Congress Override of DC?

[cmj685]

Does anyone know what the status of any legislation by congress to take away D.C.'s ability to set their own arbitrary gun standards and force them to comply with the Supreme Court language? I had heard quite a rush of things after DC immediately denied Heller again about all kinds of proposed remedies by congress, but nothing now for sometime. Is there anything actually going on or was it all talk which is now fading away?

[hammAR]

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/story/2008/09/08/ST2008090802613.html

Gun Bill Could Strip D.C. Of Control
By Mary Beth Sheridan
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, September 9, 2008; Page B01

Congress plans to take up a bill this week that would repeal the District's gun-registration requirements and make it easier for residents to legally buy semiautomatic weapons, raising alarm among city officials that the measure would effectively end local gun control.

Chiefs of the D.C. police, the Capitol Police, the Secret Service and other law enforcement agencies are expected to testify against the bill during a House hearing today. Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.) plans to introduce a substitute bill that would simply mandate that D.C.'s gun laws conform to a recent Supreme Court ruling that struck down the city's 32-year-old ban on handguns.

But the tougher legislation is likely to prevail in the House, according to congressional sources and supporters and opponents of the bill. It has won the backing of 48 Democrats, many facing reelection in strongly pro-gun areas, and is expected to pick up broad support among Republicans.

The legislation has four main goals. It would repeal the D.C. ban on semiautomatic pistols and rifles; eliminate the city's gun-registration requirements; allow District residents to purchase guns in Virginia and Maryland; and abolish the regulation that guns kept at home be unloaded and either disassembled or fitted with trigger locks.

Opponents of the legislation said it could have even more far-reaching effects because of what they termed its vague provisions.

"You could drive a truck through this language," said Peter Nickles, acting D.C. attorney general. He noted that the bill would bar the D.C. government from passing any laws that would "unduly burden" residents wanting to have or use firearms as long as they met federal requirements.

"I'm very concerned that, under that legislation, the gun-rights advocates could challenge almost any restriction we've placed on gun ownership," Nickles said. Opponents said they feared that if the bill became law, people could carry loaded semiautomatic weapons or .50-caliber sniper rifles in the city.

But supporters said such worries were wildly exaggerated.

"That is a desperate attempt to mislead both members of Congress and the lawful residents of the District of Columbia," said Chris W. Cox, the chief lobbyist for the National Rifle Association. "There's nothing in this legislation, nor in the intent of this legislation, that would allow people to carry loaded firearms outside of their home."

The bill is the latest in a series of efforts by Congress to overturn the District's strict gun laws. The measure was in response to the Supreme Court's ruling in June that the District's law was too restrictive and violated Second Amendment rights.

After that ruling, the District replaced the ban with temporary legislation that permitted residents to register revolvers for self-defense in the home. But the city continued to put numerous restrictions on handgun ownership.

Another D.C. law continues to ban machine guns and includes a broad definition of such weapons, encompassing most semiautomatic arms. Magazine-loaded semiautomatic pistols, the type of weapons commonly carried by police officers, are the most popular handguns on the market.

D.C. officials point out that the Supreme Court left room for the city to continue to regulate guns and that the justices did not delve into the issue of semiautomatic weapons.

But supporters of the bill accused the D.C. government of flouting the court decision.

"The bill that I've introduced is a direct attempt to restore Second Amendment rights, and this is its sole objective," said Rep. Travis Childers (D-Miss.) in a statement.

The D.C. Council has already scheduled hearings this month on its gun regulations. Mayor Adrian M. Fenty (D) wrote last week to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Rep. Henry A. Waxman (D-Calif.), chairman of the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, asking them to allow the city to rewrite its own laws.

But Pelosi decided to act after Republicans indicated that they could gather enough signatures to bring a D.C. gun bill to the floor. Although Democrats have a 37-seat advantage in the House, dozens of party members are strong gun-rights proponents, reflecting opinion in their districts.

Facing the possibility of being outflanked just weeks before the election, House Democrats introduced their own legislation. The Democratic leadership has promised to bring it to a vote, several congressional sources said.

"It's something a number of our members have indicated they support," said Brendan Daly, a spokesman for Pelosi. "There's some concern, obviously, among leadership about violating the District's sovereignty . . . so they're trying to work that out and see where we go from here."

