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NRA-ILA Statement On Manchin-Toomey Defeat

April 17, 2013 by

Chris Cox, head of the NRA-ILA, issued the following statement following the Senate’s defeat of the Manchin-Toomey amendment by 54-46 this afternoon.

Statement from Chris W. Cox on U.S. Senate Defeat of Manchin-Toomey-Schumer Amendment

Today, the misguided Manchin-Toomey-Schumer proposal failed in the U.S. Senate. This amendment would have criminalized certain private transfers of firearms between honest citizens, requiring lifelong friends, neighbors and some family members to get federal government permission to exercise a fundamental right or face prosecution. As we have noted previously, expanding background checks, at gun shows or elsewhere, will not reduce violent crime or keep our kids safe in their schools.

The NRA will continue to work with Republicans and Democrats who are committed to protecting our children in schools, prosecuting violent criminals to the fullest extent of the law, and fixing our broken mental health system. We are grateful for the hard work and leadership of those Senators who chose to pursue meaningful solutions to our nation’s most pressing problems.

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A Load Of Bovine Excrement

April 17, 2013 by 1 Comment

I just read Mayor Bloomberg’s response to the defeat of Manchin-Toomey. If you need some organic fertilizer for your garden, there is a lot of it here.

“Today’s vote is a damning indictment of the stranglehold that special
interests have on Washington. More than 40 U.S. senators would rather
turn their backs on the 90 percent of Americans who support
comprehensive background checks than buck the increasingly extremist
wing of the gun lobby. Democrats – who are so quick to blame Republicans
for our broken gun laws – could not stand united. And Republicans – who
are so quick to blame Democrats for not being tough enough on crime –
handed criminals a huge victory, by preserving their ability to buy guns
illegally at gun shows and online and keeping the illegal trafficking
market well-fed. Senators Manchin and Toomey – as well as Majority
Leader Reid and Senators Schumer, Kirk, Collins, McCain and others –
deserve real credit for coming together around a compromise bill that
struck a fair balance, and President Obama and Vice-President Biden
deserve credit for their leadership since the Sandy Hook massacre. But
even with some bi-partisan support, a common-sense public safety reform
died in the U.S. Senate at the hands of those who are more interested in
attempting to protect their own political careers – or some false sense
of ideological purity – than protecting the lives of innocent
Americans. The only silver lining is that we now know who refuses to
stand with the 90 percent of Americans – and in 2014, our ever-expanding
coalition of supporters will work to make sure that voters don’t
forget.”

At least he blames both Democrats and Republicans alike for the failure of the bill. I’ll give him that.

What I find interesting is his ideological blindness bordering on hypocrisy. If you rewrote the first two sentences and substituted Colorado for Washington and US, you’d have exactly what just happened in Colorado. To say that most Coloradans were in favor of those gun control bills would be a lie. Moreover, the Democrats in the Colorado House and Senate were told by their leaders (and Bloomberg’s lobbyists) to ignore what their constituents were saying. If that isn’t turning their back on Coloradans, what is?

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Manchin-Toomey Fails

April 17, 2013 by 5 Comments

I just watched the vote on the S. Amdt 715 aka the Manchin-Toomey substitute amendment on C-Span. It needed 60 votes to pass.

It lost! And to be honest, we won.

The vote count was 54 aye to 46 nay.

I will post the roll call as soon as it is available. Of note was that Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ) made it to the Senate to vote. Of course he voted for it.

UPDATE: Here is the roll call. Any red-state Democrat who voted for it and says they believe in the Second Amendment is lying to you.  Senators like McCain, Collins, Toomey, and King are just beyond the pale.

