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Urgent action required. It is urgent that every gun owner call their Senators today and demand that they oppose the “See a Shrink, Lose your Guns” sell-out bill that is being authored by Senators Pat Toomey (R) and Joe Manchin (D) – but which also has Chuck Schumer’s fingerprints all over it. Call immediately at 202-224-3121.
See a Shrink, Lose your Guns. The anti-gun “ranters” have spent the last week telling us that Republican Senators can’t filibuster Harry Reid’s gun control bill; that they can’t cut off debate to a bill they haven’t seen yet. “Let the bill come up,” they say. “We need to see the bill” before Senators can vote against cloture to proceed to it.
Well, we’ve seen the Toomey-Manchin-Schumer sell-out, and it’s worse than the Feinstein gun ban, which will reportedly be tied to it and offered simultaneously in a Senate procedure known as an “amendment tree.”
Toomey and Manchin will claim that their bill only covers “gun show sales” and Internet sales. But if you’ve ever talked about your gun and /or let it be known you’d like to sell or buy a gun on the Internet, this language covers you. If you advertise your gun in the church bulletin and the bulletin is put on the Internet, you’re covered.
The only exemption is for sales that are sold exclusively by word of mouth. The increased number of background checks would likely exacerbate the system breakdowns (inherent to NICS) which have shut down gun shows over and over again. It would mean that Americans who were illegally denied firearms because their names were similar to other people’s would effectively be barred from owning a gun. (We would never tolerate such delays for voting rights or other freedoms that we are guaranteed.)
And for those Republicans who think they’re going to be able to offer their useless amendments, guess what? Reid is reportedly going to use a procedure to block out all amendments (called an “amendment tree”). And there are plenty of Senators standing in line to make sure that the Senate doesn’t give “unanimous consent” to let those Republicans offer their amendments.
So if you live in a rural area, you’re effectively barred from selling or buying a gun – or it at least becomes very, very difficult.
Incidentally, the Toomey-Manchin-Schumer “national registry” language is full of holes. There will be a national gun registry as a result of this sell-out.
But that’s not the worst part. Under an amendment in the bill to HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act), you could have your guns taken away because your private shrink thinks you’re “dangerous” and could send your name directly to the FBI Instant Check system.
Did you think it was terrible that 150,000 military veterans had been added into the NICS system because they’d seen a VA shrink about their PTSD? Well guess what? Now it’s going to happen to the rest of the population … by the millions!
And the next step, of course, will be to begin to sue psychiatrists that don’t send every single patient’s name to the Instant Check system, and to make sure that their lives are ruined if they don’t send a patient to NICS and anything goes wrong.
The bottom line: “See a shrink; lose your guns.”
All of this will reportedly be on an amendment tree with the Feinstein gun ban and magazine bans.
Repeal of gun owner protections. In addition, Toomey no doubt unintentionally agreed to repeal one of the most important protections for gun owners that was included in the 1986 McClure-Volkmer Act – the provision that would allow you to take an unloaded, locked-up gun through states like New York without being stopped. Under a new subsection (c), the Toomey-Manchin-Schumer bill would require you to “demonstrate” to the satisfaction of New York police where you were coming from and where you are going to. And, if you don’t do that to their satisfaction, they can arrest you.
Please keep in mind, nothing in this bill would have stopped Newtown dirtbag from killing his mother and taking the firearms that she owned and perpetrating the horrible crimes that he committed.
Nothing is this bill would actually make children safer at schools. There is nothing that will actually keep bad guys from stealing or illegally acquiring guns, but there’s plenty that will threaten our gun rights!
ACTION: Click here to contact your two senators immediately. Tell them the “see a shrink; lose your guns” sellout is even worse than the Feinstein gun ban which will reportedly be on the same amendment tree with it. Distribute this alert far and wide.
Time is short, so if you call – at 202-224-3121 – you may click here to see the pre-written letter and use the contents to help direct your comments.
