Both letters echoed the warning that granting the Secretary of Defense such a broad new authority raised serious concerns over a number of property rights issues, including fair compensation and due process in seizing private property, and cautioned that it could "readily have become grounds for bureaucratic over-reach." The letters also emphasized the fact that the pro-gun community reacted to Sec. 1062 with an overwhelming grassroots uprising, and both declared, "As a result, many of us heard more from our constituents on this issue than on any other under discussion" during last year`s debate over spending for the DoD. The letters were signed by both Republicans and Democrats, and requested from Rumsfeld "assurances that this provision will not resurface this year in the Administration`s proposals for the Department of Defense."
We will be sure to post any developments on this front, and if you would like to know which lawmakers signed these letters, please call the Grassroots Division at (800) 392-8683. While we appreciate the efforts of all who took part in this effort, our special thanks go out to U.S. Senator Bob Smith (R-N.H.), who took the lead in the Senate, and U.S. Representative Gary Miller (R-Calif.), who took the lead in the House.