TWGN Election Endorsements
Folks, the election is coming up – and before we hit this week’s stories, it’s time for some endorsements. For the most part, I recommend you follow the NRA-PVF Endorsements. But there are going to be some notes.
President: ONLY vote for Donald Trump. Nobody else has a chance to stop Hillary, and this election is looking to be very decisive for our right to keep and bear arms. Hillary Clinton’s judicial appointments would overturn the Heller decision. Worse, we could see an army of Lois Lerners target pro-Second Amendment activists. This one is for all the marbles.
Senate: One race of note is the Illinois Senate race. Yes, Senator Mark Kirk (R-IL) is not the best friend of our Second Amendment rights, but Second Amendment supporters need to think strategically here. Kirk holding this seat is important. Why? Because it makes it less likely that Senator Charles Schumer (D-NY) will call the shots. This is a big deal – the majority in the Senate sets the tune. For all of Mitch McConnell’s faults, his Second Amendment record – and his long fight against McCain-Feingold in the late 1990s and early 2000s – are two very big reasons to support him.
For the same reason, Second Amendment supporters need to put aside their irritation with Senator John McCain in Arizona for his support of McCain-Feingold and his wobbliness on some other issues. Those upset with Kelly Ayotte in New Hampshire and Joe Heck in Nevada (the latter running for Harry Reid’s seat) also need to keep that balance in mind.
House of Representatives: Look, Paul Ryan may or may not be a disappointment, but he is strong on the Second Amendment. Keeping him as House Speaker matters, unless you want Nancy Pelosi calling the tune in the House.
Microstamping: A Back-Door Gun Ban
The Los Angeles Times has called for a national law requiring the use of so-called “microstamping.” California’s state law has had the effect of being a de facto ban on new semi-automatic handguns in the state. Why? Because this technology does not exist on a commercial scale.
In essence, it is a back-door ban on firearms. This is one reason why this election matters – and not just who is in the White House and Congress, but also who is elected at the state and local levels.
That doesn’t even go into the fact that it is an easily foiled means of fighting gun crime. The firing pin can be swapped out, or the crook could just pick up brass from any firing range or plinking site. Or the bad guy can always file off the serial number on the pin (they file serial numbers off guns, even though that is illegal as hell… but wait, when did crooks ever follow the law?).
Now, why didn’t the L.A. Times think of this?
Hillary’s Platform
Hillary Clinton is trying to get us to believe she doesn’t want to take our guns away. Like we never heard her favor Australia’s gun laws or stuff like that. But the truth is in her platform, and the Washington Times took a look.
The worst part of all is her efforts to re-allow lawsuits against firearms manufacturers when their guns get used in a crime. Because then, the politicians don’t have to take the heat for banning the future production of, say, AR-15s. They can just drive anyone who would make them into bankruptcy. They won’t just stop there. Any gun on the left’s hit list would follow – and so would things like 80% receivers.
It’s the coward’s way of killing the Second Amendment – and it would do so by making Heller a dead letter. What good is a constitutional right if you cannot afford to exercise it?
“Pastry Gun” Resolution Reached
Remember that seven-year old who got suspended for biting his Pop-Tart into the shape of a gun and “shooting” someone with it? Well, after three years, the case has finally been resolved via a confidential settlement.
According to the Baltimore Sun, the case has been settled and placed under a confidentiality agreement. When the controversy broke, Florida passed a law making pastry (and other non-lethal guns) legal. The National Rifle Association also made the student, who is now 11, a life member.
No word on whether the administrators who issued the suspension ever regained common sense.
Paper Calls Out Obama Over Non-Enforcement
The Chicago Sun-Times has an iffy track record (at best) on our Second Amendment rights. But recently, they got one right by calling out the Obama Administration’s failure to use federal gun laws to put away bad guys.
Chicago recently eclipsed the 600 homicide mark. There are hundreds more shootings, and this city has some of the strictest gun laws in the country. That has been the case for decades. Yet Chicago’s crime rate is still up there.
If any a city needed Project Exile, Chicago is that city. Not only did Project Exile save lives in Richmond, Virginia by reducing the violent crime rate, it closed old cases as well. And if folks have already done one violent crime, what’s to stop them from committing more?
Gallup Shows No Support for Semi-Auto Ban
Gun-grabbers will not like this poll number. Gallup reports that only 36% of Americans support a ban on so-called “assault weapons” like the AR-15. On the other hand, 61% oppose such a ban. The facts, of course, support the argument against such bans – notably the fact that rifles like the AR-15 (or any rifles, for that matter), are far less likely to be used in crimes than fists, feet, clubs, or knives.
Once people know the facts, the gun-grabbers lose. The key is to get the facts out to them – something that the Citizens United decision by the Supreme Court has ensured. Is it any wonder why the gun-grabbers would love to make it harder for us to speak up and get the message out