Legislative Report #4

Legislative Report #4 is now online.

Journal News publisher resigns

Journal News publisher Janet Hasson is resigning.  She is responsible for publishing the map of pistol license holders home addresses in Westchester and Rockland, a move which I understand cost the paper 30% of it’s subscribers and who knows how much money.

Where’s Cuomo?

Another early poll on potential 2016 presidential candidates:

“… [Hillary] Clinton also remains dominant in the Democratic primary field.  54% of the party’s voters want her to be their candidate to 16% for Joe Biden, 12% for Elizabeth Warren, 5% for Bernie Sanders, 2% for Jim Webb, and 1% for Martin O’Malley.  If Biden and Warren don’t end up making the race Sanders appears to have a little bit of separation from the bottom tier that could make him Clinton’s leading rival …”

Where’s Gov. Cuomo?  Nowhere to be seen.

 

It’s very perverse

New Yorkers Against Gun Violence mouthpiece Leah Gunn Barrett’s reaction to this phony “exclusive” from the Daily News on increased donation to NRA is priceless:

“… Contributions and grants to the NRA in 2013 totaled $96.4 million, up 11.5% from the $86.4 million raised the previous year, according to the latest financial disclosure form filed by the gun group with the IRS … “It’s very perverse,” said Leah Gunn Barrett, executive director of New Yorkers Against Gun Violence. “Most Americans would have a visceral reaction toward those numbers following a tragedy where 20 (kids) were slaughtered.”  The donations grew even as the NRA, headed by Wayne LaPierre, actually spent less on professional fund-raising fees …”

Her astroturf can’t match it, even with Bloomberg’s broken pledge of spending $50 million to challenge NRA.

“… Tom King, one of three NRA board members from New York, shot back that anti-gun advocates are the ones who tried to capitalize on the Newtown massacre by attempting to roll back gun rights.  King, who is also president of the NRA-affiliated New York State Rifle & Pistol Association, said it’s not surprising gun owners dug deep into their pockets to counter the effort.  “Contrary to what some believe, there are a lot of people out there who believe in the Second Amendment and believe that there are political forces out there trying to take away those rights,” King said …”

The Daily News will never acknowledge this because they are part of it.  It has to drive the editors nuts that for all the effort they put into promoting the antis, their agenda has all but collapsed in Congress and most of the states.

Henderson v. U.S.

SCOTUS will be taking up a gun case, Henderson v. U.S.:

“The Supreme Court is considering a tricky dilemma faced by people who legally own guns, but are then convicted of a serious crime and have to get rid of them.  Since federal law bars convicted felons from possessing firearms, how can those guns be sold or transferred without running afoul of the law?  The quandary, which has divided lower courts, came up Tuesday as the justices weighed the unusual case of Tony Henderson, a former U.S. Border Patrol agent from Florida who was arrested and charged with distributing marijuana.  Henderson had turned over 19 firearms valued at more than $3,500 to the FBI as a condition of his release. After pleading guilty, Henderson wanted to transfer the weapons to his wife, sell them to a friend or otherwise get some value for them.  But lower courts sided with the government, which argued that letting Henderson transfer ownership of the weapons technically would give him possession in violation of law …”

NYSRPA has filed a supporting amicus brief in the case.

They found Larry

Surprise, surprise:

Gov. Cuomo’s former chief of staff, Lawrence Schwartz — who is under scrutiny in Manhattan US Attorney Preet Bharara’s explosive public-corruption probe and supposedly off the state payroll — is, in fact, still being paid an astronomical sum, The Post has learned …”

So, someone does know where Larry has been hiding.

The reaction from the Cuomo camp reinforces my belief this is a payoff to keep him quiet.  His new office is the Albany man-cave.

#1 Astroturfers

Sharyl Attkisson has an excellent article on astroturf.  #1 on her list is Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America and Everytown, both of which are bought and paid for by Mike Bloomberg.

Here is a talk she gave recently on the subject:

Will he talk?

Shelly Silver has been formally indicted on three charges including “Honest Services Mail Fraud, Honest Services Wire Fraud and Extortion Under the Color of Official Right.”  He faces 20 years on each count.

The question now is, will he talk?

This is going to work

Yeah, this is going to work:

“The sale of machetes should be outlawed after several recent attacks, a Queens pol said Wednesday.  State Sen. Tony Avella plans to introduce a bill to ban the possession of the scary blades in New York.  “The fact that anyone can easily purchase this potentially lethal tool is just crazy,” he said …”

Freedom is the lowest common denominator

While the reciprocity bill isn’t technically perfect, it’s generating positive responses from our enemies:

“… The bill “would create a lowest common denominator that makes the weakest state requirements the law of the land,” said John Feinblatt, president of Everytown for Gun Safety, a group funded by former Mayor Michael Bloomberg …”

Freedom is the lowest common denominator.

“… “This bill is evil and dangerous,” said Dan Gross, president of the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence …”

The Brady’s are still in business?  I have not heard from them in awhile.  They largely faded away after being eclipsed by Bloomberg’s bucks.

“… “This bill is a menace to New York and would allow potentially dangerous people from other states to carry concealed weapons in our grocery stores, movie theaters and stadiums, without even notifying the police,” Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) told the Daily News.  “It is a nightmare for our law enforcement officers and the community, and I will fight this legislation tooth and nail.” …”

It’s a menace only to certain New York politicians who’ve built their career on the gun control lies.  Have more people legally carrying guns inside New York City and crime will drop, just as it has wherever non-discretionary CCW exists.  What will the Schumer’s of the world say then?