Republican Texas Sen. Ted Cruz led a group of GOP members in both the House and the Senate in filing an amicus brief in the United States Court of Appeals, calling for the First Circuit to support the Second Amendment and Americans’ rights.
The Daily Caller first obtained a copy of the brief, which focuses on the Estados Unidos Mexicanos v. Smith & Wesson Brands, Inc. case. In 2021, Mexico filed a lawsuit in the District of Massachusetts against gun manufacturers in the U.S., alleging the Mexican people have been “victimized by a deadly flood of military-style and other particularly lethal guns that flows from the U.S. across the border, into criminal hands in Mexico.”
Cruz was joined by Florida Sen. Rick Scott, North Carolina Sen. Ted Budd, Tennessee Sen. Marsha Blackburn and 35 House Republicans. Cruz and his colleagues said the lawsuit does not add up and mentioned that was a reason it was previously thrown out in September 2022. The Mexican government is currently appealing that decision.
“Mexico’s arguments in this lawsuit don’t hold water, which is why the suit was thrown out in the district court last year. In sum, what the government of Mexico is trying to do is impose its own interpretation of American law on American businesses. This demonstrates a disregard for our Constitution and in particular, our Second Amendment,” Cruz told the Caller before filing the brief. (RELATED: EXCLUSIVE: Ted Cruz, GOP Colleagues Call For National Archives To Explain Why Pro-Life Students Were Kicked Out)
READ THE BRIEF HERE:
(DAILY CALLER OBTAINED) — … by Henry Rodgers
“They’re also ignoring the fact that Congress has exercised its authority by passing the law in question here, the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act (PLCAA), and the fact that the United States is a sovereign nation,” Cruz added. (RELATED: EXCLUSIVE: Sen. Ted Cruz To Introduce Constitutional Amendment To Lock Supreme Court At Nine Justices)
The brief also defends the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act (PLCAA), a federal law that protects businesses that sell firearms from being held liable for harm caused by criminals who abuse those firearms.