National Right-to-Carry Reciprocity Act Scheduled for
House Floor on Tuesday—Contact Your U.S. Representative Immediately!
H.R. 822—the “National Right-to-Carry Reciprocity Act of 2011” is scheduled for a vote on the U.S. House floor this Tuesday, November 15. We’ve told you the truth about why the legislation is very good for gun owners and now it is imperative that you contact your U.S. Representative IMMEDIATELY and urge him or her to vote for H.R. 822 WITH NO AMENDMENTS.
As we have been reporting all along, H.R. 822 is a good bill for gun owners. The bill will enable America’s millions of permit holders to exercise their right to self-defense while traveling outside their home states by requiring states to recognize each others' lawfully-issued carry permits, just as they recognize driver's licenses and carry permits held by armored car guards.
H.R. 822 does not create a federal licensing or registration system; does notestablish a minimum federal standard for the carry permit; does notinvolve the federal bureaucracy in setting standards for carry permit; and it does notdestroy or discourage the adoption of permitless carry systems such as those in Arizona, Alaska, Vermont and Wyoming.
Let’s Honor Our Veterans by Protecting Their Second Amendment Rights:
[Editor’s Note: This article, by NRA-ILA Executive Director Chris W. Cox, appeared this week as an op-ed piece on the Daily Caller.]
This Friday, as we honor the courage and sacrifice of our U.S. military veterans, we should also be mindful of a terrible injustice that too many of them are forced to endure when they come home from the field of battle: the loss of their Second Amendment rights.
Holder: Blame Fast and Furious on Someone Else: This week, Attorney General Eric Holder told the Senate Judiciary Committee that he was not aware of the gunwalking tactics used in Operation Fast and Furious until early this year, and that he and senior Justice Department officials were initially unaware that a claim made by other department officials in a Feb. 4, 2011, letter to Congress—that “A.T.F. makes every effort to interdict weapons that have been purchased illegally and prevent their transport into Mexico”—was false.
During the committee’s hearings on Justice Department oversight, Holder also blamed the on-going inquiry into Fast and Furious on Republican politics. He refused to apologize to the family of murdered U.S. Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry, beside whose lifeless body one, and perhaps two, guns walked by Fast and Furious were found. In another effort to protect the Obama Administration against criticism, Holder suggested that Agent Terry’s murder shouldn’t be blamed on Fast and Furious in the first place. And he faulted the House of Representatives for voting to withhold federal funds from any effort to implement the BATFE’s requirement that firearm dealers in the southwest border states report sales of two or more detachable-magazine semi-automatic rifles of greater than .22 caliber. (The NRA is challenging the illegal requirement in federal court.)
Rep. Joe Walsh Slams Brady Campaign: This week, Representative Joe Walsh (R-Ill.) sent a letter to the anti-gun Brady Campaign’s acting President Dennis Henigan in response to a previous Brady Campaign release regarding the Congressman’s statements from an October 3, 2011 letter. In this week’s letter, Rep. Walsh was very critical of Brady Campaign’s release, saying “In your response to my recent letter, you have once again drawn false and illogical conclusions from my statements.”
Outrage of the Week: This week’s outrage comes to us courtesy of MSNBC political analyst and former reporter for the Huffington Post, Alex Wagner.
As reported in a November 6 article and video on RealClearPolitics.com, Ms. Wagner, appearing as a panelist on a November 4 episode of HBO’s “Real Time with Bill Maher,” was asked by host Bill Maher, “What would you change in the Constitution?"
Another Way To Get Involved--Join NRA’s Facebook And Twitter Groups: Internet social networking has exploded in recent years, and websites such as Facebook and Twitter attract millions of users. This on-line community fosters a connection between its users, and allows distribution of user-generated content (like pictures, profiles, music, video, and text).
NRA has been a part of this social technology for some time now, with a presence on Facebook, Twitter, and other social networking sites. By actively participating in these new media, we are able to reach out to more potential members and supporters than ever before.
The current king of on-line social networking is Facebook. NRA’s Facebook page continues to be extremely popular. In fact, thanks to you, our page has grown from about 300,000 fans on July 28, 2010 to over 1,218,000 fans as of this week!
Grassroots News Minute Video: To view this week’s “Grassroots News Minute” video, please click here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qhn1N1IHSOE
STATE ROUNDUP (Please note the only items listed below are those that have had recent action. For other updates on state legislation, please go to the state legislation section at www.NRAILA.org, and check each week’s issue of the Grassroots Alert.)
