Tag: gun control (page 2)

Joe Biden today:

"There are executive orders, executive action that can be taken. We haven't decided what that is yet," Biden said, adding that Obama is conferring with Attorney General Eric Holder on potential action.

What I'm reading on guns today:

• Gun sales spike after Newtown, other mass slayings
• Denver gun show draws huge crowd despite long background-check times (Same in Ohio, Wisconsin, NJ, RI,NC, Nevada, Iowa, Idaho, and many other states, with most citing fears of new gun laws.)
• California gun sales jump; gun injuries, deaths fall
• Colorado gun-control advocates and foes mobilize for new legislation

The Journal News, a Westchester County, NY paper, has stirred a lot of outrage over its publication this week of a map with the names and home addresses of those with permits for handguns. The story's headline was "Where are the Guns in Your Neighborhood?" Here is the interactive map.

Since that's where I grew up, I went right to my old neighborhood and clicked on all the dots. While it brought a sense of nostalgia, it also felt like a complete privacy intrusion.

Are gun owners now going to be stigmatized like sex offenders?

The Journal News defends its publication decision here. [More...]

The top news story of the day seems to be that DC police are investigating NBC's David Gregory for a show and tell of a high capacity ammunition clip magazine on Meet the Press. Apparently, NBC asked for permission to show the magazine and was denied. Under DC law, such magazines are illegal to possess.

On a related topic, this November, 2012 Congressional Research Service Report explains our current federal gun laws and recent legislative efforts to change them.

USA Today has released the results of a new poll conducted with Gallup on Americans' views on gun control.

President Obama has named Joe Biden to lead a new task force on gun violence.

Obama said Wednesday that he supports the Second Amendment, which guarantees the right to bear arms, and highlighted the nation’s strong tradition of gun ownership. Yet, he said, the country’s leaders need to find ways to keep “weapons of war” out of the hands of the irresponsible few.

“There is a big chunk of space between what the Second Amendment means and having no rules at all, and that space is what Joe’s going to be working on to try to identify where we’ll find some common ground,” Obama said.

[More...]

Arapahoe County District Court Judge William Sylvester entered this order today denying the media's request for expanded media coverage (audio, video and still photography) for Aurora shooting suspect James Holme's advisement on Monday. The hearing is open to the public and media who want to attend in person. The hearing is to advise Holmes of the charges the DA has filed against him.

A federal law enforcement source has leaked details to the media of the specifics of the explosive devices inside Holmes' apartment: [More...]

There will undoubtedly be calls for stricter gun control laws as a result of yesterday's shootings in Arizona. We don't need more laws.

Guns did not cause the rage, desperation or mental illness that led the Arizona shooter to kill people. It doesn't take a newsflash to know that people who feel persecuted, bullied, threatened, attacked or injured by others may resort to violence. And all the gun laws in the world won't stop the next person bent on doing the same thing

There's no question that one lone wolf can cause a lot of damage, but putting more resources into prevention, particularly recognizing and treating mental health issues, and funding re-entry programs instead of building more prisons, are far better solutions than putting more laws on the books, ramping up our already massive security programs and increasing the use of privacy-intrusive investigative techniques. [More...]

The Senate today rejected Sen. John Thune's amendment to the defense spending bill that would allow people with concealed weapons permits in one state to bring them into another state that allows concealed weapons permits. 48 states (all but Illinois and Wisconsin) provide concealed weapons permits.

The measure failed by 2 votes, 58 to 39. (60 votes were needed.) Score one for the gun control lobby. I think the objections to the bill are specious -- and in the case of NY Mayor Michael Bloomberg, verge on hysteria.

"This is about as anti-police, pro-gun trafficker piece of legislation that has ever come before the United States Senate," said New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg Tuesday.

[More...]

I'm pleased to read over at Crooks and Liars that Attorney General Eric Holder told Katie Couric in an interview last night that more gun control laws are not on the Administration's front burner.

KATIE COURIC: Did someone tell you to back off?

ERIC HOLDER: No one's told me to back off. I understand the Second Amendment. I respect the Second Amendment.

What makes this even more interesting is that Holder was such a gun crime advocate during the Janet Reno/Bill Clinton days.

As I've written before, Barack Obama tends to be all over the place on gun rights.

Via Instapundit and Say Uncle, I see he has given a new interview to the Chicago Sun Times on his position.

In it, Obama argues for federal legislation putting more cops on the street (a position shared by Hillary who has issued a detailed plan on the topic) and for more gun control laws.

Here's what he had to say: [More...]

Not surprisingly, here, there and everywhere.

He believes (as do I) that the Second Amendment conveys an individual right to bear arms. But, he supports reasonable regulations on those rights. So where does reasonable regulation end and infringement on an individual's rights begin?

Obama is actually straddling the issue somewhat like the Bush Administration did when it filed a brief in the [D.C. gun] case last month. He does support individual rights, but says—and this is the qualifier--the government can impose reasonable restrictions on gun ownership. And he then suggests that pretty much any existing laws are reasonable.

Here's Obama's position and the video of his remarks. Shorter version: He straddles.

More...

Is Rudy Giuliani running from his gun control message of years past, or his new message saying he's a Second Amendment supporter?

Rudy Giuliani is in Denver, but he canceled plans for a $1,000. a person fundraiser due to the Virginia Tech shootings. The parking valets were already in place when the cancellation notice was received -- just 30 minutes before the start of the event.

On this day of national tragedy, when we lost some of our finest to this senseless act, we stand together as a country to mourn those who lost their lives," Giuliani’s statement read. "My thoughts and prayers continue to be with the survivors and the many friends, colleagues and family members of those who perished. May God bless them all."

Is that really the reason?

More...