Posted on 02/25/2003 4:33:41 AM PST by Dalite
(Atlanta, Tuesday, February 25) -- The SB1 substitute Stealth Triggerlock bill has picked up steam and could come before the full Senate Judiciary Committee for a crucial vote on Wed. Feb. 26 at 2:30 pm.
Over the weekend, gun owners across Georgia did an outstanding job in turning up the heat on Senate boss Sen. Eric Johnson (R-Savannah) for cutting a deal to advance the so-called SB1 "Child Endangerment" bill being pushed by Lt. Gov. Mark Taylor (D-Atlanta).
If you assisted with this, give yourself a pat on the back for helping flush him out. CSG members reported several conflicting responses from Sen. Johnson's office. The effort has yielded valuable intelligence in advance of the main battle. His staff is still spinning away, but it's time to move on and focus on the upcoming committee vote, which is crucial. Let's recap the action:
(If you're in a hurry, jump down to the Action Items below.)
1. Wed. Jan. 29: Senate Judiciary Chairman Sen. Charlie Tanksley (R-Marietta) tries to sneak "stealth triggerlock" language through his committee as a substitute for SB1. It fails because the District Attorneys bog down in quibbling over another bill they had on the agenda. SB1 is reset for Feb. 3.
2. Thu. Jan. 30: The day after the sneak attack in the Senate fails, HB197 is unveiled for first reading in the House. It's essentially the same langauge Mr. Tanksley tried to sneak through the Senate.
3. Mon. Feb. 03: Mr. Tanksley cancels the meeting on SB1 after his committee is swamped by phone calls from angry gun owners. (Good job guys!) CSG lobbyists get word Senate bosses want to see how HB197 fares in the House.
4. Wed. Feb. 05: House Anti-Gun Ringleader Rep. Mary Margaret Oliver (D-Decatur) steamrolls gun owners in her Family Law Subcommittee and approves HB197 to go before the full House Judiciary Committee.
5. Mon. Feb. 10: Anti-gunners are stunned when pro-gun activists ring the phones off the hook (good job again) in support of the Self-Defense amendment by Rep. Warren Massey (R-Winder) to HB197. Anti-gun House Judiciary Chairman Rep. Tom Bordeaux (D-Savannah) gets credit for conducting a fair hearing even though he supported HB197. And Ms. Oliver whined, "Mr. Chairman, with this Self-Defense amendment, we won't be able to prosecute anybody for having an unlocked gun."
6. Tue. Feb. 11: Anti-gunners recover, Rep. Massey withdraws the Self-Defense amendment, and HB197 passes committee by a vote of 18-1. House Pro-Gun Leader Rep. Bobby Franklin (R-Marietta) takes charge and plans to offer the Self-Defense amendment on the floor.
7. Mon. Feb. 17: After you and other activists "double down" on the politicians (great job this time), CSG lobbyists sense gun owners are gaining the upper hand in the House. A top-level source reports House bosses are nervous about the Self-Defense amendment and HB197 itself.
8. Wed. Feb. 19: When HB197 stalls in the House, SB1 moves again in the Senate. The Criminal Law Subcommittee chaired by Sen. Seth Harp (R-Columbus) takes up SB1, and yep, you guessed it: HB197 is the substitute, but this time with language by Senate boss Eric Johnson added to increase penalties for contributing to the deprivation of a minor by sexual abuse. Mr. Harp's subcommittee approves the SB1 Stealth Triggerlock substitute with Sens. Kasim Reed (D-Stone Mountain) and Randy Hall (R-Augusta) voting for it.
9. Fri. Feb. 20: Gun owners heat up the lines to Sen. Johnson's office (good job guys) and a top-level Senate source confirms Mr. Johnson cut a deal with Lt. Gov. Taylor to pass SB1.
Sen. Johnson's staff has issued all kinds of denials, but either they're not telling the whole story, or else the new boss of the Senate is looking bad for crawling in bed clueless with Ms. Oliver's Stealth Triggerlock substitute.
Right now, lots of fingers are pointing at Senate Judiciary Chairman Charlie Tanksley, who's been up to his eyeballs in this from the get-go. Mr. Tanksley is from the wrong part of town to be giving House anti-gunners a leg up.
