Free Republic

JESSE J. HOLLAND, Associated Press WriterWednesday, July 24, 2002 ©2002 Associated Press URL: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/news/archive/2002/07/24/national0443EDT0494.DTL (07-24) 01:43 PDT WASHINGTON (AP) -- Destroying government records of firearm purchases after one day instead of three months could put guns in the hands of criminals who shouldn't have them, congressional investigators say. Attorney General John Ashcroft last year suggested shortening the time period that the government keeps records on people who try to purchase firearms from 90 days to no more than one business day. But doing that would mean that the FBI, which conducts the checks, won't be able to go back to...

Rep. John Conyers (D-Mich.) brims with confidence when he talks about the gun-control proposal he introduced in the House on March 20. At a press conference to unveil the measure, he predicted that the Gun Show Background Check Act of 2002 (HR4034) will not be an issue in the November elections because it already will have passed. His confidence in this major expansion of gun control stems from the willingness of many Americans to accept infringements on constitutional proscriptions after Sept. 11. "Now we've got the terrorist issue," Conyers says in response to a question from Insight. "There are...