We are going into a battle which will determine the future of gun control for the next decade – and perhaps for the rest of our lifetime.
Here’s the status: On or around April 8, Harry Reid will move to proceed to S. 649. That “base bill” contains the Veterans Gun Ban, which could send you to prison for 15 years if you sell a gun to a veteran, without realizing he has PTSD. The bill will also contain the Schumer version of Universal Gun Registries.
S. 649 does not have the 60 votes necessary to break a filibuster on final passage. However, if Reid can get the motion to proceed adopted – and get on the bill itself – he will play let’s-make-a-deal and use bribes and kickbacks to buy the 60 votes he needs.
In particular, Reid and Schumer will probably try to prune the universal registry bill to buy off the vote of Oklahoma Republican Tom Coburn. They may pretend to prohibit recordkeeping by the FBI, but you can bet their “compromise” will contain a big, juicy loophole.
In addition, they may pare it back to gun shows and internet sales, although the most recent “gun show” bill we have seen would effectively ban gun shows.
The media has been reporting that the NRA leadership is working with West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin to craft these compromises, although NRA vehemently denies it.
As a result of anti-gun rules changes, there are two ways to proceed to a bill in the Senate. One requires 60 votes, which we have. The second requires 50 votes (plus Biden), but requires Reid to give up some of his control of the floor.
The point is this: Our efforts will be tremendously helped if the NRA leadership publicly calls on Senators to oppose the motion to proceed, opposes cloture on the motion to proceed, and scores both votes.
If it does this, the motion to proceed will die. Reid will be unable to move to any gun control legislation. Gun control will die.
We believe that, because of the strength and fervor of our membership, we are very close to winning this battle – but it would be so much easier if we were both singing off the same page.
ACTION: If, you are an NRA member, contact them. Urge them to join with us in supporting the Paul-Cruz-Lee filibuster. That means they should tell Senators to oppose the motion to proceed to any gun control vehicle, and to oppose cloture on the motion to proceed to any gun control vehicle.
CONTACT: You can use the message below to direct your comments to NRA Executive Vice President Wayne LaPierre.
—– Pre-written letter —–
Dear Mr. LaPierre:
We are going into a battle which will determine the future of gun control for the next decade – and perhaps for the rest of our lifetime.
As you know, Harry Reid will soon move to proceed to S. 649. That “base bill” contains the Veterans Gun Ban, which could send you to prison for 15 years if you sell a gun to a veteran, without realizing he has PTSD. The bill will also contain the Schumer version of Universal Gun Registries.
As you also know, S. 649 does not have the 60 votes necessary to break a filibuster on final passage. However, if Reid can get the motion to proceed adopted – and get on the bill itself – he will play let’s-make-a-deal and use bribes and kickbacks to buy the 60 votes he needs.
In particular, Reid and Schumer will probably try to prune the universal registry bill to buy off the vote of Oklahoma Republican Tom Coburn. They may pretend to prohibit recordkeeping by the FBI, but you can bet their “compromise” will contain a big, juicy loophole. In addition, they may pare it back to gun shows and Internet sales, although the most recent “gun show” bill would effectively ban gun shows.
There are reports in the press that you are working with West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin to craft these compromises, although I hope this information is wrong.
As a result of anti-gun rules changes, there are two ways to proceed to a bill in the Senate. One requires 60 votes, which we have. The second requires 50 votes (plus Biden), but requires Reid to give up some of his control of the floor.
The point is this: I hope that you will support the Paul-Cruz-Lee filibuster and tell Senators that the NRA opposes the motion to proceed to S. 649 … opposes cloture on the motion to proceed … and will score both votes.
If you do this, the motion to proceed will die. Reid will be unable to move to any gun control legislation. Gun control will die.
I would therefore ask you to please oppose the motion to proceed to any gun control vehicle, and oppose cloture on the motion to proceed to any gun control vehicle, and to score both votes.