Sen. Tanksley used to be pro-gun, but that was before he served four years in the Floor Leader's office for former Gov. Roy Barnes (D-Mableton). And some people think he's going to keep right on compromising. You need to get on Mr. Tanksley and remind him it's a "new day in Georgia" and he's supposed to start acting like a Republican again.
The same goes for the members of the Senate Judiciary Committee who voted for former Gov. Barnes' SB385 Emergency Gun Confiscation law which passed last year. They need to be reminded they got a free pass last election because gun owners were busy helping root out Mr. Barnes. Voters in their districts may not be so forgiving next time.
You and the other activists fighting the Stealth Triggerlock scheme were awesome against HB197. But now you're up against some Republican compromisers in the Senate who won't hesitate to stab you in the back. Only by keeping up the same high level of grass-roots pressure can you whip them back in line.
The lesson so far from fighting SB1/HB197 is that an alliance of narrow special interests: anti-gunners, local prosecutors, and child welfare operators, is seeking more power than it's honestly safe to give them. It's not just you and other gun owners who'll be hurt down the road, but hard-working people from all walks of life will find themselves unintended victims of a system ratcheting out of control.
Already, local prosecutors are pushing the envelope by charging homeowners with "furnishing a gun to a minor" when youths have obtained guns with no adults around. This is currently under investigation. Just think of what these same prosecutors would do with a law like SB1/HB197 that explicitly says there doesn't need to be a tangible consequence to prove guilt.
The time has come to just say "No" to SB1 and HB197 and other measures to expand the power of these special interests at the expense of your liberty and freedom.
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ACTION ITEMS
1. Contact the office of Senate Judiciary Chairman Charlie Tanksley and leave a message saying "No" to the SB1 substitute Stealth Triggerlock bill in his committee. This over-reaching legislation means if you're around children, you can be charged, arrested, and taken to jail, not because a child is actually injured, but just because some official imagines it might be possible for a child to get hurt. Anti-gunners are bent on using this as a stealth triggerlock scheme to make you lock away your guns so they're not ready for self-defense.
*Charlie Tanksley (R-Marietta) office 404-656-0150/fax: 404-651-6767
charlie@browningtanksley.com
2. Contact at least one of the senators on the Senate Judiciary Committee. If your own state senator isn't on the list, pick one at random. Contact their office and leave a message saying "No" to the SB1 substitute.
Contact the office of at least one senator on the Senate Judiciary Committee:
Senator (Party-Area) Capitol Office Telephone/Fax/e-mail
David Adelman (D-Decatur) 404-463-1376/463-1384/dadelman@legis.state.ga.us
Chuck Clay (R-Marietta) 404-463-1318/463-1385/cclay@bcwr.com
Randy Hall (R-Augusta) 404-463-1363/463-1381/rhall@legis.state.ga.us
*Bill Hamrick (R-Carrollton) 404-656-0036/657-0459/bhamrickiii@yahoo.com
*Seth Harp (R-Columbus) 404-463-3931/463-4513/sethharp@aol.com
*Rene Kemp (D-Hinesville) 404-656-0070/657-1806/rkemp@legis.state.ga.us
Dan Lee (R-LaGrange) 404-651-7738/651-5795/danlee@bellsouth.net
*Kasim Reed (D-Atlanta) 404-463-1379/463-1387/kreed@legis.state.ga.us
*Faye Smith (D-Milledgeville) 404-656-0044/651-6768/sensmith@accucomm.net
Preston Smith (R-Rome) 404-463-1369/463-1382/pwsmith@legis.state.ga.us
Mr. Tanksley and senators marked with (*) voted for former Gov. Roy Barnes' SB385 Emergency Gun Confiscation bill last year which is now the law. (Mr. Reed voted for it in the House last year as a State Rep.)
3. Many legislators don't pay any attention to e-mail, so if you use e-mail, make sure you also phone or fax the office of the chairman and at least one member of the committee.
4. Forward this alert to everybody you know who values their freedom and liberty.
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Citizens for Safe Government, Inc.
P.O. Box 813764
Smyrna, GA 30081
csg@arms.org
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