NRA-ILA Grassroots Alert Vol. 11, No. 6

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GET THE TRUTH ABOUT THE CLINTON GUN BAN

In addition to contacting your lawmakers in support of S. 659/S. 1806 (see related story), it is critical that you urge your U.S. Rep-resentative and Senators to oppose current legislation seeking to expand the 1994 Clinton gun ban?H.R. 2038, S. 1431, and S. 1034.

Ten years ago, as part of his omnibus crime bill, Bill Clinton succeeded in convincing a bare majority in Congress that law-abiding Americans could not be trusted to own certain semi-automatic firearms. On September 13, 2004, the Clinton gun ban will finally expire, and gun prohibitionists are now working to get Congress to extend, and even expand, this ban. The gun banners` end goal is best summed up as: "Mr. and Mrs. America, turn them all in."

To assist you in contacting your lawmakers on this issue, NRA has designed an interesting and informative website? http://www.clintongunban.com/?to serve as a resource for the facts on a debate that is far too often driven and dominated by falsehoods and emotion. You will notice that there are several useful features on this website, and the "Clinton Gun Ban Story" is the one that provides a thorough historical background and perspective on this very timely issue.

Please add this website to your bookmarks and forward it to others who need to know both the history and the truth about this issue.

DOYLE SHAMELESSLY LINKS CARRY VETO WITH COLUMBINE, THEN SHILLS FOR MONEY

Throughout the debate over Right-to-Carry, Wisconsin Governor Jim Doyle (D-Wisc.) and his cohorts tried to deflect the matter with their constant assertions that there were other, more pressing, issues the state needed to deal with. Now, however, obviously fearful of the broad-based grassroots opposition to his veto of Right-to-Carry and gun owners` willingness to make their displeasure known at the polls this fall, Doyle is changing his tune, and making Right-to-Carry a centerpiece of his legislative election efforts for this fall`s election.

Doyle has launched an on-line "astroturf" campaign to try and justify his anti-freedom veto. And if it isn`t bad enough that a sitting governor would crow about vetoing a self-defense measure enjoyed by law-abiding Americans in 37 other states, he also shamelessly uses his website? www.noconcealedweapons.com?to raise money!

In his on-line screed, the Governor calls the proposed Right-to-Carry law, which was passed by overwhelming majorities in the Legislature, "one of the most extreme laws in the country." Doyle also brazenly tries to link citizens lawfully exercising their right to self-defense with the acts of two twisted murderers in the Columbine shootings, and calls the bill`s passage "politics at its worst." Doyle ends his tirade with a pitch for money, and proudly implies that his veto was a "commitment to protect...and improve the lives of our citizens."

Despite Doyle`s shameless shill for money and faulty doomsday predictions, law-abiding Wisconsin citizens will not be duped into believing the lies surrounding this most important issue, and they will not sit idly by while the Governor, with a stroke of his pen, hangs out a sign at the state`s borders saying Wisconsin is open for business for criminals!

This desperation Hail Mary pass by the Governor is proof certain that he and his anti-gun cronies in Madison are scared silly of the grassroots prowess Wisconsin`s lawful gun owners will exercise in this year`s elections. However, we must lay the groundwork now to ensure that we can deliver on Election Day!

NRA, along with our state affiliate, the Wisconsin Rifle & Pistol Association (WRPA), understand that the only way we are going to add Wisconsin to the growing list of states that recognizes their citizens right to defend themselves is to change the make up of the legislature so we can pass Right-to-Carry in the Badger State.

The first step toward this end is to attend the WRPA`s annual meeting, where NRA-ILA will host a FREE Grassroots-Election Workshop to train NRA members on effective grassroots activism for this year`s election. Unlike the Governor`s pseudo-grassroots efforts, NRA-ILA`s Workshop will give attendees practical training to help ensure victory for gun owners on Election Day 2004. The Workshop will be held on Saturday, March 20, 2004, at the Regency Suites, in Green Bay. NRA members who are interested in attending should contact the NRA-ILA Grassroots Division at (800) 392-VOTE (8683) for additional details and to R.S.V.P. NRA members may also register on-line at: www.nraila.org/workshops/.