Cox, the NRA lobbyist, said the organization would be scoring legislators on how they vote on the bill. "This is our number one legislative priority," he said.

Although the bill is expected to pass in the House, possibly as soon as this week, the outcome is less clear in the Senate. Legislation often faces more procedural hurdles in that chamber, and Congress is expected to adjourn Sept. 26.

If the bill became law, it could create numerous complications for the D.C. government. The city's gun-registration law includes a variety of regulations that would be thrown out, according to proponents and supporters of the bill.

Congressional staffers said the D.C. government would be permitted to establish a new system for gun registration, as long as it did not "unduly burden" residents seeking to purchase guns.

[Andrew Rothman]

GOA is encouraging everyone to contact their senators. Please do.

Note: The bill is in the House; they are encouraging us to write our senators, because that's where the battle will be.

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

Thursday, September 11, 2008

The Heller earthquake continues to send tremors through gun control communities in middle America.

Following the Supreme Court's U.S. v. Heller decision in June, at least one town in West Virginia and two jurisdictions in Illinois have been forced to reconsider their gun control laws. The latter two -- in Wilmette and Morton Grove, Illinois -- repealed their handgun bans in July.

But while some communities have "seen the light," others continue to dig in their heels. Take Washington, DC, where the city council has thumbed its nose at the Court's ruling and has redrafted its registration law to impose a burdensome 12-step process that, as summarized in one legislative report, involves "multiple trips to gun dealers and government offices, fingerprinting, a written exam, and ballistic testing."

At a minimum, some officers believe this process will take 14 days. But a more realistic assessment was offered by DC Police Chief Cathy Lanier who said the process "could take months."

In response, the U.S. House of Representatives is expected to vote soon on legislation to simply repeal the DC gun ban -- a vote that could come as early as today.

HR 6691, introduced by Rep. Travis Childers (D-MS), would repeal much of the gun control in the District -- including the ban on semi-auto pistols and rifles, and the registration requirements which require residents to get permission from the city council before they can own a weapon.

The Childers bill will also strike the "trigger lock" provision which endangers gun owners by forcing the lucky ones who successfully jump through the 12-step process to render their guns unusable for immediate defensive purposes.

Faced with a discharge petition that had gained tremendous momentum -- in large part, thanks to your efforts which was a response to an earlier GOA alert -- the Democratic leadership realized that a bill to repeal the DC gun ban was definitely going to be brought out of committee and passed on the House floor. So the anti-gun leadership decided that the place to kill the bill was in the Senate.

Consider what news reports are saying:

"Although the bill is expected to pass in the House, possibly as soon as this week, its fate is less clear in the Senate," reported The Washington Post this past Tuesday. "It has won the backing of 48 [House] Democrats, many facing reelection in strongly pro-gun areas, and is expected to pick up broad support among Republicans."

Remarkably, the Post is right. (A stopped clock is also right twice a day.) The Democrats are trying to "have their cake and eat it too" by protecting Democrats from rural districts -- allowing them to vote pro-gun -- but then letting the bill die in the Senate.

That's why GOA is encouraging members to contact their two senators at this time.

ACTION: Please urge your senators to demand a vote on repealing DC's gun control. While we certainly don't want to discourage you from contacting your Representative, the main battle is going to be in the other chamber, so please make sure you contact both of your senators.

You can use the pre-written message below and send it as an e-mail by visiting the GOA Legislative Action Center at http://www.gunowners.org/activism.htm (where phone and fax numbers are also available).



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

Dear Senator:

I am glad to see that the House is taking up HR 6691, a bill introduced by Mississippi Democrat Travis Childers. His bill would help enforce the recent Supreme Court decision in U.S. v. Heller. It would do so by repealing the gun ban in the District -- including the ban on semi-auto pistols and rifles, and the registration requirements which require residents to get permission from the city council before they can own a weapon.

The Childers bill will also strike the "trigger lock" provision which endangers gun owners by forcing the lucky ones who successfully jump through the 12-step process to render their guns unusable for immediate defensive purposes.

Regardless of what happens to HR 6691, I would implore you, in the strongest possible terms, to urge Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) to schedule a vote on repealing the DC gun ban. Thank you.

Sincerely,



****************************


To subscribe to free, low-volume GOA alerts, go to http://www.gunowners.org/ean.htm on the web.

