Free Republic

Showdown is playing out across the country in blogs, on the editorial pages of newspapers, and at countless gun clubs NEW YORK, NY November 23, 2009 —Mayor Michael Bloomberg is a known gun control advocate, and has built a national platform to stem the flow of illegal guns into cities and towns. The group he co-founded in 2006, Mayors Against Illegal Guns, has grown from 15 to 526 mayors. Its success has raised the ire of gun rights groups, most notably the National Rifle Association. The showdown between the NRA and Mayors Against Illegal Guns is playing out across the...

WASHINGTON, Nov. 19 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Before the Senate Judiciary Committee November 18th, 2009, Attorney General Eric Holder revealed a stunningly broad and aggressive anti-gun agenda. "The President of the United States asked that politicians not use the Ft. Hood attack to engage in 'political theater.' It appears those committed to attacking gun owners and the Second Amendment simply can't help themselves and are engaged in blaming guns and gun owners on the heels of this terrorist attack. Sadly it looks like 'politics as usual,'" said LEAA's spokesperson, Ted Deeds. After explaining and defending his decision to give enemy combatants constitutional...

Our interest in a single Supreme Court case has perhaps never been as high as it is in a case currently being briefed. The issues are fascinating on several levels, and the potential impact of a ruling is big. The case is McDonald v. City of Chicago, for which the court granted cert on Sept. 30. The petitioners in the case, a group challenging a gun-control ordinance in Chicago, filed their brief with the court earlier this week. Were the court to adopt their position — something well within the realm of possibility — we could be looking at a...

The federal government has no right to regulate guns made, sold and used within Utah, state lawmakers at a committee hearing decided Wednesday. The Legislature's Natural Resources, Agriculture and Environment Interim Committee advanced a bill that its sponsor, Sen. Margaret Dayton, R-Orem, calls the "Firearms Freedom Act." If upheld in federal courts -- a big if, considering past rulings on states' rights -- Utahns purchasing Utah-made guns would not face federal requirements such as background checks. "I love the idea of the firearms," said Sen. Allen Christensen, R-North Ogden, "and I love to swipe at the federal government on this...

New Jersey Governor, John Corzine, signed into law a new ban limiting New Jersey residents to the purchase of just one handgun every 30 days. But, in the fever pitched liberal rush to limit handgun purchases, the Legislature's poorly drafted law also banned legitimate gun dealers from buying more than one handgun a month too. The law does not apply to Police purchases and Curio & Relic Licensees’ purchases. Nor, does it apply to transfers of handguns between licensed retail dealers. The problem is that the law does not exempt dealer purchases from wholesale distributor suppliers from the one handgun...

<p>The former head of U.S. Customs and Border Protection called Monday for the U.S. to reinstitute the ban on assault weapons and take other measures to rein in the war between Mexico and its drug cartels, saying the violence has the potential to bring down legitimate rule in that country.</p>

Attorney General Eric Holder is retreating on his commitment to pursue a controversial gun-control measure. Holder’s statements, recently delivered to senators in writing, clearly indicate the Obama administration is in no rush to reinstate the assault weapons ban, which expired in 2004. In response to written questions from Senate Judiciary Committee members, Holder adopted a much different tone on the ban than he did in February, when he said, “As President Obama indicated during the campaign, there are just a few gun-related changes that we would like to make, and among them would be to reinstitute the ban on the...

Gun rights supporters are up in arms over a pair of moves the White House made last month to reverse longstanding U.S. policy and begin negotiating a gun control treaty with the United Nations.

-- Vote could come as early as MondayHe has been called "extreme" by some. But to others, he's beyond extreme... he's a "Radical's Radical."  Whatever he is, he could become President Obama's next choice for the federal judiciary. This radical is Judge David Hamilton, and he's been nominated for a position on the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals. Hamilton has made many political enemies on the right, seeing that his politics are to the far left of the political spectrum.  Oh yes, judges aren't supposed to be political, but this one has engaged in quite a bit of leftist activism....

Group also wants overhaul of Mexican border agencies A binational task force on U.S.-Mexico border issues will call Friday on the Obama administration and Congress to reinstate an expired ban on assault weapons and for Mexico to overhaul its frontier police and customs agencies to mirror the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. The recommendations are among a broad set of security, trade, development and environmental proposals that come as President Obama and his Mexicans counterpart, Felipe Calderón, move to deepen engagement on issues including economic recovery, climate change, illegal immigration and narcotics trafficking. Robert C. Bonner, the U.S. co-chairman of...