Please let me know if you will do this.
Sincerely,
Here is a copy of the letter that I sent;
Please join with the rest of freedom loving organizations and support the Paul- Cruz- Lee filibuster. No compromises at all, whatsoever. No to any deals of any kind at all. West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin needs to be sent walking for even considering any sort of cave in.
No more lifetime bans for less than felony convictions. You caved on that to Lautenberg, and we still remember. No more disarming veterans for serving their nation for life. We remember that. No more failing to support any gun owner for political expediency as you have done more times than I can remember. Grow a pair and get to work! We expect more, a lot more than submissiveness and compromise. Screw the press and anyone else that decides that they know better than we do when it comes to how we live our lives!
Never compromise your most deeply held values. Have faith, have courage. Sua Sponte!
“Our Founders intended the Senate to be a body where legislation was slowed down and subject to improvement through extended debate and amendment. [Harry] Reid’s proposed ‘reforms’ would remove two of the most fundamental rights traditionally reserved to all Senators — to freely debate and amend legislation. I shall not stand for that.” — Senator Rand Paul (R-KY)
On Election Day last November, several Democrat Senators were campaigning for reelection in pro-gun states. And in order to get their constituents’ votes, they promised fealty to the Second Amendment.
Patrick, on November 6, Democrat Senators Joe Manchin (WV), Bob Casey (PA) and Jon Tester (MT) all won their respective elections. These seats, among others, were crucial to helping Harry Reid return to the top post in the Senate.
But only a month after the election returns were tallied, the Senate — under Majority Leader Harry Reid’s control — is now crusading to implement:
* Gun bans on semiautomatic firearms and magazines;
* An effective ban on gun shows;
* A ban on private gun sales, without going through a gun dealer; and,
* Changes in the Senate rules which would allow them to ban guns with a mere 50 Senate votes.
This last proposal is particularly insidious. Gun grabbers are not going to be able to get 60 votes to break a Senate filibuster of gun control. But, with the help of fake “pro-gun” Senate Democrats, they may be able to get 50.
So the question of whether Senate Democrats will need 50 votes or 60 votes will determine whether gun control -– and much of Obama’s agenda -– will be slammed through and passed into law.
This brings us to the “nuclear option.”
This is a trick which anti-gun Democrats intend to use the first day of the Senate session in order to obliterate the Senate rules and clear the way for 50-vote passage of gun control.
Your senator’s vote on the “nuclear option” may be the most important gun-related vote he casts during the 113th Congress. It may be the difference between whether Obama can secure Senate passage of gun bans, magazine bans, gun show bans, and bans on private gun sales.
Anti-gun Democrats will try to tell you that the Senate is just following its precedents.
But that’s a bald-faced lie. As Democrats made clear during the Bush administration when the Republicans were contemplating the “nuclear option,” the nuclear option has been threatened, but the trigger has never been pulled.
Anti-gun Democrats will try to tell you that the “nuclear option” can only be invoked on the first day.
That’s a lie. Senate Rule 5, Paragraph 2, provides that the Senate rules continue from one Congress to the next, unless changed by 67 votes (needed to break a filibuster of rules changes). If the Senate can use brute force to obliterate Rule 5 by 50 votes, it can use brute force to obliterate any rule at any time by 50 votes.
This is a major vote that will have huge ramifications for our republic. Our gun rights are just one of the many freedoms that are on the chopping block right now. And if Harry Reid can squelch his opposition by nuking the filibuster, it will be the first step towards completely obliterating our Constitution.
ACTION: Click here to contact your Senators and tell them that the vote on the “nuclear option” will be the most important gun control vote of the 113th Congress. Urge them to vote AGAINST changing the Senate rules. Tell them to vote AGAINST the “nuclear option.”
You may also phone the United States Capitol switchboard at (202) 224-3121. A switchboard operator will connect you directly with the Senate office you request.