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Guns and Judges: Electing the Supreme Court in 2008 [Must Read!]
Townhall ^ | May 15, 2008 | Sandy Froman, NRA Immediate Past President

Posted on 05/15/2008 1:28:25 AM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet

The political “hot button” issues of guns and judges have become intertwined in this election year. The fate of both issues will be decided by the candidate we elect as president. Why? Because over a four-year term, that president will likely appoint at least two and possibly three justices to the United States Supreme Court. Simply stated, this year when we elect a president, we will also cast our ballot for the next Supreme Court.

Everyone concerned about the Second Amendment and judicial accountability should heed John McCain’s speech to the NRA on May 16. The presumptive Republican nominee will speak directly to guns owners about the Second Amendment at the NRA’s Celebration of American Values event at the NRA Annual Meeting in Louisville, Kentucky.

And in America today, there has never been a greater opportunity or a greater threat to gun rights. In March, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in the watershed case of District of Columbia v. Heller, a lawsuit challenging the DC gun ban. Residents of the District of Columbia are categorically prohibited from possessing handguns and operable long guns (rifles and shotguns) in their homes, even for self-defense.

The Heller case turns on whether the Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms refers to private, law-abiding citizens, or whether it is a right of the people “collectively” to have guns only when they serve in the National Guard or a state-sponsored militia unit. The Court is scheduled to decide the case the third week in June.

Whatever the Court decides, that decision will shape gun rights in America for generations to come. The Heller decision will become the definitive standard for gun rights in America. The Second Amendment is the insurance policy on American liberty. And whether you own guns or not, you cannot afford for a single minute to think that it doesn’t matter to you, your family or the security of this country.

Just like other controversial decisions, such as those on religious liberty and free speech, the Heller decision will lead to many more questions than it answers.

When the Court decided Everson v. Board of Education in 1947 it created the doctrine of separation of church and state. For over 60 years this nation has grappled with what that doctrine means, in a raging cultural battle.

When the Court declared a previously unnoticed right to abortion in Roe v. Wade in 1973, America’s courts and presidential politics were thrust into an issue that still stirs deep passions and is ever present in political debates.

From now on, the same will be true of the Second Amendment. The Heller decision will launch 30 years of defining the nature and scope of gun rights in our courts. The Heller holding will likely be narrow, and will leave open countless other questions, such as what kinds of guns are protected, how far that right extends beyond your home, and whether the Second Amendment controls state law. At least some of these questions will find their way up to the Supreme Court years later. Who sits on the Court when those cases arrive matters a great deal to those of us who believe in the value of widespread lawful gun ownership in America.

That’s why the 2008 presidential election has unprecedented importance for gun owners. Despite their campaign rhetoric purporting to support the right to keep and bear arms, both Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama are categorically opposed to our Second Amendment rights. Hillary Clinton opposed the 2005 tort reform law that saved the American gun industry from bankruptcy. Barack Obama has declared his opposition to all concealed carry laws. He has refused to repudiate his answer to a 1996 questionnaire, where he answered “yes” to a question asking if he supported laws banning “the manufacture, sale and possession of handguns.” And Senator Obama’s true contempt for gun owners came out when he described us as “clinging” to our guns out of bitterness.

In contrast, presumptive Republican nominee John McCain joined bipartisan majorities on a Congressional amicus brief in the Supreme Court in DC v. Heller for the proposition that the Second Amendment protects an individual right. Both Clinton and Obama refused to sign that brief, instead supporting the District of Columbia’s law that prohibits its law-abiding residents from possessing any operable firearm at home, even for self-defense.

The president of the United States appoints all federal judges. Senator McCain has stated he will appoint justices like John Roberts and Sam Alito, and Antonin Scalia, all of whom seem likely to vote to uphold individual gun rights. Senator Obama, on the other hand, has promised to nominate liberal judicial activists and wants the Court to uphold the DC gun ban.

So who Americans elect as president this year will determine the fate of the Second Amendment. In electing a president we also elect a Supreme Court, and in the coming years the makeup of the High Court will be crucial in defining our rights.

For that reason I’m honored to serve on Senator McCain’s Justice Advisory Committee, and will do everything I can to make sure that America’s 90 million gun owners elect a president who will appoint Supreme Court justices faithful to the text of the Constitution, the Bill of Rights and the Second Amendment.

Gun owners are very sensible people. America’s heartland is filled with people devoted to faith, family and classic American values like lawful gun ownership for hunting, recreation and self-defense. Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama could learn a lot from them, but I doubt they’ll be joining us at the NRA convention.

