The Patriot Post® · Armed Agriculture

The U.S. Department of Agriculture, Office of Inspector General, recently submitted a purchase order for numerous law enforcement weaponry, including submachine guns. Why on earth do food inspectors need such weapons, and where did they get the authority to buy them? Reason magazine’s Matt Welch recounts the history: “Because of the Homeland Security Act of 2002, which amended the IG Act to grant inspectors ‘full law enforcement authority to carry firearms, make arrests and execute search warrants.’ The law was sponsored by then-House Majority Leader Dick Armey (R-Texas), passed with a heavily Republican majority (207-10 in favor, versus 88-110 among Democrats), passed overwhelmingly in the Senate (90-9, with no Republicans voting against), and then signed into law by President George W. Bush.” It would seem to be time to revisit that law.