Grouped By Vote Position

YEAs —54
Baldwin (D-WI)
Bennet (D-CO)
Blumenthal (D-CT)
Boxer (D-CA)
Brown (D-OH)
Cantwell (D-WA)
Cardin (D-MD)
Carper (D-DE)
Casey (D-PA)
Collins (R-ME)
Coons (D-DE)
Cowan (D-MA)
Donnelly (D-IN)
Durbin (D-IL)
Feinstein (D-CA)
Franken (D-MN)
Gillibrand (D-NY)
Hagan (D-NC)		 Harkin (D-IA)
Heinrich (D-NM)
Hirono (D-HI)
Johnson (D-SD)
Kaine (D-VA)
King (I-ME)
Kirk (R-IL)
Klobuchar (D-MN)
Landrieu (D-LA)
Lautenberg (D-NJ)
Leahy (D-VT)
Levin (D-MI)
Manchin (D-WV)
McCain (R-AZ)
McCaskill (D-MO)
Menendez (D-NJ)
Merkley (D-OR)
Mikulski (D-MD) 		Murphy (D-CT)
Murray (D-WA)
Nelson (D-FL)
Reed (D-RI)
Rockefeller (D-WV)
Sanders (I-VT)
Schatz (D-HI)
Schumer (D-NY)
Shaheen (D-NH)
Stabenow (D-MI)
Tester (D-MT)
Toomey (R-PA)
Udall (D-CO)
Udall (D-NM)
Warner (D-VA)
Warren (D-MA)
Whitehouse (D-RI)
Wyden (D-OR)
NAYs —46
Alexander (R-TN)
Ayotte (R-NH)
Barrasso (R-WY)
Baucus (D-MT)
Begich (D-AK)
Blunt (R-MO)
Boozman (R-AR)
Burr (R-NC)
Chambliss (R-GA)
Coats (R-IN)
Coburn (R-OK)
Cochran (R-MS)
Corker (R-TN)
Cornyn (R-TX)
Crapo (R-ID)
Cruz (R-TX)		 Enzi (R-WY)
Fischer (R-NE)
Flake (R-AZ)
Graham (R-SC)
Grassley (R-IA)
Hatch (R-UT)
Heitkamp (D-ND)
Heller (R-NV)
Hoeven (R-ND)
Inhofe (R-OK)
Isakson (R-GA)
Johanns (R-NE)
Johnson (R-WI)
Lee (R-UT)
McConnell (R-KY)
Moran (R-KS) 		Murkowski (R-AK)
Paul (R-KY)
Portman (R-OH)
Pryor (D-AR)
Reid (D-NV)
Risch (R-ID)
Roberts (R-KS)
Rubio (R-FL)
Scott (R-SC)
Sessions (R-AL)
Shelby (R-AL)
Thune (R-SD)
Vitter (R-LA)
Wicker (R-MS)
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Grassley Proposal

April 17, 2013 by 3 Comments

Earlier today the National Shooting Sports Foundation sent out an Action Alert asking their members and supporters to push their Senators to vote against the Manchin-Toomey amendment and in favor of the Grassley proposal. Unfortunately, they didn’t explain the Grassley proposal nor was there a release on it from Senator Grassley.

It took a bit but I finally found some information on the Grassley proposal in the Washington Free Beacon. It is officially titled the “Protecting Communities and Preserving the Second Amendment Act of 2013”. Its sponsors include Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX), Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Sen. John Thune (R-SD), Sen. Kelly Ayotte (R-NH), and Sen. John Hoeven (R-ND).

Senators have been tight-lipped about the bill, but according to a fact-sheet obtained by the Free Beacon it would “reauthorize and improve the National Instant Criminal Background Check System, increase resources for prosecutions of gun crime, address mental illness in the criminal justice system, and strengthen criminal law by including straw purchasing and illegal firearm trafficking statutes.”

The bill would establish a high-level federal task force to increase prosecution of gun violence in the country. It would also create a nationwide version of Project Exile, which shifts prosecution of gun crimes from state to federal courts.

Additionally, the act would “reauthorize and improve” the FBI’s National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS). Federal courts would be required to submit relevant information to NICS, and it would “ensure relevant mental health records” are submitted by states.

The bill would also call for the study of mass shootings and limit the Justice Department’s ability to conduct gun trafficking stings like “Operation Fast and Furious.”

“Sen. Grassley, with Sen. Cruz, is considering an alternative that emphasizes support for the Second Amendment and might include fixing the NICS system, providing resources to help address mental health and school safety, protecting veterans from false health determinations and addressing gun trafficking and straw purchasing,” a spokeswoman for Grassley told the Free Beacon.

The replacement amendment seems to me to be an amalgamation of amendments dealing with the NICS system, mental health issues, gun trafficking, Second Amendment protections for veterans, ATF operations like Fast and Furious, and the lack of straw purchases prosecutions. Here is a link to a fact sheet on it.

Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) is also reported to be planning to offer a national right to carry reciprocity amendment to the S. 649.