In any case it is certainly not the job of We, The Abused to walk on eggshells lest we somehow be condemned for our righteous wrath when They, The Abusers are unpunished, unrepentant and unrestrained. If that is the message of Mike Vanderboegh he must be ignored. Miniature Fort Sumters occur around us all every day, from the unprovoked SWAT assault on a completely innocent family based on the undocumented testimony of a “Confidential Informant” CLICK LINK HERE to the unprovoked investigation of a family for “illegal food sales”.CLICK LINK HERE or CLICK LINK HERE They all share the same...

On Wednesday the Obama administration took its first major step in a plan to ban all firearms in the United States. The Obama administration intends to force gun control and a complete ban on all weapons for US citizens through the signing of international treaties with foreign nations. By signing international treaties on gun control, the Obama administration can use the US State Department to bypass the normal legislative process in Congress. Once the US Government signs these international treaties, all US citizens will be subject to those gun laws created by foreign governments. These are laws that have been...

Back in late October, I wrote "Brady Campaign hypocrisy," chiding the Brady Campaign--specifially, their Vice President for Law and Policy, Dennis Henigan--for his accusation that the "gun lobby" tries to hide the truth. This accusation positively reeks of hypocrisy, on a couple levels. First, Henigan himself, in arguing on a video clip that the Second Amendment did nothing to protect the individual's right to keep and bear arms, recited the amendment in its entirety--except for the "of the people" part--the very part that poses the biggest problem for the now discredited "collective rights" interpretation of the Second Amendment. Second, when...

Mineola, NY –-(AmmoLand.com)- The Nassau County local law banning the possession of handguns mislabeled “deceptively colored” remains on hold indefinitely pending the outcome of a legal challenge by gun-rights activists. In June 2008, Nassau passed Local Law #5, criminalizing the possession and sale of “deceptively colored handguns” as a supposed danger to law enforcement. The law originally banned all handguns except for those that are “black, grey, silver, steel, nickel or army green.” It does not grandfather currently owned guns and mandates that gun owners surrender all banned guns for destruction without any compensation, and with no opportunity to sell...

Much has been written (including some by myself and other Gun Rights Examiners--see links beneath the photo) about the impending McDonald v. City of Chicago case to be heard by the Supreme Court early next year. In this case, the Second Amendment Foundation and the Illinois State Rifle Association are challenging Chicago's handgun ban (the NRA also eventually became involved). Probably the biggest issue that will be decided here is whether or not the Second Amendment is to be incorporated by the Fourteenth Amendment, and thus apply to state and local governments, as well as to the feds. If SCOTUS...

In states around the country, there’s a growing movement to address and resist two of the most abused parts of the Constitution – the Commerce Clause and the 2nd Amendment. Already being considered in a number of state legislatures, and passed as law in Montana and Tennessee this year, the Firearms Freedom Act (FFA) is a state law that seeks to do just that. The latest to join the FFA movement? Kentucky. Pre-filed for the 2010 legislative session, HB87 seeks to “Create new sections of KRS Chapter 237, relating to firearms, firearm accessories and ammunition that are made in Kentucky,...

On Wednesday the Obama administration took its first major step in a plan to ban all firearms in the United States. The Obama administration intends to force gun control and a complete ban on all weapons for US citizens through the signing of international treaties with foreign nations. By signing international treaties on gun control, the Obama administration can use the US State Department to bypass the normal legislative process in Congress. Once the US Government signs these international treaties, all US citizens will be subject to those gun laws created by foreign governments. These are laws that have been...

I’ve always been a history buff at heart and more recently an avid gun enthusiast, but most importantly, a supporter of Second Amendment rights. There’s a difference between just shooting guns and knowing the vast history behind our right to do so. Jesse Trimble The United States, as a country and before it was a country, has had a long history of flags — specifically, flags relating to our independence when we were at war with Great Britain. Many may come to mind, such as the “Don’t Tread on Me” flag, also known as the Gadsden flag, which is yellow...

<p>SOMERVILLE, N.J. (AP) ― A quadriplegic in New Jersey has the right to bear arms even though he can't hold a gun or pull a trigger.</p> <p>A judge ruled Tuesday that James Cap is eligible for a firearms ID, which is required to buy a gun.</p>

In a year of job losses, foreclosures and bag lunches, Americans have spent record-breaking amounts of money on guns and ammunition. The most obvious sign of their demand: empty ammunition shelves. At points during the past year, bullets have been selling faster than factories could make them. Gun owners have bought about 12 billion rounds of ammunition in the past year, industry officials estimate. That's up from 7 billion to 10 billion in a normal year.