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Sandy Froman is the immediate past president of the National Rifle Association of America, only the second woman and the first Jewish American to hold that office in the 136-year history of the NRA. The views expressed are her own and not that of any organization.


TOPICS: Constitution/Conservatism; Crime/Corruption; Culture/Society; Editorial; Government; Politics/Elections; US: District of Columbia
KEYWORDS: 2008; banglist; captainqueeg; ctulthu08; donquixote; election; elections; froman; gunvote; heller; mccain; nra; obama; rino; rtkba; scotus
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To: Little Ray
"If he picks a good VP, one that we’d like to see as President, we should vote for him, simply to position a good prospect for the next term."

So to put it in baseball terms, we just need him to be the placeholder third baseman now for that super prospect that is tearing it up at AAA.... : )
41 posted on 05/15/2008 5:23:58 AM PDT by Old Teufel Hunden
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To: Old Teufel Hunden

I am a woman. I have really small weak hands. What’s best?


42 posted on 05/15/2008 5:26:38 AM PDT by SMARTY ('At some point you get tired of swatting flies, and you have to go for the manure heap' Gen. LeMay)
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To: Shooter 2.5
"I didn't know Duncan Hunter was the nominee instead of McCain. I must have missed that."

I re-read my post and I am either obtuse and missing the sarcasim or you meant to post this to someone else.
43 posted on 05/15/2008 5:26:44 AM PDT by Old Teufel Hunden
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To: 2ndDivisionVet
Johnny Mac has 3 choices.

Pander.

Promote.

Provoke.

What he says and how he says it will determine if there is any hope for this election term for gun-owners. If either of the DIMS win, gun prices will skyrocket, gun shows and ownership will be in deep trouble.

44 posted on 05/15/2008 5:27:18 AM PDT by Pistolshot (When you let what you are define who you are, you create racial divisiveness.)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet
Do you really think he’ll survive one term, much less two?

Well fat teddys liver hasnt failed yet, so I guess it all depends on where the spirit comes from...

my .02

45 posted on 05/15/2008 5:33:14 AM PDT by Gilbo_3 (vote for satan's little brother, he is the 'lesser' of three evils.../sarc...LiveFReeOr Die...)
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To: SMARTY

My advice is to go to a local gunstore with an indoor range. At these type of places, they usually have a number of guns available that you can shoot. Try out the Mark III. .22 rimfire pistols have almost no recoil. If you have ever shot a bb gun its a lot like shooting that.

Being a woman gives you a lot of advantages right now. There is a push on to get more women involved in the shooting sports and a number of these type of ranges have womens night. They usually give you discounts on range time, ammo etc. on these type of nights. Try to find a place with a womens night and go then. Another advantage you may have is if you have never shot a weapon you will not have any bad habits and can be properly taught. These type of places usually have courses you can sign up for. The gun store workers are usually very friendly knowledgable types that can help you to pick out a weapon and help you to learn how to fire.


46 posted on 05/15/2008 5:33:51 AM PDT by Old Teufel Hunden
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To: Old Teufel Hunden

That is assuming we actually HAVE a super prospect.
In a a party that nominates John McCain for their presidential candidate, I ain’t optimistic...


47 posted on 05/15/2008 5:39:13 AM PDT by Little Ray (I'm a Conservative. But I can vote for John McCain. If I have to. I guess.)
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To: ovrtaxt

“Um, that war we had in the 1860’s pretty much did away with that whole idea. The 10th Amendment doesn’t carry as much weight since then.”

Nor did the Founders have a 10th amendment.

American history from 1750 to 1775 is replete with examples of building a local political base and using it to fight central government.


48 posted on 05/15/2008 5:42:15 AM PDT by sergeantdave (Governments hate armed citizens more than armed criminals)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet; hiredhand; Squantos
no United States of America as we now know it four years hence.

Hmmm, being as though the USA has been an unrecognizable monstrosity to its founders for decades, my guess is theres a reason they worded the Declaration of Independence and Constitution as written... McCain could never convince me to vote for him. Only Hillary or Obama can!)

I refuse to be ruled by fear of the beasties...

If these are my choices, and there are no conservatives to REPRESENT me, then 'none of the above', or better yet 'jesus Christ' will fill in Gilbos blank... LFOD...

49 posted on 05/15/2008 5:43:39 AM PDT by Gilbo_3 (vote for satan's little brother, he is the 'lesser' of three evils.../sarc...LiveFReeOr Die...)
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To: samtheman

what you said is the perfect reason to vote with yer heart, dont pull the lever FOR something you dont mean to follow...