Having read the fact sheet, I don’t see the words “background checks” except for FFLs who want to check on their employees unlike the Manchin-Toomey amendment which would mandate background checks for all guns sold at gun shows or through Internet and other classified advertising.

Of course, nothing gets my backing until I have read and studied the actual language of the amendment.
 

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ACLU FIles Brief In Support Of TrainMeAZ’s Appeal

April 17, 2013 by

After the Arizona legislature passed Constitutional carry in 2010, Alan Korwin started a billboard and transit ad campaign called TrainMeAZ to promote gun safety instruction among other things. Unfortunately, the City of Phoenix censored the transit ads by removing them because, in their words, it didn’t meet their ad standards. Korwin promptly sued and was aided in the lawsuit by the Goldwater Institute.

Last October, the trial court found for the City of Phoenix and denied the motion for summary judgement by the Goldwater Institute. The case has been appealed to the Arizona Court of Appeals. Yesterday, the American Civil Liberties Union filed an amicus brief in support of the Goldwater Institute and Alan Korwin.

From the press release announcing the brief:

ACLU, GOLDWATER INSTITUTE TEAM UP ON FREE-SPEECH CASE

ON BEHALF OF GUN-SAFETY-BUSINESS OWNER

Unlikely alliance between organizations highlights case’s importance to fundamental freedoms

The American Civil Liberties Union has filed a friend-of-the-court brief supporting the Goldwater Institute’s appeal in Korwin v. Cotton, a free-speech challenge to Phoenix’s transit advertising standards that were applied to remove 50 “Guns Save Live” advertisements from the city’s bus shelters.

“This case has profound implications beyond whether Appellants can post their proposed advertisement on City of Phoenix bus shelters,” the ACLU’s brief argues. “It involves the scope of the Arizona Constitution’s grant to all persons the right to freely speak, write and publish on all subjects.”

The City’s policy forbids non-commercial advertising on city buses and transit shelters. In 2010, plaintiff Alan Korwin and his company, TrainMeAZ, purchased 50 transit shelter ads designed to drive business to their gun-training website. The ads pictured a large heart with “Guns Save Lives,” followed by the group’s website.

Even though the ads were commercial in nature, the City removed the ads, despite approving “Jesus Heals,” Veterans’ Administration, and water-conservation advertisements that did not appear to propose a commercial transaction.

“The City’s arbitrary decision-making is exactly the type of censorship the U.S. and Arizona Constitutions forbid,” said Clint Bolick, Vice President for Litigation at the Goldwater Institute, who characterized the City’s policy as “we sort-of know it when we see it.”

The Maricopa County Superior Court (a lower court) upheld the City’s actions in a 2012 decision. The case is now before the Arizona Court of Appeals.

“This odd-couple alliance between the Goldwater Institute and the ACLU highlights the importance of the case to our fundamental freedoms,” said Bolick.

The case is expected to be argued in the Court of Appeals later this year.

A copy of the ACLU amicus brief can be found here under “Case Documents”: http://goldwaterinstitute.org/article/korwin-v-cotton-bus-shelter-ads-case

###

“I am thrilled to see the ACLU get behind this case,” said Alan Korwin, the Appellant in the case and an ACLU member for decades, “It is the right thing to do. Phoenix was out of its mind to tear down our bus-stop ads in the middle of the night without notice. http://www.trainmeaz.com/news-room/

I have supported many of ACLU’s efforts on free speech, and they figured prominently in my 12th book about things you’re not allowed to say, Bomb Jokes at Airports. http://www.gunlaws.com/BJAA.htm

“This case is about free speech, which is central to everything I’ve been doing as a writer and publisher for nearly three decades,” he said. http://www.bloomfieldpress.com “It is particularly gratifying though that the substance here is gun safety, at a time when the national scene is dominated by efforts to restrict gun rights for the public.”

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New Jersey Native Threatens To Replace AZ Senator Over His Pro-Gun Stance

April 16, 2013 by 4 Comments

In one of the more amusing news stories today, Mark Kelly, gun control advocate and husband of Gabby Giffords, is threatening to “replace” Sen. Jeff Flake (R-AZ) in 2018 if Flake doesn’t vote for gun control.

Kelly was reacting to Flake’s announcement — posted Monday night on the senator’s Facebook page — that he will oppose a bill by conservative Sens. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., and Pat Toomey, R-Penn., that would expand background checks to include people attempting to buy firearms from private individuals at gun shows or on the Internet. The bill is being offered as a compromise to amend a bill with a more sweeping background check requirement.

