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Bloomberg Willing To Give Holder A Pass

December 9, 2011 by

While he usually has no problem whatsoever in criticizing anything related to firearms, Mayor Michael Bloomberg is refusing to criticize Attorney General Eric Holder over Operation Fast and Furious. Unlike even ardent gun prohibitionist Jackie Hilly of New Yorkers Against Gun Violence who says the Administration needs to take responsibility, Bloomberg won’t even go that far.

According to CBS New York:

Bloomberg seems clearly willing to give Holder a pass.

“I’ve never been into looking at the past and trying to blame people for the past,” the mayor said.

What a damn wimp not to mention a hypocrite. Bloomberg has no problem blaming gun shows in Arizona and other states for crime in New York City. However, in one of the few cases with a clear trail of evidence of illegal purchases by straw buyers, he won’t say anything negative about the operation or those who ran it. He is just plain, flat out, pathetic.

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Raleigh – Just Like Any Other North Carolina City But Better

December 8, 2011 by 1 Comment

The City of Raleigh wants to be treated differently than any other city in the state when it comes to following the state law that now allows concealed carry in municipal and county parks. While they have passed an ordinance that puts them in conformance with state law on this issue, the City Council in its arrogance has instructed the City Attorney to work to get them exempted from it.

The Raleigh City Council today adopted an ordinance that members hope will be short lived. The vote brings the City Code into compliance with North Carolina State Enabling Laws.

The newly adopted State law that went into effect Dec. 1, allows the carrying of concealed weapons essentially everywhere, with the exceptions of some City-owned parks and recreational facilities. The City Council has asked the City Attorney’s Office to pursue an exemption for Raleigh during the General Assembly’s short session.“While the City Council will comply with the new law, the Council members unanimously believe it is bad policy and are seeking to change the law at the first opportunity,” said City Attorney Thomas McCormick.

It states:

“It shall be unlawful for any person to openly carry or possess on or about his person any deadly weapon including but not limited to any: bowie knife, dirk, dagger, sling-shot, loaded cane, metal knuckles, razor, stun gun, pistol, revolver, gun, rifle, or nightstick at any meeting, assemblage, or parade on any property, street, alley or other public way, park or greenway. It shall be unlawful for any person to possess or carry a legally permitted concealed handgun on or at any City-owned playground, athletic field, swimming pool, or athletic facility as defined in G.S. 14-415.23”

While the City of Raleigh played it fairly straight on their ordinance unlike the City of Winston-Salem, it is the height of arrogance to expect that they will be exempted from a law that applies to every other city and county in the state of North Carolina. I fully expect the North Carolina General Assembly to tell Raleigh they can just forget it. Or since Wake County has seen such a large in-migration of people from certain Northeastern states, to fuhgeddaboudit.

H/T Jonathan

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Free Guns But Not Courtesy Of ATF Gunwalkers

December 8, 2011 by

Aaron Spuler of The Weapon Blog has his monthly list of contests up where you can win free guns and other cool stuff.

Looking over the list I see a Glock 19, a Sig, a couple of Diamondbacks, and a couple of Single Action Armys that should appeal to the cowboy in all of us. In terms of rifles, it is mostly hunting stuff like a Ruger 77 Hawkeye and a Savage Trophy Hunter XP.

Be sure to thank Aaron for this service he provides every month. These contests have better odds than the lottery and cost you nothing to enter.

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“Blood Is On The Hands Of Those At The Justice Dept Who Tried To Cover Up”

December 8, 2011 by

ATF Agent Jay Dobyns was interviewed on Fox News’ Justice with Judge Jeanine yesterday about Operation Fast and Furious. When asked if Brian Terry’s blood was on the hands of the DEA, FBI, and ATF, he responded, “Yes”. He then went on to say it was also on the hands of those in the Justice Department who have tried to cover up Operation Fast and Furious. Dobyns then said it was on the hands of those in the White House who made the decision to seal the records of the investigation into Terry’s death.

Dobyns has never been one to mince words and he doesn’t in this interview. It takes cojones to infiltrate the Hell’s Angels and it takes cojones to stand up to the full weight of the Obama Administration and the Justice Department.

Watch the latest video at <a href=”http://video.foxnews.com”>video.foxnews.com</a>

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Kudos To The Hickory (NC) City Council

December 8, 2011 by

Last night the Hickory City Council was presented with two proposals regarding concealed carry in its parks. From the official agenda:

Ordinance Amending Hickory City Code Chapter 21, Section 21-13, “Use of
Weapons” Regarding Firearms in City Parks (Exhibit XIII.A.1.)