Mayors Against Illegal Guns, led by New York's Michael Bloomberg, is losing members after the National Rifle Association mounted a campaign against the group. The NRA and various gun proponents contend that the mayors' efforts represent a slippery slope. JACKI LYDEN, host: This is WEEKEND EDITION from NPR News. I'm Jacki Lyden. Mayors Against Illegal Guns, led by New York's Michael Bloomberg, is losing members after the National Rifle Association mounted a campaign against the group. The NRA and other gun proponents contend that the mayors' efforts represent a slippery slope. WNYC's Arun Venugopal reports. ARUN VENUGOPAL: Pennsylvania has about...

In less than a year the U.S. government has gone from being one of the chief opponents of the proposed UN Small Arms Control Treaty to being a strong supporter. Elections do matter and have consequences. As many predicted, the United States has changed its United Nations Gun Control Treaty position by joining other countries in the UN’s General Assembly First Committee on Disarmament And Peace, with a resolution calling for the drafting of an International Arms Trading Treaty. This Treaty, which will be up for a final UN vote in 2012, will regulate small arms, as well as other...

Both past Attornies General, along with the current Republican nominee for Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli, have all opposed banning private sales of guns at gun shows while supporting repeal of the Virginia ban on concealed carry in restaurants serving alcohol. But not Democratic AG nominee Steve Shannon – this Northern Virginia lawyer is sticking to his gun control. . . . But what irks gun rights organizers the most is Shannon’s lack of any articulable policy rationale for his positions. “Insisting that we need to fix something that doesn’t exist does not stir gun owners to support candidates” said Philip...

I’m putting my money on the notion that there was at least one gay-rights group that didn’t cheer when President Barack Obama signed the most recent “hate crimes” bill last week. That would be the group known as the “Pink Pistols.” They’re the one gay-rights group you can bet Obama, Attorney General Eric Holder and virtually every other liberal in the country have absolutely no use for, but more about it later. First, let’s get down to the real nitty gritty about what the new “hate crimes” bill will do, and what it won’t do. If you live in the...

<p>A New Jersey appeals court has concluded that Americans have no Second Amendment right to buy a handgun.</p> <p>In a case decided last week, the superior court upheld a state law saying that nobody may possess "any handgun" without obtaining law enforcement approval and permission in advance.</p>

USPS spokesperson Joanne Vito told the Examiner.com that 39 CFR 232.1(l) “applies to anyone coming into a Post Office or a Postal facility. The regulation prohibiting the possession of firearms or other weapons applies to all real property under the charge and control of the Postal Service. . . . Both open and concealed possession are prohibited, so storage of a weapon on a car parked in a lot that is under the charge and control of the Postal Service would be prohibited.” . . . Philip Van Cleave, President of the Virginia Citizens Defense League . . . said...

Copy and paste this link, its from the Tennessean they are too ashamed of their stuff to have it posted here... http://www.tennessean.com/article/20091028/NEWS02/91028067/TN+Attorney+General+says+landlords+can+ban+tenants++guns+

A recent article on New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg's sting operation to expose the "gun show loophole" read like an editorial promoting gun control. In actuality, the sting exposed nothing. Under federal law, a private seller is under no more obligation to consider a buyer's eligibility to pass a background check when making a sale at a gun show than he is in his living room or anywhere else. Neither are beauty supply houses that sell hydrogen peroxide under an obligation to ask if the buyer is going to bleach hair or make a bomb. A gun show is a...

Gun Rights: A decade after Congress forbade the CDC from studying the health consequences of gun ownership, the National Institutes of Health has started funding such research. Will reform pry the guns from our cold, sick hands? More than a decade ago Congress, seeing it as a backdoor assault on the 2nd Amendment and the right to keep and bear arms, voted to cut funding for firearms research by the Centers for Disease Control. Such research was viewed as one-sided and based on flawed assumptions that all gun use was bad, even that which saved lives and deterred crime. --...

The CDC has been trying to get into the business of gun control for many years. The U.S. House cut off funds to the CDC for that almost 13 years ago after complaints that the CDC was trying to get support from the public for gun control and the appearance of joining hands with gun control groups... The House believed then that the CDC should spend more time on preventing and controlling serious legitimate health issues such as infectious disease. Their mandate may be changing on their own initiative. What actually is infectious now is the public's fast and furious...

I recently wrote an article for Shotgun News making the argument that while open carry of firearms is legal in many American cities, it may not be particularly wise. Open carry in a number of states is not just legal, but protected by the state constitution. But just because something is legal, even constitutionally protected, doesn’t mean that it is wise. Carrying a gun openly in a city can — and does — offend people who might not have a strong opinion one way or the other about gun control. Boise, Idaho, is about as pro-gun as any big city...