CONTINUE SUPPORT FOR S. 659/S. 1806

With just a few weeks remaining until the scheduled vote on S. 659/S. 1806, the "Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act," gun owners must continue their final push to contact their U.S. Senators if we are to pass this critically-important bill and send it to President Bush for his signature.

The House version of this bill? H.R. 1036?was passed last April by an overwhelming vote of 285-140. Yet, despite assurances of a timely vote and broad bipartisan support, S. 659/S. 1806 became stalled in the Senate late last year. The good news is we are now anticipating a Senate vote on the measure as soon as early March. Thanks to the dedicated grassroots efforts of millions of NRA members and gun owners across the country, S. 659/S. 1806 currently has 55 cosponsors, more than enough to pass the measure. However, we need 60 votes to derail the filibuster that the likes of Senators John Kerry (D-Mass.), Frank Lautenberg (D-N.J.), Ted Kennedy (D-Mass.), Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.), Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.), and Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) are almost certain to launch. We can also expect these gun-banners to try and load the legislation with numerous anti-gun amendments, including S. 1034?the Clinton gun ban extension?and S. 1807?the so- called Gun Show Loophole Closing Act of 2003.

The efforts of the gun banners in Congress are being forcefully bolstered by the Brady Center, who, in yesterday`s Washington Post, ran a full page ad full of fallacious statements concerning S.659/ S. 1806, in the hopes of derailing its passage. Reports indicate this print ad could be followed up by radio and TV ads to the same effect at any time.

It is therefore imperative that you continue to contact your U.S. Senators and urge them to fully support S. 659/S. 1806, as written, without any anti-gun amendments! Also, be sure to encourage your family, friends, and fellow firearm owners to contact their Senators in support of S. 659/S. 1806 as well.

To further assist you in this effort, NRA-ILA has designed a special section of our website (http://www.nraila.org/stoprecklesslawsuits.aspx) that contains a host of useful information and resources, including additional background on the bill, a list of current cosponsors, and sample letters to your lawmakers and to the editors of your local papers.

BIG APPLE TRIES TO TAKE BITE OUT OF NRA

A New York Magazine piece (Feb. 2) highlights the antics spearheaded by New York City Council Member Gale Brewer. Brewer is pushing a resolution (that the magazine says is "expected to pass") demanding the Republican National Committee (RNC) condemn and "blast" NRA at its convention in New York City this summer. Brewer notes, "The resolution is going to say ?We don`t want the NRA in NYC.`" The same article notes that in response to an anti-NRA website, Ed Skyler, Mayor Michael Bloomberg`s (R) press secretary said the mayor opposed the NRA`s legislation and called its views "reprehensible."

HELP RANGE SHOW ITS PRIDE

One of the nation`s finest shooting facilities, which has been under attack for years, now has an opportunity to be listed as a Phoenix Point of Pride.

The Ben Avery Shooting Facility has been consistently threatened by re-zoning issues. The Phoenix-area range is an integral part of maintaining Arizona`s shooting heritage, as is recognized by its nomination by the Phoenix Pride Commission.

To help grant Point of Pride status for the facility, please go to www.pride.azcentral.com and cast your vote. Voting ends on March 12 2004.

STUDY CITES FLAWS WITH FBI BULLET TESTS

A number of media sources are reporting on a recent finding by the National Research Council (NRC) that casts serious doubt on the reliability of the FBI`s tests that match various metals in bullet fragments to other ammunition. The tests, which have been conducted for the past four decades, involve examiners measuring trace amounts of a variety of metals found in bullet lead in the hopes of matching fragments found at crime scenes.

In addition to numerous problems with the use of these test results in courtroom testimony, the NRC commission found that the most that can be said about these matches is that they probably came from the same source of smelted lead. But each of these lead batches can be used to produce as many as 35 million bullets, and individual boxes of ammunition usually contain bullets derived from different batches. The chair of the study committee, Kenneth O. McFadden, noted, "What we can say is a match of bullets probably came from a homogenous source, but it`s no more specific than that. It can never be used for anything other than circumstantial evidence, and an entire case can`t be built around it."

