Washington, D.C.- In an ongoing trend of militarization of federal agencies, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced it was looking to procure on the General Services Administration website .40 caliber Smith & Wesson submachine guns.
The posting announced:
The U.S. Department of Agriculture, Office of Inspector General, located in Washington, DC, pursuant to the authority of FAR Part 13, has a requirement for the commerical acquisition of submachine guns, .40 Cal. S&W, ambidextrous safety, semi-automatic or 2 shot burts trigger group, Tritium night sights for front and rear, rails for attachment of flashlight (front under fore grip) and scope (top rear), stock-collapsilbe or folding, magazine – 30 rd. capacity, sling, light weight, and oversized trigger guard for gloved operation. NO SOLICITATION DOCUMENT EXISTS. All responsible and/or interested sources may submit their company name, point of contact, and telephone. If received timely, shall be considered by the agency for contact to determine weapon suitability.
According to a report by Politico the USDA provided the justification that “more than 100 agents employed by the law enforcement division of the department’s Office of the Inspector General who carry such weapons because they are involved in the investigation of criminal activities, including fraud, theft of government property, bribery, extortion, smuggling and assaults on employees. From fiscal 2012 through March 2014, OIG investigations pertaining to USDA operations have netted more than 2,000 indictments, 1,350 convictions and over $460 million in monetary results.”
The militarization of executive agencies seems to be a ongoing trend as we previously reported here at BenSwann.com.
In addition to the postal service attempting to procure weapons and ammunition on the GSA website, many other federal agencies have recently bought billions of dollars worth of firearms and ammunition. These agencies include the Department of Homeland Security, the Department of Education, the IRS, the Social Security Administration.
This seems to be a troubling trend that has left many Americans asking why these federal agencies, that wouldn’t seem as though they need large supplies of weaponry and ammo, are looking for such heavy firepower.
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