A new state law passed in the last General Assembly Session will require the
City of Hickory to amend its ordinance which bans firearms in city parks. Session
Law 2011-268, which became effective December 1, 2011, amends Article 14,
Chapter 14 of the General Statutes which pertains to various laws regarding the
right to own, possess, or carry a firearm in North Carolina. Staff presented two
concealed handgun permit ordinance options to the Parks and Recreation
Commission at their November 8, 2011 meeting. The first ordinance, which Staff
recommended to be endorsed by the Parks and Recreation Commission,
prohibits concealed handguns in certain specified park areas. The second
ordinance simply complies with state law and allows concealed handguns in all
park areas. Six (6) Commission Members voted to endorse and recommend to
City Council the first ordinance option. Four (4) Commission Members voted to
endorse and recommend to City Council, the second ordinance option. Staff
recommends approval of the local ordinance which prohibits concealed
handguns in certain park areas.

While normally city councils give great weight to the recommendations of their staff and usually go along with them, last night the Hickory City Council listened to its constituents and voted for the second ordinance which simply complies with state law and allows concealed handguns in all park areas. They approved concealed carry in parks by a 6-1 vote.

According to reports in the Hickory Record, the overwhelming consensus of those who spoke on the ordinances last night was in favor of unrestricted concealed carry. When asked by Mayor Rudy Wright for a show of hands, 40 people were in favor of unrestricted concealed carry while only 2 in the audience were in favor of restrictions.

Council member Jill Patton “personally opposes firearms. I don’t like what concealed carry says about our society.” But Patton said she respects the wishes of her constituents, and a clear majority of responses she had about Tuesday’s public hearing favored no restrictions on concealed carry permittees.

Hank Guess, a council member who once was a conceal carry permit instructor, said the statistics cited by proponents for Option Two are valid. Council member Sally Fox said she is opposed to firearms in city parks and Hickory does not have a big problem with crime in the parks.

“I feel no safer if someone else is carrying a gun,” she said. Fox was the lone dissenting vote in the motion to conform Hickory’s firearms ordinance with the state law on parks.

It is good to see council members who are personally opposed to firearms like Jill Patton actually listen to their constituents. As I said in the headline, kudos to the Hickory City Council. Hopefully more North Carolina cities will look to the example of Hickory than to that of Winston-Salem or Asheville.

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Ruger Announces New SP101 With 4.2″ Barrel

December 8, 2011 by 2 Comments

Last Friday I picked up a used Ruger SP101 .357 revolver with a 3 inch barrel. The 2.25 inch barrel version is easily found but finding a used 3 inch SP101 is not so easy. So what does Ruger do today but announce that they are coming out with a 4.2 inch version of the SP101 with much better sights.

Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. (NYSE: RGR) is pleased to announce a new Ruger® SP101® five-shot revolver chambered in the venerable .357 Magnum cartridge and featuring a 4.2″ barrel with improved sights.

“The SP101 has been an extremely popular small frame revolver since its inception in 1988, but it has always featured a short barrel and minimal sights,” said Chris Killoy, Ruger Vice President of Sales and Marketing. “This new version is a quality .357 Magnum small frame revolver with a longer, full shroud barrel and improved sights that offers the shooter a better sight picture, longer sight radius, and additional weight to better control recoil. I am confident enthusiasts will find that this 4.2″ .357 Magnum is a great all around centerfire revolver that remains true to classic SP101 styling,” he concluded.

The newest Ruger SP101 is constructed of weather-resistant stainless steel with a satin finish, and wears checkered and engraved walnut grip panels inset in the one-piece rubber grip. The 29.5-ounce double/single-action revolver features a fully adjustable square notch blade rear sight and green HiViz® front sight. The 4.2″ barrel features a full shroud covering the ejector rod.

Comparing this model with the Wiley Clapp-designed Talo exclusive GP-100, the similarities are evident. Both have similar wood-checkered inserts in the rubber grips, both have the green fiber optic front sight, and both have an adjustable rear sight. They differ on barrel length and, of course, on frame size. I would guess the sales of the Wiley Clapp GP-100 must have caught the attention of Ruger and led them to consider this new model of the SP101.

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A Little Historical Perspective On “Delays” In Confirming Judges

December 7, 2011 by

Yesterday, the Senate refused to invoke cloture and end the filibuster of the confirmation of Caitlin Halligan to the Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. The White House released a statement in response saying, in part:

But today, her nomination fell victim to the Republican pattern of obstructionism that puts party ahead of country. Today’s vote dramatically lowers the bar used to justify a filibuster, which had required “extraordinary circumstances.”

This is rich coming from one of the most partisan administrations in recent history. Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA) spoke on the Senate floor yesterday regarding the Halligan nomination as well as the other judicial nominations considered. The historical perspective provided by Senator Grassley illustrates the hypocrisy that lies behind Obama’s statement on the Halligan filibuster. The relevant part of what Senator Grassley said is below:

With regard to the vote tomorrow, there will be some who say that this nomination has been vacant for too long, and that this nominee is being treated unfairly – needlessly waiting on the Calendar for too many weeks. Well, such arguments fail to consider the history of this seat or of the record established by my colleagues on the other side, regarding the consideration of nominations to the D.C. Circuit.