Based on legislation and case law, the U.S. government's attitude toward increased rights for gun owners has been more favorable in recent years than ever before. In the 2008 case District of Columbia v. Heller, the U.S. Supreme Court held that the Second Amendment to the Constitution protects an individual's right to possess a firearm for private use. It was the first Supreme Court case in U.S. history to directly address whether the right to keep and bear arms is a right of individuals in addition to a collective right that applies to state-regulated militias. As a result, additional pleas...

In 2008 an enraged, deranged known drug dealer/crack cocaine smoker attempted a violent attack on a Central Illinois man. The FOID-carrying victim pulled his legally owned, legally carried, unloaded, disassembled, non-functioning, encased semi-automatic pistol, inserted the magazine, readied a bullet and stopped the attack abruptly. The crackhead had a spiritual awakening, a "Come to Jesus" moment. Possible instant death creates instant deep thinkers. Police responded. Police rejected the gun owner's vehicular carry methods. Plus, the gun wasn't unloaded immediately after the event. Police arrested the gun owner on a questionable felony and several questionable misdemeanors. The legitimate, recordless, lawful defender...

Gun Rights: A decade after Congress forbade the CDC from studying the health consequences of gun ownership, the National Institutes of Health has started funding such research. Will reform pry the guns from our cold, sick hands? More than a decade ago Congress, seeing it as a backdoor assault on the 2nd Amendment and the right to keep and bear arms, voted to cut funding for firearms research by the Centers for Disease Control. Such research was viewed as one-sided and based on flawed assumptions that all gun use was bad, even that which saved lives and deterred crime. The...

A majority of gun owners think President Obama wants to ban gun sales. A new Gallup poll shows 55 percent of those who own a gun, 53 percent who have a gun in the household, and 41 percent of all Americans believe he will attempt to ban the sale of guns while he is president. This concern is greater among Republicans and people living in the South and Midwest than among Democrats or those living on either coast. It also helps explain the sharp increases in sales of guns and ammunition. There are reports that U.S. bullet-makers are working around...

During my second term in the Massachusetts House of Representatives, I received a call from then Speaker Thomas McGee to meet with him regarding legislative matters. He got to the point quickly. "There is a State House Library Board of Trustees comprised of members from various learning institutions and prestigious libraries. Members include the secretary of state or his designee, governor or his designee, director of JFK Library, state librarian and Haverhill library director and other archivists. Two of the seats on that board have been assigned to the Speaker and the Senate President or their designees. I have noticed...

October 22, 2009, 4:00 a.m. Be a Good VictimUnder current law, the Second Amendment ends at your front door. By David Rittgers In August, a man shot two people to death on a bridge near San Francisco. At the moment of the killings, two on-duty Marin County sheriff’s deputies were within 100 yards of the shooter. One was close enough to see the muzzle blast of the shotgun. The police officers, however, did not move against the culprit. One, stuck in traffic, called in a description of the killer’s vehicle as he fled. The other positioned her car to...

For a decade, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has been forbidden by Congress from doing research on gun-control issues. Such piddling hurdles as federal law don't matter to the Obama administration. With a wave of a hand, the CDC has simply redefined gun-control research so the ban no longer applies. They're not researching guns; they're researching alcohol sales and their impact on gun violence, or researching how teens carrying guns affect the rates of non-gun injuries. "These particular grants do not address gun control; rather they deal with the surrounding web of circumstances," wrote National Institutes of Health...

Officials say a law signed by President Obama in May will allow gun owners to openly carry firearms in Grand Teton and the Wyoming portions of Yellowstone when the law goes into effect in February. Several National Park Service employees and legal experts who interpreted the legislation say it extends to all, not just those with concealed weapons permits. When U.S. Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., attached a rider to a credit card reform bill earlier this year, almost all reports indicated it applied to concealed weapons only. While federal officials are trying to figure out the nuances of the law...

Ohio has joined with several other states, including Montana and Tennessee, in asserting independence from federal gun laws with the introduction of House Bill 315. This bill, sponsored by Representatives Morgan and Martin, would make all guns manufactured wholly within the state of Ohio exempt from federal gun regulations provided sales are within state boundaries. The Bureau of Alcohol, Firearms, Tobacco, and Explosives has claimed that they have the authority through the right to regulate interstate commerce because even exclusive intrastate sales of guns have an effect on gun sales nationwide. With two states already having passed similar bills, and...