But Flake said on his Facebook page that he believes the bill would still go too far.

“Manchin-Toomey would expand background checks far beyond commercial sales to include almost all private transfers — including between friends and neighbors — if the posting or display of the ad for a firearm was made public,” Flake said in his posting. “It would likely even extend to message boards, like the one in an office kitchen. This simply goes too far.”

Kelly still thinks he can persuade Flake to come around on the Manchin-Toomey amendment “when I talk to him about why his concerns are unfounded.”

If that doesn’t work, then maybe the Orange, New Jersey native will threaten to hold his breathe and stomp his feet to get his way. For some reason I think that is destined to failure as well.

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John Kerry – “Gun Violence” Keeps Japanese Students Away

April 16, 2013 by 1 Comment

From the vaguely French looking Secretary of State who, by the way, served in Vietnam:

Secretary of State John Kerry thinks Japanese students don’t come to the United States to study because of “gun violence”. He goes on to say:

Kerry cited Japan’s tough gun laws preventing almost all private
firearms ownership and said the country was safer “where people are not
running around with guns.”

Of course I’m sure Japan also has laws about the possession of chemical weapons like Sarin but that didn’t stop the gas attacks on the Tokyo subway. Just like they have laws that make it illegal to kill schoolchildren, innocent bystanders, and coworkers with a knife.

UPDATE: The Washington Post evaluated Kerry’s claim and gave it a 3 Pinocchio’s out of a possible 4.  The number of Japanese exchange students has been declining for the last 15 years….as has their economy.

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NSSF – No To Manchin-Toomey

April 16, 2013 by

The National Shooting Sports Foundation has come out strongly against the Manchin-Toomey amendment. They have issued an Action Alert aimed at retailers but applicable to all of us.

They object to prioritizing NICS checks coming from gun shows over those at retail counters and the measures that could put a FFL’s license at risk.

The U.S. Senate is expected to begin debate tomorrow on The Public Safety and Second Amendment Rights Protection Act, S. Amdt. 715, proposed by Sens. Manchin (D-W.Va.) and Toomey (R-Pa.). This measure will slow down all storefront FFL checks on weekends by requiring that gun show checks must be COMPLETED before a non-gun show check can be completed.

Prioritizing gun show checks over storefront checks will harm storefront FFLs’ businesses. Weekends, when gun shows take place, are the busiest time for storefront FFLs who may not be able to run checks for their customers. Tell your senators that it’s unacceptable to prioritize the Second Amendment rights of private party transferees over the rights of storefront FFL customers. Congress should provide adequate resources to NICS so that ALL checks are done instantly.

While S. Amdt. 715 is not the universal background check bill opposed by 86 percent of federally licensed firearms retailers, it does not address critical product liability concerns for retailers processing private party transfers and imposes record-keeping responsibilities that could result in license revocation for even simple mistakes. Tell your senators not to put your livelihood on the line.

Call or write your U.S. senators and tell them to VOTE NO on the flawed Manchin-Toomey Amendment and on any bill that does not present real solutions to making our communities safer.

Find your elected officials here.

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GRNC – Hagan Says Your Vote Doesn’t Matter

April 16, 2013 by 1 Comment

A number of people who called Sen. Kay Hagan’s office today were told by staff she planned to vote for the Manchin-Toomey amendment according to Grass Roots North Carolina. I can’t really say I’m surprised given the reports that she is one of the more frequent guests aboard Manchin’s boat Black Tie. I wouldn’t be surprised if she also uses the CCRKBA endorsement of Manchin-Toomey amendment as cover.

GRNC has issued another alert regarding Hagan’s position along with a call for people to demonstrate outside Sen. Richard Burr’s district office in Winston-Salem tomorrow.

From their alert:

Sen. Kay Hagan vows support for universal gun registration!

