WASHINGTON, D.C. -(Ammoland.com)- Letters from May 2022 turned up by AmmoLand News show that the Democrats in the Senate started pushing freight companies and shipping companies to crack down on gun shipments.

Recently AmmoLand News has reported on UPS and FedEx cracking down on gun shipments. First, UPS changed its policy surrounding unfinished frames and receivers. The shipping giant informed customers that dealt in what the Biden Administration calls “ghost guns” that their accounts were canceled. UPS even told customers that if it found any packages containing the targeted items, it would destroy them. At the time, one retailer from Florida claimed to have $30,000 in products in the mail. Shortly after, FedEx matched the UPS policies.

Last month UPS told customers to qualify for 2-Day Air shipping that they would have to ship at least 50 handguns a day. If a retailer or manufacturer fell below the required amount of firearms shipped, UPS could cut them off from 2-Day Air shipping and require the companies to use expensive Next Day Air shipping. In addition, UPS would not accept 2-Day Air packages from Thursday to Sunday. Next Day Air is four times as expensive as 2-Day Air, which makes shipping guns prohibitively expensive.

A representative of UPS told one major shipper that no policies have changed. The woman, who asked not to be named, said that the shipping company told her that the change in policy that UPS is now enforcing is actually a rule that was on the books but not enforced.

Whether it is a new or old policy just now being enforced, the change has set manufacturers and retailers scrambling. AmmoLand News is still investigating those claims.

Democrat Intimidation Letters to Shipping Companies

The letters obtained by AmmoLand News are all identical and were sent to freight shippers, railroads, and common carriers like Fed Ex and UPS. The letters were signed by Democrat Senators Edward Markey, Dick Blumenthal, Cory Booker, Dianne Feinstein, and Chris Murphy. All the signers are known for being outspoken anti-gun advocates. Although there is no smoking gun that the letters caused the change, there is no doubt about the letter’s intent.

The letters claimed the signers were concerned about lax shipping measures and insinuated that the shipping measures were causing an “epidemic of gun violence.” The letter requested records going back five years. They also wanted to know the shipping companies’ policies regarding securing firearm shipments.

The letter claims that criminals were exploiting shipping companies’ policies to get their hands on guns. The letter uses examples from California, where 36 handguns were recovered that police were able to track back to stolen shipments. They also highlighted 46 shotguns that were stolen from a California railyard. The letters try to build a narrative that shipping companies need to change their policies.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, sales of guns skyrocketed. The Democrats blamed Trump for declaring gun stores essential during that time. The letters also blamed former President Donald Trump for the stolen firearms.

The Senators wanted to know a litany of questions. These questions included questions about what services can be used for firearms, and it goes as far as to ask what the companies’ definition of a gun is?

It remains unseen if these letters led to UPS’s changes to gun shipping policies, but the changes align with what the Democrats want. No guns for you.

About John Crump

John is a NRA instructor and a constitutional activist. John has written about firearms, interviewed people of all walks of life, and on the Constitution. John lives in Northern Virginia with his wife and sons and can be followed on Twitter at @crumpyss, or at www.crumpy.com.