Sunday, June 8, 2008
McCain - Protecting Second Amendment Rights
I Think the Choice is clear in this case ~Jon
Protecting Second Amendment Rights
John McCain believes that the right of law abiding citizens to keep and bear arms is a fundamental, individual Constitutional right that we have a sacred duty to protect. We have a responsibility to ensure that criminals who violate the law are prosecuted to the fullest, rather than restricting the rights of law abiding citizens. Gun control is a proven failure in fighting crime. Law abiding citizens should not be asked to give up their rights because of criminals - criminals who ignore gun control laws anyway.
Gun Manufacturer Liability
John McCain opposes backdoor attempts to restrict Second Amendment rights by holding gun manufacturers liable for crimes committed by third parties using a firearm, and has voted to protect gun manufacturers from such inappropriate liability aimed at bankrupting the entire gun industry.
Assault Weapons
John McCain opposes restrictions on so-called "assault rifles" and voted consistently against such bans. Most recently he opposed an amendment to extend a ban on 19 specific firearms, and others with similar characteristics.
Importation of High Capacity Magazines
John McCain opposes bans on the importation of certain types of ammunition magazines and has voted against such limitations.
Gun Locks
John McCain believes that every firearms owner has a responsibility to learn how to safely use and store the firearm they have chosen, whether for target shooting, hunting, or personal protection. He has supported legislation requiring gun manufacturers to include gun safety devices such as trigger locks in product packaging.
Banning Ammunition
John McCain believes that banning ammunition is just another way to undermine Second Amendment rights. He voted against an amendment that would have banned many of the most commonly used hunting cartridges on the spurious grounds that they were "armor-piercing."
DC Personal Protection
As part of John McCain's defense of Second Amendment rights, he cosponsored legislation to lift a ban on the law abiding citizens of the District of Columbia from exercising their Constitutional right to bear arms.
Criminal Background Checks
John McCain supports instant criminal background checks to help prohibit criminals from buying firearms and has voted to ensure they are conducted thoroughly, efficiently, and without infringing on the rights of law abiding citizens.
Background Checks at Gun Shows
At a time when some were trying to shut down gun shows in the name of fighting crime, John McCain tried to preserve gun shows by standardizing sales procedures. Federal law requires licensed firearm sellers at gun shows to do an instant criminal background check on purchasers while private firearm sellers at gun shows do not have to conduct such a check. John McCain introduced legislation that would require an instant criminal background check for all sales at gun shows and believes that such checks must be conducted quickly to ensure that unnecessary delays do not effectively block transactions.
The Firearm Purchase Waiting Period
John McCain has opposed "waiting periods" for law abiding citizen's purchase of firearms.
The Confiscation of Firearms After an Emergency
John McCain opposes the confiscation of firearms from private citizens, particularly during times of crisis or emergency. He voted in favor of an amendment sponsored by Senator David Vitter prohibiting such confiscation.
Stiffer Penalties for Criminals Who Use a Firearm in the Commission of a Crime
John McCain believes in strict, mandatory penalties for criminals who use a firearm in the commission of a crime or illegally possess a firearm. Enforcing the current laws on the books is the best way to deter crime.
BHO - A True Threat To Freedom
For those of you on the fence still about weather or not to vote in this year's general election... Here is a compelling reason to... Barrack Hussein Obama (BHO) wants to disarm you! ~Jon
President’s column
By John C. Sigler, NRA President
May 2008A True Threat To Freedom
Right now, one of the most anti-gun politicians ever to set foot in Washington, D.C., may be just one election away from the Oval Office—and far too few gun owners realize the true threat to freedom this candidate represents.
No, it’s not Hillary Clinton—we already know how bad she is. It’s Senator Barack H. Obama, D-Ill., the man who promises “change” while pretending to offer “hope.” But exactly what kind of “change” is Obama “hoping” for?