This seat has been vacant for over six years. It became vacant upon the elevation of John Roberts as Chief Justice back in September 2005. Following Justice Roberts appointment, Peter Keisler was nominated to fill the vacancy in June of 2006, with a hearing held on August 1, 2006. With a Republican majority in the 109th Congress, one would wonder why he never made it out of committee.

Well, it is not that he didn’t have the votes in Committee. The fact is – the Democratic minority would not allow a vote. This was accomplished by holding him over at his first markup, which the rules permit and is a legitimate exercise of the right of the minority. However, for the remaining executive sessions in September of that year, prior to final adjournment, they either made sure the committee did not have a quorum, so we could not vote, or they took the extraordinary step of invoking the 2-hour rule so the committee could not meet. I would note that a quorum was present early in one meeting but evaporated when Mr. Keisler’s nomination was the pending business. So basically, the opponents ran out the clock on this nomination. He didn’t get a committee vote; he didn’t get the courtesy of floor consideration – not even a cloture vote. Mr. Keisler was renominated in January 2007, when the Democrats again assumed control of the Senate. But his nomination sat in committee with no action until it was returned to the President in January 2009. He was the recipient of a pocket filibuster.

This was despite being rated unanimously Well-Qualified by the ABA Standing Committee on the Federal Judiciary and possessing outstanding qualifications to fill this position. So, complaints about this seat being vacant for too long just ring hollow with this Senator.

Likewise, when one considers the treatment of previous nominees to the D.C. Circuit, it is evident that the nomination of Ms. Halligan is not being treated in an unfair manner. In fact, her nomination is proceeding far better than many nominated to this court. I would remind my colleagues that previous nominees were subjected to delayed or multiple hearings, to extensive delays in committee, to multiple filibusters on the Senate floor. These include the nominations of Miguel Estrada – a Hispanic immigrant with a compelling personal story and outstanding judicial qualifications who was subjected to seven cloture votes; Janice Brown, an African-American female who had two cloture votes; Brett Kavanaugh, and Thomas Griffith. While all of these individuals, other than Mr. Estrada, were eventually confirmed, the procedural tactics used in their nominations made the confirmations difficult. I am not suggesting that is the pattern to follow, but it is relevant to the argument that Ms. Halligan is being treated differently or in an unfair manner.

As might be expected, the New York Times on its opinion page conveniently ignores this history just as did the White House.

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CCRKBA On Halligan Filibuster And The Rejection Of Cloture

December 7, 2011 by

The Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms opposed Caitlin Halligan from the start and sent out over 1 million emails asking people to contact their Senators. Here is their statement on the Senate refusing to invoke cloture (end the filibuster) on the debate over he confirmation of Halligan.

SENATE LISTENS TO CCRKBA, VOTES ‘NO’ ON OBAMA COURT NOMINEE

Tuesday, December 6th, 2011

BELLEVUE, WA – Grassroots power has helped derail President Obama’s nomination of anti-gun extremist Caitlin Halligan to the District of Columbia Circuit Court, with keystone opposition from members and supporters of the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms.

“We sent out more than one million e-mail alerts to gun owners across the country, warning them of Halligan’s anti-gun philosophy,” said CCRKBA Chairman Alan Gottlieb, “and it is clear from today’s 54-45 Senate vote against cloture, thus rejecting Halligan’s nomination, that their voices were heard loud and clear.”

The CCRKBA mailing identified Halligan as a “liberal agitator and a fervent gun hater” who “pushed to bankrupt gun manufacturers in New York with frivolous lawsuits.”

“After the disastrous appointments of Elena Kagan and Sonia Sotomayor to the Supreme Court,” Gottlieb said, “we could not stand silently while Obama put forth his most radical anti-gun nominee for a lifetime appointment to one of the most influential federal courts in the nation.

“Tuesday’s vote,” he continued, “is proof that gun owners are wise to Obama’s anti-gun strategy. He may not be able to pass legislation, but his legacy could be a federal court system stacked with gun-grabbing judges who will do whatever it takes to erase the landmark Second Amendment victories before the Supreme Court in the Heller and McDonald cases.

“We are delighted and proud that our members and supporters told the Senate that this is where it ends,” Gottlieb said. “We are not going to allow President Obama the chance to saddle our country and our Constitution with people like Halligan, who are clearly hostile to the Second Amendment.

“There is no place in the federal judiciary for anyone who so vigorously opposes one of our most cherished civil rights,” he concluded. “We’re gratified that a majority in the Senate understands this.”

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Chance To Win Ammo From Crimson Trace

December 7, 2011 by 1 Comment

I received this offer in an email from Iain Harrison of Crimson Trace. So if you have a Crimson Trace laser or light, here is your chance to win some free ammunition.

Crimson Trace just launched their new website. Not only are they offering a coupon code (30LSR11) for 30 bucks off at the checkout, but if you leave a review, your name goes in the hat on Friday for a thousand rounds of free 9mm, 40s&w or 45acp ammo – your choice. The promo will run until the end of the month, but won’t be published on their website until next week, so your readers will be the first to know.