manchin (D–WV), half of the Senate has officially pledged to oppose the ratification of the ATT. The signatories include every Republican Senator except Mark Kirk (R–IL) and five Democratic Senators. The letter, with its 50 signatories, ends any prospect in the foreseeable future of Senate ratification of the ATT.

Interesting that Senator Kirk from Illinois didn’t sign on to this, especially with the I roads that the Republicans have made with gun rights over the past several months.

With half of the Senate pledging to shoot down the ATT, we’re safe… for now.

Remember though, the treaty can sit in the Senate indefinitely until there is enough support for it, or until it is requested to be withdrawn. I suspect the ATT will sit in Senate purgatory for some time…

When a treaty is submitted to the Senate for approval, the Senate has several options for action. The Senate may approve or reject the treaty as it has been submitted or it may make its approval conditional by including in the resolution amendments to the text of the treaty—reservations, understandings, interpretations, declarations, or other statements. The president and the other countries involved must then decide whether to accept the conditions and changes in the legislation, renegotiate the provisions, or abandon the treaty. Finally, the Senate may choose to take no definitive action, leaving the treaty pending in the Senate until withdrawn at the request of the president or, occasionally, at the initiative of the Senate

(H/T Dan @ GunsSaveLives)