It is far too easy for gun owners to slip into a false sense of security, unquestioningly accepting the candidate’s promises and proclamations regarding the Second Amendment; but the unreported truth is that Barack Obama has an atrocious record on your most fundamental civil right—the right to a firearm for self-defense.
Over the years, Barack Obama has either voiced support for, or voted to enact, laws to:
• ban all handguns
• ban the sale or transfer of all semi-automatic firearms
• ban the Right-to-Carry in every state, nationwide
• ban firearms in the home, even for self-protection
And he voted against a “self-defense exception,” which absolves folks of violating gun bans when their reason for violating those bans is to fend off criminal attack in the home.
Go to Obama’s website and you’ll see his claims of respect for your rights—claims which are, at best, misleading.
Obama’s website claims, “He will protect the rights of hunters and other law-abiding Americans to purchase, own, transport and use guns for the purposes of hunting and target shooting.”
But as the bumper sticker says—“The Second Amendment ain’t about duck hunting.”
In 1996, Obama’s Illinois state senate campaign answered a questionnaire indicating his support for a blanket ban on the manufacture, sale and possession of handguns in Illinois.
In 2000, Obama sponsored a “one-gun-a-month” law to ration the Second Amendment rights of the law-abiding citizens of Illinois.
Obama has supported bans on ammunition magazines, gun-lock mandates, renewal of the 1994 Clinton gun ban and California-style gun registration. He voted against confirmation of both Chief Justice Roberts and Justice Alito for the U.S. Supreme Court, and then refused to sign the pro-gun “friend-of-the-court” brief filed by 55 other senators and 250 House members in the District of Columbia v. Heller gun ban case.
In July 2005, Obama voted against the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act—a vote against the rights of every law-abiding gun owner, dealer and manufacturer in America, and a vote against our national defense.
Obama even proposed a federal law banning licensed firearm dealers from operating within five miles of any school or park, nationwide! Imagine a map with a five-mile circle drawn around every school and park in the United States. Unless you live in the wilderness interior of Alaska, you probably couldn’t find a law-abiding gun dealer anywhere under Obama’s ban!
Yet, while Obama’s disdain for Second Amendment freedom appears limitless, his attitude toward armed, violent criminals has been one of benign neglect, at best.
In 1999, on a vote in the Illinois senate on whether to try teenage gang-bangers as adults when they fire a gun on or near school grounds, Obama voted “present” —the functional equivalent of “NO”!
In 2001, when Illinois lawmakers tried to control rampant gang violence by making gang members eligible for the death penalty when they commit murder to help their gang, Obama voted against the measure.
Responding to a Chicago Tribune questionnaire, Obama said he believed federal mandatory-sentencing laws used to put armed and violent predators behind bars should be abolished!
And if those same violent criminals attack you, Obama opposes your fundamental, God-given right to protect yourself. He opposes your Right to Carry. In fact, according to Obama’s own hometown newspaper, the Chicago Tribune, Obama supports federal legislation to ban the Right to Carry for everyone but police officers!
Obama supported Washington, D.C.’s total ban on handguns in the home for self-defense; and when Illinois lawmakers introduced a bill that would exonerate citizens for violating local gun bans if they used a gun to defend themselves in their homes, Obama voted “NO”!
Even attorney Walter Dellinger, who tried to defend the Washington, D.C., gun ban before the U.S. Supreme Court, admitted, “It is a universal or near universal rule of criminal law that there is a self-defense exception. It goes without saying.”
In other words, Barack Obama’s position is even more anti-gun than the District of Columbia’s! Obama’s record is clear—his concept of “hope and change” will surely result in anti-gun/anti-freedom changes bringing more hopelessness for the most helpless in our society.
Now is the time to act! Every gun owner in America must be alerted to Obama’s record. Please, tear out this page, copy it and distribute it to fellow gun owners, hunters, shooters, family and friends. Spread the word and get ready for the most important election battle of our lifetime.