That’s not reform — that’s retreat.

According to sources familiar with House discussions, some inside the gun lobby — notably those orbiting the NRA’s old-guard establishment — are angling to “soften the optics” by pushing a compromise that keeps suppressors in the NFA but reduces the financial burden.

Let’s be clear: gun owners aren’t asking for a cheaper permission slip. They’re demanding freedom.

Suppressors Are Not Dangerous — They’re Safety Devices

The suppressor — or “silencer” as legally defined — is not a weapon of war. It’s a muffler. A safety device. One used across Europe, where even left-leaning governments encourage their use to prevent hearing loss and reduce noise pollution.

Here in the U.S., that same device is treated like a criminal tool — slapped with a $200 tax, fingerprinting, months-long background checks, and federal registry entry — simply because it threads onto a barrel.

For years, the Hearing Protection Act (HPA) was presented as the fix: a bill to remove suppressors from the NFA, but still treat them as firearms under the Gun Control Act. That meant background checks, FFL paperwork, and more hoops.

But now, we’ve got something better.

The SHUSH Act: Real Deregulation, Real Freedom

Enter the SHUSH Act — Silencers Helping Us Save Hearing — introduced by Senator Mike Lee (R-UT) and Congressman Michael Cloud (R-TX).

This bill does what the HPA never dared to: it treats suppressors as they are — a simple firearm accessory, no different from a scope or sling.

No NFA.

No GCA.

No background check.

No tax stamp.

No registration.

Just a private, peaceful purchase of a hearing protection tool — as the Founders intended.

This is the only principled approach. And for the first time in a generation, momentum is building to fully deregulate suppressors and put the absurd 1934-era fear mongering in the dustbin where it belongs.

 NRA’s History of Half-Measures

But right as gun owners are lining up at the goal line, the NRA playbook is coming off the shelf again: lower the bar, surrender leverage, and then call it a victory.

That’s what insiders say is happening now.

Instead of throwing full support behind the SHUSH Act, NRA-linked operatives are reportedly floating a $5 tax stamp compromise — keeping suppressors on the NFA registry in exchange for “less paperwork.”

It’s classic D.C. politics — give up the fight to “guarantee a win,” even when no compromise is necessary.

Is it nefarious? Or just cowardice? Hard to say.

Either way, it’s a betrayal of the cause.

The NRA’s history of watering down pro-gun policies is well documented.

They forget that gun owners don’t want optics — they want liberty.

The “Camel’s Nose” Excuse

Some defenders of the $5 tax stamp compromise argue that it’s just a strategic “camel’s nose under the tent” — a first step in slowly chipping away at the NFA.

It might be a valid strategy if Democrats controlled Congress —  and all that could be done was incremental damage control.

But that’s not the case.

Republicans currently control everything.

This is the time to go on offense, not play defense.

It’s time to score the touchdown, not settle for a field goal at the five-yard line.

The Grassroots Demand Real Reform

Gun owners across the country — the very ones who fill the NRA’s coffers — are no longer content with table scraps.

They want the whole meal. They want suppressors treated like accessories, because that’s exactly what they are.

That’s why gun owners are abandoning the NRA in droves, in search of No Compromise organizations like Texas Gun Rights and National Association for Gun Rights.

And if Republican leadership in Congress is paying attention to these grassroots gun rights organizations — instead of beltway bureaucrats — the SHUSH Act could be the most meaningful gun rights legislation passed in decades.

But if the NRA gets its way — again — we’ll be stuck with a $5 permission slip and a lifetime on the registry.

That’s not reform. That’s just regulated servitude at a discounted price.