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Senator Bob Menendez, the ranking Democrat on the Senate Foreign
Relations Committee, said he was placing a "hold" on a
notification last month related to the White House's effort to
switch oversight of the export of small arms, including
assault-style and sniper rifles, from the Department of State to
the less rigorous jurisdiction of the Commerce Department
Menendez issued a hold on a related notice in February, setting
the stage for a potential standoff over the issue.
"As you no doubt are aware, firearms and ammunition – especially
those derived from military models and widely in-use by military
and security services – are uniquely dangerous," Menendez wrote
in a letter to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.
A State Department spokesperson said the department does not
comment on congressional correspondence, but said the department
is still looking at policies and regulations to ensure that arms
export "supports U.S. national security and foreign policy
objectives, while also ensuring U.S. industries have an even
playing field on which to compete."
The administration announced its overhaul of export policy last
year. The move would generate business for gun makers such as
American Outdoor Brands <AOBC.O> and Sturm Ruger & Company <RGR.N>.
There is a long-standing precedent in which a handful of
lawmakers, including the ranking member of the minority party on
the Foreign Relations Committee, can object to and "hold" such a
policy shift - or a weapons export deal.
(Reporting by Patricia Zengerle; Editing by Sonya Hepinstall and
Leslie Adler)
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