The Oath Keepers’ motto is “Not on our watch!” Last March Stewart Rhodes realized it’s up to every American to step up and shout “No” to Barack Obama’s plans to socialize and destroy our nation. As a lawyer and Army paratrooper who has taken oaths to “defend and support” our Constitution Rhodes knew what he had to do. He founded Oath Keepers and asked other men and women who have taken an oath to support and defend our Constitution to step forward with him. Oath Keepers has grown to an organization of thousands of American patriots who are pledged to...

Depending on your perspective, the Oath Keepers are either strident defenders of liberty or dangerous peddlers of paranoia. In the age of town halls, talk radio and tea parties, middle ground of opinion is hard to find. Most Popular Stories READY TO REVOLT: Oath Keepers pledges to prevent dictatorship in United States U.S. SENATE SEAT: Two could beat Reid, poll finds NORM: Garth Brooks, Wynn to team up NORM: Yearwood exacts her recompense Woman struck, killed by car while crossing street Friends, co-workers honor fallen police officer Friends, co-workers honor fallen police officer NORM: Rumor about ring wrong, Fator says...

As the U.S. Supreme Court makes its stately way into the new term, a case over the horizon promises to hit the 20,000 gun control laws in this country with the impact of a 9mm round. The prep work came last year in District of Columbia vs. Heller. A narrow 5-4 majority struck down the gun control law in the nation's capital, and for the moment settled an argument over just what the Second Amendment to the Constitution, part of the Bill of Rights, actually means. The Second Amendment reads, "A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of...

For shock value, they may not rank with the videos released last month showing ACORN workers giving tax advice to a couple of undercover investigators posing as a prostitute and her pimp. But New York Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg's covert recordings of what really goes on at gun shows are appalling nonetheless.Gun shows are thought to be a key supplier of guns used in crimes, though how big a role they play is the subject of heated debate. To understand why they're considered a problem, one first has to understand the contorted nature of federal gun laws. New-gun retailers are...

As noted in “British gun control: Coming soon to a country near you? ” seven countries, led by the United Kingdom, are attempting to revive U.N. efforts to restrict imports and exports of small arms. On Wednesday, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton announced the United States would reverse Bush administration opposition to international small arms control, potentially paving the way for the British-led effort, which calls for a vote by the U.N. General Assembly by year’s end. The U.S. would support the “Conference on the Arms Trade Treaty” as long as it was conducted under rules of “consensus decision-making,” interpreted...

·11250 Waples Mill Road ·   Fairfax, Virginia 22030    ·800-392-8683   Important Pro-Gun Bills to be Considered in Michigan on Tuesday!   Friday, October 16, 2009   On Tuesday, October 20 at 10:30 a.m., the House Tourism, Outdoor Recreation and Natural Resources Committee will consider House Bill 5302 and House Bill 5303. HB5302, introduced by State Representative Paul Opsommer (R-93), and HB5303, introduced by State Representative Joel Sheltrown (D-103), would prohibit employers from firing employees who safely and lawfully store their firearms in locked vehicles while at work. Please contact the members of the House Tourism, Outdoor Recreation and Natural Resources Committee TODAY and...

Despite atheists' attempts to keep our national motto ("In God We Trust") from being engraved on the walls of the new 580,000 square-foot Capitol Visitors Center, or CVC, the inscription was indelibly etched recently in large, bold and deep letters. And the Pledge of Allegiance will soon follow. As Rep. Randy Forbes, R-Va., noted, "This was accomplished due to the efforts of so many individuals in Congress and across the country who were willing to stand up on behalf of our nation's religious heritage. Thousands of visitors will walk through the center each day. The efforts of the individuals that...

[Part 1 of this series.][The frustration of most Americans with the systematic destruction of their country, its society, and its economy, by a handful of corrupt politicians grows daily. It is not that they are not willing to do anything about it, but the fact they do not seem to know what to do. The growth of the tea-party movement and the huge march on Washington are evidence of their eagerness to do "something," but it is equally obvious that demonstrations and a millions articles have done nothing at all, and the leftist "Destroy America" railroad roars on without even...

When the city's top cop and county's top prosecutor want to open the door for a concealed-carry gun law in Wisconsin, it seems the writing may be on the wall. Police Chief Edward Flynn and Milwaukee County District Attorney John Chisholm told a City Hall committee last week that allowing concealed-carry permits in Wisconsin could ultimately make things safer for everyone. Specifically, they said, if the state issued such permits under a tough eligibility process and coupled that with more stringent background checks for all gun purchases, the number of illegally sold weapons could be cut across the board. The...

Hundreds of armed people filled a Hudson park Saturday afternoon as part of an anti-tax and pro-second amendment rally.