50 posted on 05/15/2008 5:46:44 AM PDT by Gilbo_3 (vote for satan's little brother, he is the 'lesser' of three evils.../sarc...LiveFReeOr Die...)
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To: Vaquero
>McCain has a good rating from the NRA.

and seeing how the 2nd Amendment is the one that guarantees the whole constitution, I must hold my nose and vote for McQueeg.....but that does not make me happy to do so.<

Allow me to ask you one question: What would it take for you to raise your rifle against the elected leaders in the US government?

When I joined FR eight years ago I wasn't happy that Bush was going to sit in the White House but he was better than Kerry. That's what everyone kept saying when I voted for him.

I was pissed that we had wetbacks crawling over our Southern border like it was the opening day of a brand new WalMart in Mexico City. Young ones, old ones, men and women of every age and assortment that one could imagine and every goddam one of them was a criminal, breaking our laws with total disregard.

What I refused to look at was the businessmen ordering the Mayors and Governors to let them in, hurrah cheap labor! I refused to look at the reasoning behind the total lack of enforcement of our laws, the welcoming committees setting up social programs of every kind giving free housing assistance, free medical care, free food, free education scholarships all the way up to PHD programs in the best colleges. You name it and there was a state somewhere in the US where if you couldn't speak English we would give it to you. As a matter of fact the US government, which represents the people of the US, wanted these ignorant, low skilled wetbacks so badly that we were willing to give them no down, low interest home loans on an Identification Number Identity Card. Yes, the FEDs opened many programs just for these people to make sure they felt welcome here. They almost took over every job in the new home construction industry. We wanted to make sure they had enough bucks in their pockets to buy brand new pickup trucks so they wouldn't have to hitch hike to work. Oh our economy was doing great with all the money these people were spending.

Millions of anchor babies were being born every year. Cute little American citizens with a fresh, ripe Hispanic ancestry. We have cheerfully paid for these kids to go to school, join gangs and raise hell here in the US. When they get to the voting stand who do you think they are going to vote for? What kind of laws do you think they are going to vote for? Restrictive ones that will keep their relatives in Mexico or ones that will welcome their entire family tree into the Land of the Free?

Have you heard of La Raza or MS13? If not you will. We can all thank Bush for the spread of these people across America like fireants. Right now they are pushing the Blacks from their established communities. A little violence, a murder or two or three every weekend and you'd be surprised how fast a women can get her husband to move for the protection of her children. They have caused major racial shifts in our national cities. That is NOT assimilation, that is a revolution. OOPS I didn't mean to speak the full truth just quite yet. The full truth is really scary when you look at it. The full truth is that we are NOT defending our country from this invasion. Public school after school is seeing a racial shift in the racial make-up of the classroom. Lots of schools have over a 50% Hispanic make-up. Some of the kids are anchor babies and some are illegal. They tend to drop out by the 10th grade and go to work instead of continuing on to college for one reason or another. The girls have babies like they were weeds popping out of the lawn on a sunny Spring day.

Then this presidential primary season comes along and all the ‘conservative’ hopefuls step forward to the open arms of a non supporting media only to be further shafted by the GOP leaders and Republican Party voters. Face it America doesn't want a ‘conservative’ president, nor a ‘conservative’ Congress or a ‘conservative’ Senate. Conservatives are an embarrassment to the globalists and the socialists. You don't think so? Take a look at who is left running in the primaries .....globalists and the socialists. That's who American voters want in the White House. If they actually wanted a ‘conservative’, we would have Tancredo and Hunter left in the race but nope, they were weeded out long ago.

Remember when I asked the question: What would it take for you to raise your rifle? Take it easy. Unload it and sit back down because the fight already happened and no American patriot stood up with a rifle in his hands aimed at preserving individual liberty and freedom of choice. That battle was already fought and we lost. We were too concerned with keeping troops in Iraq and Afghanistan trying to bring Democracy to a bunch of friggin rugriders who want to kill our women for not wearing scarfs or having their skirt too short in public.

That's right we left our border undefended, they came like bacteria to a rotting fish and before you could blink your eye, they won. In less than a decade the invaders snuck in and did what we all thought was impossible. The socialists are pleased. So are the globalists. Old guys like myself are in lots of pain but we know the fight is over.

Do you think we will ever find a Supreme Court judge who would vote to take away the anchor babies US citizenship? No, we won't and you know it even if you don't want to admit the full truth. It doesn't matter very much anymore who sits in the White House, Democrat or Republican. They are both heading in the same direction on slightly different paths but the destination is the same.