US Senator Kay Hagan (D-NC, GRNC-1) plans to vote for the Toomey-Manchin “compromise” amendment to S. 649 which will come up for a vote possibly as early as tomorrow. After months of sitting on the fence and testing the political waters, Sen. Hagan and her office staffers are no longer hiding behind vague comments as to her position on the bill. Several GRNC members have called Senator Hagan’s office today and the response from her staff was united: Senator Hagan will vote for the Toomey-Manchin amendment to S. 649. When several GRNC members pointed out over the phone that it may cost Hagan their votes in her re-election campaign next year, the answer from her office was simple: “you probably wouldn’t vote for her anyway”…

Toomey-Manchin “compromise” not what it appears

While some pro-gun advocates are singing the praises of the amendment, others such as David Kopel are pointing out the deceptions within. In an article published today, Kopel makes a factual observation which exposes the amendment for what it is: a complete and total sellout. In his article, Kopel makes two key points:

1. The provision which claims to outlaw national gun registration in fact authorizes a national gun registry.

2. The provision which is supposed to strengthen existing federal law protecting the interstate transportation of personal firearms in fact cripples that protection.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV, GRNC-0) is trying to push S. 649 through with no open debate, and Senator Hagan seems more than willing to vote for the bill without actually reading it and with no regard to how her constituents feel about the amendment or the bill itself. As we suspected from the beginning, her mind is made up- even before all the facts are known about the bill.

Stand with GRNC at Sen. Burr’s district office to voice your displeasure

On Tuesday, April 16 at 10:00 AM, GRNC will be holding a demonstration at Senator Richard Burr’s district office in Winston-Salem to deliver the message that his sellout by voting for S. 659 will not be tolerated, and that if he votes for the Toomey-Manchin “compromise” described below, we will work to remove him from office. As always, please “dress for the press” — no offensive signs or clothing. Please note that firearms at demonstrations are prohibited by law. Suggested themes for signs: “Richard Burr: 2nd Amendment Sellout?” and “Burr: Vote ‘NO’ on Toomey-Manchin”. Please RSVP with number of people attending to: Volunteer@GRNC.org Yes, it’s a work day: BE THERE ANYWAY!

Burr’s office is at: 2000 West 1st St., Suite 508, Winston-Salem, NC 27104. BRING LOTS OF FRIENDS! It you live too far away from this office, visit other district offices, which can be found at: http://www.burr.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=Contact.Home

IMMEDIATE ACTION REQUIRED!

  • Call Senator Kay Hagan Tuesday between 9am-11am and voice your displeasure over her intended vote.


  • Call Senator Richard Burr and press him to vote “no” on the Toomey-Manchin amendment.

  • Attend the demonstration at Sen Burr’s office on Tuesday morning at 10:00 am!

CONTACT INFO

Senator Kay Hagan (202) 224-6342
Senator Richard Burr (202) 224-3154

DELIVER THIS MESSAGE

Suggested Subject: “Vote “No” on Toomey-Manchin Amendment”

Sample phone message for Sens. Burr and Hagan:

Dear Senator:

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid says he will bring S. 649, the most recent scheme for universal gun registration, to the Senate floor after Easter. Be aware that I consider none of the gun control proposals in the Senate to be acceptable, and will not accept “compromise” on the issue.

Nor am I fooled by procedural machinations such as trying to amend other legislation to include a ban on so-called “assault weapons” or standard capacity magazines, either for the purpose of slipping such legislation through with less opposition, or for the purpose of giving “cover votes” to candidates who are weak on the Second Amendment.

In fact, I expect you to vote “no” to the Toomey-Manchin amendment, as well as S. 649 when it comes to the Senate floor for a vote.

I look forward to your support, and will closely monitor your actions via Grass Roots North Carolina legislative alerts.

Respectfully,

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Kachalsky Has Cert Denied By SCOTUS

April 15, 2013 by 1 Comment

In the list of orders issued today by the US Supreme Court was an order of certiorari denied for Kachalsky et al v. Cacace et al. This was the case from New York which challenged the Sullivan Law and its restrictions on carry.

As an article in Reuters notes, just because the Supreme Court didn’t grant cert to Kachalsky, doesn’t mean they won’t do it in another carry case. The twin Madigan cases from Illinois still could be appealed from the 7th Circuit as could Woollard from the 4th Circuit. As Sebastian notes, there could be a number of reasons the Court didn’t want to take up this case. One of his commenters notes that Adam Winkler speculated the Court didn’t want to take up the issue while the gun issue is in the news and before Congress.
It could be. 
Still I’m a little disappointed that the Supreme Court didn’t take up the issue now regardless of why they didn’t. It would have been interesting to have been a fly on the wall while the Justices were debating whether to take the case.