IGNORING THE LAW
On Wednesday, October 26, President George W. Bush signed into law the NRA-backed "Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act" (S. 397)--legislation to end politically motivated lawsuits designed to bankrupt law-abiding American firearm manufacturers and retailers. S. 397 passed both chambers of Congress with broad bipartisan support; in recent years, 33 states have passed similar legislation.
Having lost this extremely significant battle in Congress, the anti-gunners have again taken their show to the courts--and activist judges--in an attempt to circumvent and challenge the new law.
On December 2, anti-gun New York Federal Judge Jack B. Weinstein ruled that New York City's lawsuit against law-abiding firearm manufacturers and retailers could move forward.
"Judge Weinstein's decision was not only predictable, but intellectually dishonest and blatantly biased, given his decade-long track record of aiming to derail the firearms industry," said Lawrence G. Keane, senior vice president and general counsel for the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF), the trade organization for the firearm industry. "New York City's lawsuit is precisely the type of suit the ‘Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act' was designed to prevent. During debate in each chamber of Congress, Senator Larry Craig and Representative Cliff Stearns--the sponsors of the bill--both referenced the city's case as a quintessential example of a lawsuit the act would prevent."
Firearm manufacturers named in the suit include: Beretta U.S.A. Corporation, the Browning Arms Company, Colt Manufacturing Company, Inc., Glock, Inc., and the Smith & Wesson Corporation.
These industry defendants plan to immediately appeal the decision to the Second Circuit Court of Appeals.
MAYOR BLOOMBERG EXPLOITS TRAGEDY--TARGETS NRA
A December 2, story in the New York Post detailed the rantings of New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg (R) as he took advantage of a grievous, heart-breaking tragedy and used it as an occasion to wrongly blast NRA.
Referring to the recent slaying of a New York City police officer (by a suspect accused of shooting another officer during a robbery attempt some 10 days earlier), Mayor Bloomberg lashed out at NRA, telling listeners to his weekly radio show that, "Fundamentally, if you want to solve the problem [of gun violence] it's up to Congress, and Congress keeps getting rolled by the NRA. This is plain and simple, the NRA versus the lives of our children and our police officers."
In what amounts to a classic cop-out, Bloomberg prefers to point fingers and deflect blame, rather than address the city's criminal justice system (for which he is responsible and paid to enforce) and arrest and prosecute criminals so that repeat offenders can't continue their mayhem.
Commenting on Bloomberg's diatribe, NRA-ILA Director of Public Affairs, Andrew Arulanandam, said, "I think it's really despicable for the mayor to try and inject politics into this very sad and tragic event. Our membership rolls are full of active and retired law-enforcement and military officers. It is not appropriate to talk about politics at this time. At this point in time our thoughts and prayers are with the slain police officer's family."
If you would like to contact Mayor Bloomberg to let him know what you think about his comments, you can call his office at (212) 639-9675, fax him at (212) 788-2460, or e-mail him at http://www.nyc.gov/html/mail/html/mayor.html.
D.C. PERSONAL PROTECTION ACT--A TOP LEGISLATIVE PRIORITY
One of NRA-ILA's top legislative priorities in Congress continues to be the passage of S. 1082 and H.R. 1288--the Senate and House versions of the "District of Columbia Personal Protection Act." This legislation seeks to restore the constitutionally-guaranteed Second Amendment rights of the residents of the District of Columbia.
The need for this legislation is obvious. While effectively banning handgun ownership for over a quarter-century, Washington, D.C., consistently has one of the highest homicide rates in the nation.
"D.C.'s politicians have stripped law-abiding residents of their ability to defend themselves and their families," said NRA-ILA Executive Director Chris W. Cox. "Passage of the ‘District of Columbia Personal Protection Act' will remedy this senseless and dangerous injustice."
Please be sure to contact your U.S. Senators and Representative and ask them to cosponsor and support S. 1082 and H.R. 1288.
For a list of Senate cosponsors, please visit http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d109:SN01082:@@@P.
For a list of House cosponsors, please visit http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d109:HR01288:@@@P.
You can call your U.S. Senators at (202) 224-3121, or your U.S. Representative at (202) 225-3121.
HELP NRA-ILA FIGHT FOR FREEDOM IN THE COURTS!
With NRA engaged in various legal battles to protect our Second Amendment rights across the country, we are asking NRA members to contribute to NRA-ILA as we fight for freedom in the courts. Please encourage your friends, family, and other Second Amendment supporters to stand with NRA-ILA by making a financial contribution to help us fight for freedom. You may contribute by mail (please make checks payable to NRA-ILA, and send to: NRA-ILA, 11250 Waples Mill Road, Fairfax, VA 22030); by telephone at (800) 392-8683; or via our website at: https://secure.nraila.org/Contribute.aspx.
Thank you for your continued support in our efforts to further the cause of freedom.
