Posted on 10/14/2008 7:35:53 AM PDT by SoFloFreeper
A: As a general principle, I believe that the Constitution confers an individual right to bear arms. But just because you have an individual right does not mean that the state or local government can't constrain the exercise of that right, in the same way that we have a right to private property but local governments can establish zoning ordinances that determine how you can use it.
Q: But do you still favor the registration & licensing of guns?
A: I think we can provide common-sense approaches to the issue of illegal guns that are ending up on the streets. We can make sure that criminals don't have guns in their hands. We can make certain that those who are mentally deranged are not getting a hold of handguns. We can trace guns that have been used in crimes to unscrupulous gun dealers that may be selling to straw purchasers and dumping them on the streets.
Actually, Obama's writing was on the 1996 document, which was filed when Obama was running for the Illinois state Senate. A Chicago nonprofit, Independent Voters of Illinois, had this question, and Obama took hard line:
35. Do you support state legislation to:
a. ban the manufacture, sale and possession of handguns? Yes.
b. ban assault weapons? Yes.
c. mandatory waiting periods and background checks? Yes.
Obama's campaign said, "Sen. Obama didn't fill out these state Senate questionnaires--a staffer did--and there are several answers that didn't reflect his views then or now. He may have jotted some notes on the front page of the questionnaire, but some answers didn't reflect his views."
A: Because I think we have two conflicting traditions in this country. I think it's important for us to recognize that we've got a tradition of handgun ownership and gun ownership generally. And a lot of law-abiding citizens use it for hunting, for sportsmanship, and for protecting their families. We also have a violence on the streets that is the result of illegal handgun usage. And so I think there is nothing wrong with a community saying we are going to take those illegal handguns off the streets. And cracking down on the various loopholes that exist in terms of background checks for children, the mentally ill. We can have reasonable, thoughtful gun control measure that I think respect the Second Amendment and people's traditions.
A: I don't think that we can get that done. But what we can do is to provide just some common-sense enforcement. The efforts by law enforcement to obtain the information required to trace back guns that have been used in crimes to unscrupulous gun dealers. As president, I intend to make it happen. We essentially have two realities, when it comes to guns, in this country. You've got the tradition of lawful gun ownership. It is very important for many Americans to be able to hunt, fish, take their kids out, teach them how to shoot. Then you've got the reality of 34 Chicago public school students who get shot down on the streets of Chicago. We can reconcile those two realities by making sure the Second Amendment is respected and that people are able to lawfully own guns, but that we also start cracking down on the kinds of abuses of firearms that we see on the streets.
When I queried him about the vote, he said, "I didn't find that [vote] surprising. I am consistently on record and will continue to be on record as opposing concealed carry. This was a narrow exception in an exceptional circumstance where a retired police officer might find himself vulnerable as a consequence of the work he has previously done--and had been trained extensively in the proper use of firearms."
It wasn't until a few weeks later that another theory came forward about the uncharacteristic vote. Obama was battling with his GOP opponent to win the endorsement of the Fraternal Order of Police.
A: You know, when the massacre happened at Virginia Tech, I think all of us were grief stricken and shocked by the carnage. But in this year alone, in Chicago, we've had 34 Chicago public school students gunned down and killed. And for the most part, there has been silence. We know what to do. We've got to enforce the gun laws that are on the books. We've got to make sure that unscrupulous gun dealers aren't loading up vans and dumping guns in our communities, because we know they're not made in our communities. There aren't any gun manufacturers here, right here in the middle of Detroit. But what we also have to do is to make sure that we change our politics so that we care just as much about those 30-some children in Chicago who've been shot as we do the children in Virginia Tech. That's a mindset that we have to have in the White House and we don't have it right now.
OBAMA: Let's be honest. Mr. Keyes does not believe in common gun control measures like the assault weapons bill. Mr. Keyes does not believe in any limits from what I can tell with respect to the possession of guns, including assault weapons that have only one purpose, to kill people. I think it is a scandal that this president did not authorize a renewal of the assault weapons ban.
News Release
Jim And Sarah Brady, Brady Campaign
Endorse Barack Obama And Joe Biden
For Immediate Release:
10-13-2008
Contact Communications:
(202) 898-0792
Washington, D.C. - Sarah and Jim Brady and the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence with its network of Million Mom March Chapters endorsed Senator Barack Obama for President and Senator Joseph Biden for Vice President today, and urged Americans to vote for them.
Paul Helmke, President of the Brady Campaign, issued the following statement on behalf of the organization and the Bradys:
"Senators Barack Obama and Joseph Biden know that we make it too easy for dangerous people to get dangerous weapons in this country. They know that our weak gun laws have too many loopholes, which lead to over 30,000 deaths and 70,000 injuries from guns every year.
"Senators Obama and Biden know that we can reduce those deaths and injuries from guns by strengthening our Brady background check system, getting military-style assault weapons off our streets, and giving law enforcement more tools to stop the trafficking of illegal guns.