51 posted on 05/15/2008 5:53:32 AM PDT by B4Ranch
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To: samtheman
I think you are dead wrong about Huckabee. Despite the wailing about his being a “socialist”, he has solid positions on 95% of issues that conservatives care about, including coming around to the most comprehensive, pro-enforcement position on immigration of any of the major candidates, 100% solid pro RKBA, right to life, pro-military, and abolishing the IRS (whether or not you agree with the Fair Tax, it ain't “socialist!”). The anti-Huckabee people arguments always end up as personal attacks on the man's honesty about his stated positions, without IMHO foundation.
52 posted on 05/15/2008 5:54:41 AM PDT by Hugin (Mecca delenda est!)
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To: A Balrog of Morgoth

Perhaps, if we push just the “gun” issue, ol’ Johnnie Maverick won’t realize that this is THE worldview defining issue that will go against everything else he supports.

Individual gun rights are a “flag” factor for all other ideology. If you support individual gun rights, you support most things “conservative”, because you believe that the power belongs to the individual, not the gov’t.


53 posted on 05/15/2008 5:58:14 AM PDT by MrB (You can't reason people out of a position that they didn't use reason to get into in the first place)
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To: Gilbo_3
Sometimes the beasties are real.

Maturity and responsibility demand making the best choices between bad alternatives. Refusing to choose because you don't like the alternatives is childish emotionalism.

54 posted on 05/15/2008 5:58:47 AM PDT by Hugin (Mecca delenda est!)
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To: Sender
I never knew about the lair. I first saw it on TV on the History channel.

You can thank the antiamerican traitor scum at the washington compost for disclosing that undisclosed location.

The bastards ...

55 posted on 05/15/2008 6:01:12 AM PDT by ArrogantBustard (Western Civilization is Aborting, Buggering, and Contracepting itself out of existence.)
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To: B4Ranch

you have answered all you own questions.

there is no hope. crawl up in a corner and die is what I expect you will do next.

I have no anwers either. I can only plod along and do what little I can. Like vote for the lesser of 2 evils.

I would prefer a conservative voice too.


56 posted on 05/15/2008 6:03:50 AM PDT by Vaquero (" an armed society is a polite society" Heinlein "MOLON LABE!" Leonidas of Sparta)
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To: Old Teufel Hunden

>How come the only true conservative president we have had in my lifetime won re-election by a 49 state margin?<

I am presuming that you are talking about the Hollywood movie star Ronald Reagan. Why do women fall all over themselves when a good looking man comes on the screen and plays the part of an honest, polite, manly heroic gentleman? Why do men want to emulate such a person?

Who was the large breasted woman who was married to the 70 year old millionaire? She died in the Bahammas last year, I think? Anita somebody. The debate on FR about her was one of the largest threads I have ever seen on FR. Over 20,000 posts!

How come? Because they are movie stars. It didn’t have anything to do with Reagans political positions. He was from Hollywood and that is a sure grabber for too many Americans, especially the ones who resist deep thinking.


57 posted on 05/15/2008 6:08:42 AM PDT by B4Ranch
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To: SMARTY
I am a woman. I have really small weak hands. What’s best?

Whatever fits your hands.

Seriously.

Since you're not flying a state flag, I have no idea where you live. So this may be useless ...

Look in your phonebook under "guns" "gun ranges" "shooting ranges" etc.

Find one not too far away that lets you rent firearms (for on-premises use).

Try a few. Be open minded. You may (or may not) be stronger than you think. You're better off starting with the .22 than the .44 ... try revolvers. Try pistols. If you have a gun-knowledgeable friend, take him or her with you.

Nobody can tell what fits your hand as well as you can.

58 posted on 05/15/2008 6:09:43 AM PDT by ArrogantBustard (Western Civilization is Aborting, Buggering, and Contracepting itself out of existence.)
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To: Vaquero

There is no hope of getting back the country we once had. That’s what I’m saying. You can’t find enough conservatives to fill your city hall these days. No, I won’t crawl up in a corner and die. But I won’t continue to fight as hard as I have fought either.


59 posted on 05/15/2008 6:12:38 AM PDT by B4Ranch
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To: 2ndDivisionVet
Stevens is 88 years old. Ginsburg is 75 and in bad health.

That's why I'm voting McCain.

60 posted on 05/15/2008 6:15:01 AM PDT by Darren McCarty (Just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in - Michael Corleone)
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