Bring it on
The Christian Science Monitor is trying to encourage Congress to take up gun control:
“In the wake of the Tucson shootings, reasonable gun control legislation has made an appearance on Capitol Hill. It can survive and become law, but only if lawmakers find the courage to back it. One proposal – introduced in both the House and Senate – would ban high-capacity ammunition clips that hold more than 10 bullets … Another proposal, introduced this week in the Senate, would close the “gun show loophole” … gun-control advocates are not particularly hopeful … There is no way to test the waters but to wade into them …”
Bring it on.
Antigun effort underway?
Newsweek reports that Obama intends to unveil some sort of gun control effort in the coming weeks:
“… in the next two weeks, the White House will unveil a new gun-control effort in which it will urge Congress to strengthen current laws …”
This sounds awfully vague and is most definitely is not what the antis want.
“… The White House said that to avoid being accused of capitalizing on the Arizona shootings for political gain, Obama will address the gun issue in a separate speech …”
The antis are all about capitalizing on tragedy. They have no facts to back up their arguments and their policies are a proven failure at enhancing public safety. All they can do is lie and shriek and whine and hope they can intimidate their opposition into silence.
Obama has been pretty clear with his other far-left policies and right now this just sounds like a lame effort to placate some of his base.
No guns in SOTU speech
Obama didn’t mention guns in his State of the Union speech.
Carolyn McCarthy is not happy:
“… I’m disappointed that President Obama did not urge us to look at our nation’s gun laws …”
“… In a speech that seemed to strive for common ground, he missed a chance for common sense on guns …”
Obama knows gun control is loser of an issue so why should he put effort into it? The electorate is already upset with him and it would just piss more people off if he starts talking it up.
Legislative Awareness Day
Lobby day went well yesterday. The crowd was about the same size as last year despite some bad weather south of Albany and we filled “The Well” again.
Antigun bigot Michelle Schimel was not happy we were coming and sent out a press release hoping to intimidate us. It didn’t work. Schimel decided to go into hiding so none of her constituents could meet with her and by the time I went around to her office the door was closed.
Here are some media reports from around the state:
Bloomberg’s annoucement
Mayor Bloomberg is giving his speech right now on his “major” gun control initiative. The main points are:
- Enhanced background checks, get mental health records from states.
- No private sales, bogus “gun show loophole.”
Plus:
He supports the McCarthy magazine bill.
He’s laying all the blame on Congress for not doing anything about his agenda. He also avoided trashing the NRA.
A-1479 has been around for years
The U.S. Sportsmen’s Alliance sent out an alert regarding A-1479 which was picked up by outdoor writers including Ken Moran at the Post:
“… A bill in New York would redefine “assault weapon” to include many firearms that are commonly used for hunting. Assembly Bill 1479, introduced by Asm. Linda Rosenthal (D-New York), changes the state’s definition of “assault weapon.” The new definition would classify firearms commonly used for hunting, like semi-automatic shotguns that have a thumbhole stock or a pistol grip, as assault weapons … Even more dangerous to sportsmen and gun owners, the bill gives the Superintendent of State Police the authority to regulate and classify additional firearms as “assault weapons” by simply finding that a firearm feature or modification is “particularly suitable for military and not sporting purposes.” …”
A-1479 basically expands the definition of so-called “assault weapons” to just about any semi-auto rifle/pistol which can accept detachable magazines plus many shotguns. It was originally introduced by John Lavelle back around 2004. Linda Rosenthal is just the latest sponsor. Lavelle dropped dead a few years ago and it was picked up by his replacement Matthew Titone who simply reintroduced whatever bills Lavelle had been carrying. Titone was made a fool of on the Assembly floor when the bill came up for discussion because he clearly didn’t read it and didn’t seem to know enough about firearms to understand what it really did. Rosenthal on the other hand doesn’t care. It is part of the antigun bill package the Assembly takes up every year except for last year when they just tried pushing microstamping.
It’s nice USSA did an e-mail blast, but since they don’t actually do anything in New York, their alert could have been better written. It gives the impression the bill is new, which it isn’t, and does not even mention semi-autos which are the main target of this legislation.
Bloomberg’s announcement
Mayor Mike is planning a “major” gun control announcement Monday morning.
I don’t believe he’s going to go for McCarthy’s bill. It’s DOA. I think it’s going to be related to mental health and/or drug abusers. Something that expands what goes into NICS. Maybe mandatory drug testing and psychological examinations for pistol license holders. Whatever the announcement, you can count on it to be obnoxious and totally useless at enhancing public safety.
Paul Helmke on new McCarthy bill
D’Amato speaks
For some reason Al D’Amato feels compelled to inject himself into the gun control debate. From his op-ed at the LI Herald, “Calls for gun safety must not fall on deaf ears“:
“… Personally, I am a proponent of the Second Amendment, and throughout my career in the U.S. Senate I voted against bills that would have limited an individual’s right to own a gun … “
So how did you earn the D/D- ratings?
“…. However, there are always instances where certain gun-control measures are necessary. For example, I voted in favor of President Clinton’s 1994 measure that limited the manufacture of assault rifles …”
Thanks for the explanation.
“… Over time, we’ve learned that our gun-control system has failed us …”
So, clearly we must expand upon this failure rather than actually try dealing with the problems of violent criminals and cowardly politicans who hide behind them and/or exploit them for political gain?
“… One troubling trend is the increase in the sale of firearms at gun shows. Non-dealers, who can be anyone trying to sell guns they legally own, are allowed to rent a table at a show and sell them. They don’t have to follow federal guidelines and are permitted to sell firearms without checking backgrounds. It’s ludicrous! …”
It’s also a fabricated non-issue Mayor Bloomberg is pushing. Now we know where Al’s been getting his talking points.
“… Bloomberg … outlined a series of steps designed to keep guns out of the hands of dangerous individuals and those with a history of mental illness. “The law says that drug abusers can’t buy guns,” he said, “but even though Jared Loughner was rejected by the military for drug use and arrested on drug charges, he was able to pass a background check and buy a gun. It should be clear to everyone that the system is broken …””
He just admitted gun control doesn’t work. Why should we expand upon this failure?
“… Congresswoman Carolyn McCarthy … announced plans to introduce federal legislation to ban high-capacity ammunition magazines. These magazines enable guns to carry more bullets, and give an attacker more time to fire before reloading …”
They also give citizens more time to act in self-defense against an aggressor or multiple aggressors.
Why is Al trying to inject himself into this issue? It’s tempting to think that he’s just missing the media attention he got while in office, or that he’s gone senile. However, he’s still something of a behind the scenes powerbroker for the RINO-wing of the NY GOP. This bears watching to see if he tries to influence other Republicans.