"Fortunately, the candidates most favored by the gun lobby were rejected by the voters during the primaries. The gun lobby has lambasted Senator John McCain for being a leader on gun violence prevention issues in the past. In 2000 and 2001, he introduced legislation, gave floor speeches, and appeared in television ads to close the gun show loophole. In 2004, he gave floor speeches supporting access to crime gun trace data, requiring gun dealer inventories, and retaining background check records. Back then, Senator McCain was a "maverick", willing to take on the gun lobby.
"But now, Senator McCain has stopped talking about these issues and, instead, has pandered to the gun lobby whose opinions he once disdained. His erratic approach to gun violence prevention leads to our concern about whether a President McCain would remember and follow the leadership shown by Senator McCain in 2000 and 2004 and take steps to help reduce gun violence.
"The difference between the two tickets is clearest with regard to assault weapons. Senator Obama made his position clear in his acceptance speech in Denver when he said "the reality of gun ownership may be different for hunters in rural Ohio than they are for those plagued by gang violence in Cleveland, but don't tell me we can't uphold the Second Amendment while keeping AK-47s out of the hands of criminals." And Senator Biden helped get a ban on assault weapons passed in 1994 and fought for its renewal in 2004.
"Senator McCain, however, opposed the assault weapon ban in 1994 and voted against its renewal in 2004. McCain's running mate, Governor Sarah Palin, told ABC's Charles Gibson that she also opposed a ban on assault weapons, saying that they were part of her "culture".
"The Obama-Biden ticket understands that the rights of law-abiding gun owners can co-exist with the reasonable restrictions which the U.S. Supreme Court recognized as "presumptively lawful" in its recent Second Amendment decision finding a general gun ban unconstitutional. As Justice Scalia stated, there is "not a right to keep and carry any weapon whatsoever in any manner whatsoever for whatever purposes." Senator McCain once understood this concept but that "straight talk" is now silent.
"The Obama-Biden ticket will work with law enforcement, gun violence victims, and ordinary citizens who want to do more to protect themselves, their families, and their communities by making it harder for dangerous people to get dangerous weapons.
"Along with Sarah and Jim, the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence and its dedicated network of Million Mom March Chapters strongly endorses the Obama-Biden ticket and encourages our supporters to vote for them on November 4, 2008."
To find out more about other Brady Campaign endorsements, as well as where the Presidential and Vice Presidential candidates stand on the gun issue, go to the Brady Voter Education Fund's web guide at BradyVoter.org (http://www.bradyvoter.org).
# # #
And neither the McCain "campaign" nor the NRA is doing a thing about it.
And if he gets a 60 Dem senate you can bet your a$$ he's going to go after it.
Barack Obama wins the election? I go on a buying spree like never before.
Oh really ? Perhaps you might like to throw the NRA-PVF some support $$$ , it is badly needed ....
The ads on the site are running in swing states and districts .
My wife and I are both life members and have given to the PVF in the past. For some reason, we haven't been solicited recently.
BTW, unless Ohio is no longer a swing state, I can safely say that the ads aren't running in Cincinnati or Dayton markets.
All the Secret Service people around him carry guns. What makes his life more valuable than mine?
They have been threatened with lawsuits by the Obama campaign, yet continue to reasearch and expose his hypocrisy on the 2nd Amendment.
I hold active memberships in the NRA, the Virginia Citizens Defense League (VCDL) and the Virginia Gun Owners Association. I am VERY hard-core regarding the 2nd Amendment and I have been and will continue to be one of the FIRST people in line to criticize the NRA for taking postitions which, in my opinion, compromise our 2nd Amendment Rights.
In the past, my criticism of the NRA has led some here at FreeRepublic to call me "ignorant of the issues and anti-NRA". So, I am by no means an NRA "lap dog". But I ask you, what else, within the bounds of the law, would you have them do about Barack Hussein Obama?
Where does it say “Right to Private Property” in the Constitution.
bump
I believe the ads are running in Minnesota , Pennsylvania , Virginia ... I thought Ohio was on that list , but it could be in a different area , perhaps near Youngstown and Akron ?
They are running targeted Radio and TV spots , depending on who got intimidated by B.O.’s “truth squad” legal goons .
Being a Lifemember might explain why they are not soliciting you .
Many people complain about the immense amount of NRA mailouts they recieve , but the NRA has to raise funds somehow , so it doesn’t bother me at all .
Somewhere I read that in the phrase “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness” (Declaration, not Constitution), the “pursuit of happiness” part originally said something about a right to private property. It was evidently removed because northern representatives at the time were afraid that that would be interpreted as a right to another type of (then) private property, that is, slaves.
Only they see a problem with Communistic firearms laws.
I'd love to be able to buy another 5,000 rounds of various ammo, but the funds just aren't there. Hope I have enough.
Scouts Out! Cavalry Ho!
Well said.
I have to admit I wonder how Obama (if the POS becomes President) would react to an NRA Million Rifleman March in DC.
Do you think there are a million riflemen with the guts to march on DC? I get the sinking feeling that most would simply turn 'em in if they were ordered to by Obamanation. God, I hope I'm wrong!
Scouts Out! Cavalry Ho!
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