Conservative Libertarian Outpost

Gun Owners of America E-Mail Alert
8001 Forbes Place, Suite 102, Springfield, VA 22151
Phone: 703-321-8585 / FAX: 703-321-8408
http://www.gunowners.org

Wednesday, September 17, 2008

Thank you so much for your activism!

Today, the U.S. House of Representatives opted to pass Representative
Childers' D.C. gun ban repeal instead of the anti-gun bill sponsored by Del.
Eleanor Holmes Norton -- which would have allowed D.C. to continue enacting
gun control.

The bill now goes to the Senate, but unless there is a ton of pressure put
on Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV), the bill will languish in committee.

Thankfully, Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-TX) is spearheading an effort to
get a vote on the House-passed bill. She is asking her fellow Senators to
cosponsor a letter which she will then deliver to Sen. Reid.

The Hutchison letter points out that, "In DC v. Heller, the court 
affirmed
that the District of Columbia's ban on ownership of handguns was an
unconstitutional restriction on that right."

After noting that D.C. has continued to deprive its residents of their
Second Amendment rights for more than 30 years, the letter asks Sen. Reid
"to ensure that D.C. residents do not have to wait any longer to realize
their constitutional rights by allowing the full Senate to consider H.R.
6842 before the 110th Congress concludes."

(Norton's bill was the original HR 6842, but it now contains the Childers
pro-gun language instead -- thanks in no small part to your efforts.)

There are not many days left before Congress recesses for the remainder of
the year, and Sen. Reid is expected to try to run out the clock on the D.C.
repeal bill. That's why it's important to act quickly and contact your own
two U.S. Senators.

This is the last chance we have this year to put some teeth into the Supreme
Court's decision in Heller. Gun Owners of America will score the signing of
this letter in its upcoming congressional rating.

ACTION: Please contact your two Senators and ask them to cosign the
Hutchison letter to Senator Reid. You can visit the Gun Owners Legislative
Action Center at http://www.gunowners.org/activism.htm to send your Senators
the pre-written e-mail message below. And, you can call your Senators at
202-224-3121 or toll-free at 1-877-762-8762.

----- Pre-written letter -----

Dear Senator:

I was happy to see that the House of Representatives voted for the Childers
substitute language which will repeal the D.C. gun ban (HR 6842).

I recognize that there is not much time left in the legislative session, and
so I hope you will do everything in your power to pressure Majority Leader
Harry Reid to bring up HR 6842 for a vote.

Hence, I urge you to cosign by Friday the Hutchison letter which urges Reid
"to ensure that D.C. residents do not have to wait any longer to realize
their constitutional rights by allowing the full Senate to consider H.R.
6842 before the 110th Congress concludes."

Gun Owners of America will score the signing of this letter in its upcoming
congressional rating. Please let me know how you intend to act.

Sincerely,

One Response to “House Passes Bill To Repeal D.C. Gun Ban”

1. patricksperry Says:
   September 18, 2008 at 06:57

   related to the above:

   D.C. Second Amendment Enforcement
   Act Passes House, Moves to Senate
   Wednesday, September 17, 2008

   Fairfax, VA – The U.S. House of Representatives voted today to approve the National Rifle Association (NRA)-backed “Second Amendment Enforcement Act” in an overwhelming bi-partisan vote of 266-152. The Act, passed as an amendment to H.R. 6842, will overturn the District of Columbia’s gun control restrictions that defy the recent Supreme Court ruling by continuing to limit D.C. residents’ right to self-defense. This bill is necessary to enforce the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in District of Columbia v. Heller.

   Following passage, Chris W. Cox, NRA’s chief lobbyist remarked, “From the moment the Supreme Court overturned this failed gun ban, elitist politicians have sought to undermine the Court’s decision with bogus emergency regulations that all but stop residents from exercising their Second Amendment rights. NRA wants to make sure D.C. residents are able to protect themselves and their families.”

   On June 26, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled “the District’s ban on handgun possession in the home violates the Second Amendment, as does its prohibition against rendering any lawful firearm in the home operable for the purpose of immediate self-defense.”

   A bi-partisan group of Congressmen introduced legislation this summer to force the D.C. Council into compliance with the Supreme Court after the council enacted ’emergency’ gun-control restrictions on its residents after D.C.’s gun ban and self-defense ban were overturned.

   The Second Amendment Enforcement Act will:

   * Repeal the District’s ban on semi-automatic handguns. Semi-automatic pistols have been the most commonly purchased firearms in the United States over the last 20 years, and therefore a ban on those firearms is unconstitutional as decided by Heller;

   * Restore the right of self-defense by repealing the requirement that firearms be disassembled or secured with a trigger lock in the home;

   * Reform the current D.C. registration system that requires multiple visits to police headquarters; ballistics testing; passing a written test on D.C. gun laws; fingerprinting; and limiting registration to one handgun per 90 days. The current system is unduly burdensome and serves as a vehicle for even more onerous restrictions; and

   * Create a limited exemption to the federal ban on interstate handgun sales by allowing D.C. residents to purchase handguns in Virginia and Maryland. Currently there is only one licensed firearm dealer in the District, and the District government is standing in the way of additional dealers opening their doors. A 40-year old federal law prohibits residents from purchasing handguns outside of the District.

   ‘I’d like to thank Congressmen Travis Childers, John Dingell, John Tanner, Mike Ross, Mark Souder, Bill Sali and Robin Hayes for their leadership. NRA will continue our work to bring the Second Amendment to D.C. residents, but we call on the Senate now to take up this historic legislation,” concluded Cox. “The American people should know where their elected representatives stand on this critical civil rights legislation before the November elections.”

   -nra-

   LikeLike

Comments are closed.