[Pat]

Funny senatorial election ahead, especially in Minnesota.

RKBA is not at all an issue. Am leaning towards Franken (because I want the health care that I was guaranteed in Europe, even as an American studying abroad), though neither candidate has spoken out one way or the other on gun issues.

[nyffman]

How can you say that Pat? The second amendment is constantly under attack by the leadership of the Democrat party and the groups to which they kowtow. Every Democrat you send to congress is another vote they can control on issues they deem important. For an example of how they do this, just look at the committee vote in our own legislature last year on the Castle Doctrine. Leon Lillie, a Democrat on the committee, gave a statement in favor of the bill and stated that he was in support of it, yet when the votes were counted, he voted against it. I don't care how much Turkish Delight they promise, I can't vote for a Democrat.

[Pinnacle]

How can you say that Pat? The second amendment is constantly under attack by the leadership of the Democrat party and the groups to which they kowtow. Every Democrat you send to congress is another vote they can control on issues they deem important. For an example of how they do this, just look at the committee vote in our own legislature last year on the Castle Doctrine. Leon Lillie, a Democrat on the committee, gave a statement in favor of the bill and stated that he was in support of it, yet when the votes were counted, he voted against it. I don't care how much Turkish Delight they promise, I can't vote for a Democrat.

I think that what Pat is saying is that he cares little about the 2A issue in this election - and more about Healthcare which is certainly his prerogative. As far as trusting a politician, I find it hard to vote for any of them but am left with little choice in the matter.

As far as voting for Franken - there is absolutely no way in hell that I could do that for a number of issues.

[cmj685]

The problem with the idea that "RKBA is not at all an issue" in this election is that RBKA is always an issue. As with virtually all their key issues (bigger government, higher taxes, gun control, abortion, more welfare programs) the democrats, in general, will not mention these things in their campaigning, and will keep it on the back burner until and unless they get a majority, and then these issues suddenly becomes very front burner. That's why we so often get surprised by these things--because we simply didn't know they were priority issues until the election was over and the results were counted and the democrats had won. None of these issues will exactly win lots of votes by campaigning about them in most jurisdictions! But we should never, ever, assume that because they aren't being mentioned as much as "change", that they are not key goals of liberal politicians. If you don't think that the demcrats would love to take your guns away with many of your other rights, in favor of a collectivism, you haven't paid alot of attention.

[DeanC]

Coleman did sign on to the DC CCW bill in the Senate. Trying to find the link.... it was a couple months ago.

[princewally]

The Eleventeenth Amendement
Thou shalt have the right to force doctors to heal you, at the expense of everybody else in the country, forcing a positive obligation on others, thereby negating the fifth word in this amendment.


That's not an actual amendment? I guess socialized healthcare is out, then.

[Dick Unger]

The Republicans are going to eventually lose control because of intransience overthe war and health care and the lack of oversight over the economy. At least Frankin supports hunting, which is more than you can say for lots of Dems. Pick your poison.

[hammAR]

At least Frankin supports hunting...............................

....are you serious....................

[Dick Unger]

At least Frankin supports hunting...............................

....are you serious....................

Sure. He (Al Frankin) was out at Lac Quie Parle with Collin Peterson (DFL Congressman) last fall. It was a big group, they shot 49 birds. (pheasants) I never heard of Coleman hunting.

(Don't tell PETA.)

[hammAR]

At least Frankin supports hunting...............................

....are you serious....................

Sure. He (Al Frankin) was out at Lac Quie Parle with Collin Peterson (DFL Congressman) last fall. It was a big group, they shot 49 birds. I never heard of Coleman hunting.

(Don't tell PETA.)

...well I was on R&R with 20 Marines in Thailand, and they picked up 11 hookers..................
doesn't mean that I support hookers........
and it doesn't mean that Franken supports the 2nd A or gun ownership.....................

[bensdad]

At least Frankin supports hunting, which is more than you can say for lots of Dems.

I'm convinced.

I'm also pretty excited about how he's gonna take all my money and divy it up among those more deserving. And I'm really looking forward to my son waiting 6 months for govt. approval on a tonsilectomy. That'll be great. Have I mentioned the fact that I think gas taxes are way too low? Stuart Smally will have things straightened out in short order.

[ttousi]

and they picked up 11 hookers

They ?????