(TheLastPatriotNews.com) – A coalition of 24 Republican-run states led by the attorneys general of Tennessee and Montana has sent a letter to the CEOs of Visa, Mastercard, and American Express, demanding the three credit card companies drop new rules allowing the tracking of gun purchases.
The new rules became possible after pressure from the civil servant unions of New York and California and after the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) agreed to create a new Merchant Category Code specific for gun stores.
In the Republican states’ letter to the CEOs of the credit card giants, Tennessee AG Jonathan Skrmetti and Montana AG Austin Knudsen warn the new rules for firearm retailers potentially violate consumer protection and antitrust laws.
They stress the monitoring and tracking of gun sales generates a “list of gun buyers,” which can be obtained and misused by the enemies of the Second Amendment rights of “law-abiding consumers.”
“Giant financial companies must not use their combined market power to circumvent our representative democracy. As Attorney General, I protect the people of Tennessee from corporate collusion that threatens to undermine their constitutional rights,” Tennessee Attorney General Skrmetti declared.
“Working together with my colleagues from other states, we will marshal the full scope of our lawful authority to stop this abuse,” he vowed.
“It’s extremely disappointing to see credit card companies cave to pressure from international bodies and adopt this measure that will do nothing to improve public safety,” Montana Attorney General Knudsen said.
“Instead, it invites potential future invasions of consumer privacy and further coordination between corporations and government agencies to erode Americans’ fundamental right to keep and bear arms,” he added.
They made it clear that the ISO has been pressured by leftist activists to establish the new merchant codes, thus “circumventing and undermining the American legislative process.”
The attorneys general of the 24 Republican-run states blasted the development allowing the tracking of firearm purchases as a “conspiracy” that would “deprive Americans of their civil rights.”
“Social policy should be debated and determined within our political institutions. Americans are tired of seeing corporate leverage used to advance political goals that cannot muster basic democratic support,” the coalition stated.
“The Second Amendment is a fundamental right, but it’s also a fundamental American value. Our financial institutions should stop lending their market power to those who wish to attack that value,” the Republican AGs demanded in conclusion.
JUST IN: GOP AGs Demand Credit Card Companies Drop New Gun Rules https://t.co/8ObxannIbt pic.twitter.com/1D4BLrkaJO
— Breaking911 (@Breaking911) September 20, 2022