A LOOK AT THE STATES

CALIFORNIA

Confusion still abounds over the definition of an "assault weapon." Last year, a Robinson Armament model M96 rifle was seized from a dealer. The Cal. Dept. of Justice (DOJ) used the store`s transaction records to locate other M96 rifles and went door-to-door confiscating them without compensation. However, the M96 rifle is perfectly legal, and is not an "assault weapon." At the urging of NRA attorneys and others, officials in the DOJ`s Firearm Div. reversed the agents` decision. This situation raises the question, if specialized DOJ agents don`t know which guns are "assault weapons," how is the average gun owner to know? This vagueness led District Attorneys in Fresno and Mendocino counties to file a lawsuit (Hunt v. Lockyer), that is still in litigation and challenges the 1999 amendment to the state`s "assault weapon" law that still confounds gun owners, dealers, police, and prosecutors as to what features of a firearm are prohibited. Thankfully, approximately one week after seizing the model M96 rifles, DOJ agents began returning the guns to their rightful owners. We`ll keep you posted on any developments on this front.

INDIANA

The Sen. Criminal, Civil and Public Policy Cmte. will be voting on Feb. 17 on an amendment to HB 1349, authored by Sen. Robert Meeks (R-13), that protects law abiding gun owners from reckless lawsuits if an unauthorized party misuses their firearm. Please contact the Sen. Criminal, Civil and Public Policy Cmte. members and respectfully urge them to support this amendment For a list of committee members, contact ILA Grassroots at (800) 392-8683 or go to http://www.capwiz.com/nra/dbq/officials/directory/directory.dbq?command=statedir&state=IN.

KENTUCKY

SB 95, sponsored by Sen. Albert Robinson (R-21), passed out of the Cmte. on State and Local Government this week. This critical legislation closes a judicially-created "loophole" in the state`s 1984 preemption law that allows local governments to discriminate against licensed gun dealers and manufacturers through the use of their zoning laws. SB 95 requires local governments to treat dealers and manufacturers in the same manner as they do all other businesses. Please contact your state Sen. and request that he support SB 95. You can find contact information for your Sen. by using the "Write your Representatives" feature at www.NRAILA.org.

MICHIGAN

House Bill 5029, the Dove Bill has been moved from the Sen. Appropriations Cmte. to the Sen. Judiciary Cmte. The bill could see committee action as soon as next week, and floor action is expected soon. Please contact your Sen. and urge him to support this bill. You can find contact information for your Senator by using the "Write Your Representatives" feature at www.NRAILA.org.

NEW YORK

Legislators in Albany have returned to their districts for the Presidents` Week Recess. When they return to Albany on February 23, the budget process will resume, and still under consideration is Gov. Pataki`s (R) proposal contained in budget bills S. 6056/A. 9556 that will require handgun licensees to pay a $100 "certification" fee to the state, institute a five-year expiration period for licenses (currently most jurisdictions issue lifetime licenses), and charge a fee of $25 for each handgun owned, as well as for amendments, transfers, and duplicates. Additionally, this proposal would remove the caps on local processing fees, which means fees can certainly be expected to climb, and in many jurisdictions could price gun owners, sportsmen, and collectors right out of the market. Instead of banning handguns, this proposal would simply make it too expensive to own them. It is critical that you contact your lawmakers in their district offices during the week of February 16- 20 to tell them that they must oppose this unfair and punitive "TAX" on gun owners! To get contact information for your representatives please use the "Write Your Representatives" tool located at www.NRAILA.org.

VIRGINIA

Yesterday afternoon, the Virginia Sen. defeated SB 48, which would have placed a $15 tax on any private transfer of a firearm at a gun show and force sellers to register with the Virginia State Police. SB 48 defines a gun show as any place where 25 or more guns are offered for sale. This would mean any collector`s home could become a "gun show." Please contact your Sen. and thank him for defeating SB 48. Also, on Wednesday, the House of Delegates voted 80 to 20 in favor of HB 404, that allows holders of valid Virginia concealed-carry permits to purchase more than one handgun a month. The bill also allows a person to purchase more than one handgun a month if purchased through a private sale. Private sale is defined as a sale by a person who makes occasional sales, exchanges, or purchases of firearms for the enhancement of a personal collection or for a hobby, or who sells all or part of his personal collection of firearms. The bill now moves to the Sen. Cmte. of Courts of Justice. Please contact the members of the committee and urge them to support the bill. You can find contact information for committee members and your Sens. by calling ILA Grassroots Division at (800) 392-8683, or by using the "Write Your Representatives" feature.