[Contributions to NRA-ILA are not deductible as charitable contributions for Federal income tax purposes.]
A LOOK AT THE STATES
(****For all of the action items below, you can find contact information for your legislators by using the "Write Your Representatives" tool at www.NRAILA.org. As always, thank you for your support.****)
DELAWARE
Mark your calendar for the "Concealed Carry Conference and Second Amendment Rally" to be held January 8, 2006! The Conference, held in conjunction with the Delaware State Sportsmen's Association Annual Meeting of Members, will feature special guest speaker NRA-ILA Executive Director Chris W. Cox, as well as NRA President Sandra Froman, NRA 1st Vice President John Sigler, and NRA 2nd Vice President Ron Schmeits. The conference will be held at Modern Maturity Center, 1121 Forest Ave. (Rt. 8), in Dover. Doors open at 1:00 p.m., and the meeting begins at 2:00 p.m. This event is open to everyone interested in preserving and defending the Right to Keep and Bear Arms. See you there!
NEW YORK
The Suffolk County Legislature met earlier this week to discuss and vote on two bills that will fund the necessary upgrading, renovation, and reopening of the Suffolk County Trap & Skeet Range. Testimony was heard from several supporters of the bills, IR-2216-5 and IR-2228-5. As a result, a final vote of 14 to 1 was taken in favor of reopening the Suffolk County Trap & Skeet Range. Thanks to all those who made phone calls, sent e-mails, and attended the meetings. After four and a half years of answering questions and overcoming obstacles, success was achieved in getting these important bills passed. Please send a special thank you to the Suffolk County Legislature for their diligence and thoroughness on this issue. The Suffolk County Trap & Skeet Range looks forward to reopening as early as Spring 2006.
NORTH CAROLINA
In August 2005, Governor Mike Easley (D) signed into law SB 464, which established a National Rifle Association license plate for North Carolina motor vehicles. Before the plates become a reality, however, 300 North Carolinians need to commit to purchasing them. We still need many more members to sign up. This is a great way for members to show their support for their Second Amendment Rights. Please contact the NRA Western North Carolina Field Representative, Doug Merrill, at (828) 628-0410, for more information on obtaining an NRA plate. You will need to submit a check for $10.00 for a standard plate, or $40.00 for a personalized plate, in addition to filling out an application.
WASHINGTON
Your attendance at one of two upcoming public hearings to discuss the future of shooting and hunting in Island County is critical! Ordinance number C-136-05 has been proposed which would impose severe restrictions on the discharge of firearms on Deer Lagoon and restrict hunting, including archery and muzzleloading seasons, on the Kettles, Camano Ridge and Goss Lake Woods Trail Properties. The public hearings are scheduled for Monday, December 12, at the Coupeville Recreation Hall, located at 901 NW Alexander Street in Coupeville, and also on Thursday, December 15, at the Utsalady Elementary School, located at 608 Arrowhead Road on Camano Island. It is absolutely critical that hunters voice their concerns with these proposals by attending these meetings. Both hearings are scheduled to start at 6:00 p.m. but NRA recommends you arrive at 5:30 p.m. Please encourage your family, friends, and fellow sportsmen to attend! Without a strong showing of local shooters and hunters, Ordinance number C-136-05 will pass and opportunities for shooting and hunting in Island County will begin to disappear.
WISCONSIN
The Personal Protection Act (PPA), legislation making Wisconsin the 39th Right-to-Carry state, passed the full Senate on a bi-partisan vote of 23-10. This veto-proof margin is significant in face of Governor Jim Doyle's (D) promised veto of this life-saving legislation. The PPA will now go to the State Assembly for a full floor vote on Tuesday, December 13. It is absolutely critical that you contact your State Representative at (800) 362-9472 and respectfully ask him or her to support the PPA. Self-defense supporters are closer than ever to securing a veto-proof vote in the Assembly! As was the case with the successful Senate vote, your activism is critical. Please make your call as soon as possible. Also, please plan to attend the Assembly Floor Session in Madison on Tuesday to personally show your support for the PPA.
[Editor's Note: Effective January 1, 2006, the NRA-ILA Grassroots Alert will be transmitted solely via e-mail. Those of you who currently receive the Friday Alert via fax, and wish to continue to receive it, will need to sign up to receive NRA-ILA's e-mail alerts. You may sign up for e-mail by visiting www.NRAILA.org and choosing "Sign-up for E-mail" or you may call the NRA-ILA Grassroots Division at (800) 392-8683. This change is part of our ongoing transition to e-mail as our primary communication tool, recognizing the vast number of NRA members with e-mail access, and the additional flexibility e-mail affords recipients in easily forwarding the information to others. The NRA-ILA Grassroots Alert will still be posted at www.NRAILA.org. Thank you for your cooperation with, and attention to, this change.--NRA-ILA]