For additional information, please click on the links provided.
ARIZONA: BLM Proposes Closing One-Half Million Acres to Target Shooting
The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has released a plan for the future management of nearly 1.4 million acres located southwest of Phoenix in parts of Maricopa, Pinal, Pima, Gila and Yuma counties. Of that total, over 486,000 acres are within the Sonoran Desert National Monument which the BLM proposes to close to target shooters. The public comment period for this plan is open through November 25. Please attend one of the scheduled meetings to show support for keeping public lands open for all of the public, including target shooters, and to learn more about how this plan will affect your future enjoyment of these lands.
COLORADO: Management Plan for Public Lands Will Affect Target Shooting
The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has released a resource management plan (RMP) for 500,000 acres managed by the agency’s Colorado River Valley Field Office located in Silt and responsible for the counties of Eagle, Garfield, Pitkin, Roult, Mesa, and Rio Blanco. The public comment period is open until December 16 and BLM will announce in advance public meetings regarding this RMP. If you enjoy target shooting on these lands, it is extremely important that you review the plan to determine how it will affect your future access for target shooting. Please attend at least one of the public meetings and e-mail your comments to the BLM.
Additional BLM Management Plan for Public Lands Will Also Affect Target Shooting
The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has released another resource management plan (RMP) and this one on approximately 378,000 acres managed by the agency’s Field Office in Kremmling. The public lands are within Grand, Jackson, Summit and parts of Larimer and Eagle Counties. The public comment period is open until December 16 and BLM will announce in advance public hearings on this RMP. Please attend at least one of the public meetings and e-mail your comments to the BLM.
MICHIGAN: Gun Hunting Up for Public Comment in Huron-Manistee
The U.S. Forest Service has released a Draft Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (DSEIS) that will ultimately determine whether or not firearm hunting can continue on more than 66,500 acres in Michigan’s Huron-Manistee National Forests.
As a result of a September 2010 ruling by the Sixth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, the Forest Service prepared the DSEIS to evaluate the impacts of a proposed ban on firearm hunting and snowmobile use in 14 semi-primitive, non-motorized or wilderness areas of the forest. Public comments must be received by December 21.
NEVADA: Please Attend FREE NRA-ILA Grassroots Workshop in Las Vegas on Nov. 19
To ensure we are prepared to meet the challenges and opportunities we will face in the coming months, and especially in the 2012 elections, NRA-ILA is hosting a free Grassroots Workshop on Saturday, November 19, at 1:00 p.m. The meeting will be held at Stoney’s Rockin Country, 9151 Las Vegas Boulevard S., #300, in Las Vegas (www.stoneysrockincountry.com)
At this meeting, NRA-ILA staff will lay out our plans for our grassroots legislative and election strategies in Nevada and discuss how you can become even more involved with our mutual efforts. We will also be introducing the new NRA state association--the Nevada Firearms Coalition (NFC)--that will be on hand to talk about their plans for the state. You will get the chance to meet the new state association board members and learn how NRA-ILA and the NFC will be working together to protect our Second Amendment rights!
This meeting is absolutely free and beverages and light snacks will be provided. The event will begin at 1:00 p.m., and end at 4:00 pm. Please make plans to attend and encourage your family, friends, and fellow firearm owners and NRA members to attend as well.
To register for this free event, please click here, or call the NRA-ILA Grassroots Division at (800) 392-VOTE (8683).
PENNSYLVANIA: Pennsylvania Farm Bureau to Discuss Sunday Hunting Next Week
Next week, the state Farm Bureau will hold its annual meeting at the Hershey Lodge and Convention Center. A topic of discussion will be a county resolution to support House Bill 1760, Sunday hunting legislation. We need your help to awaken the Farm Bureau’s silent majority who want to be free to choose how they manage their land for hunting. Please contact your county Farm Bureau representative and urge him or her to support Sunday hunting. Also, if you know a farmer who supports Sunday hunting ask him or her to make a call.
WISCONSIN: Legislative Committee Reigns in Overreaching Department of Justice
On November 7, the Joint Committee for the Review of Administrative Rules (JCRAR) voted in a 7 to 2 bi-partisan effort to address and eliminate portions of the emergency rules promulgated by the state Department of Justice (DOJ) to implement Wisconsin Act 35, the new concealed carry law. Please contact and thank members of the JCRAR committee and Assembly Majority Leader Scott Suder for ensuring the opportunity of Wisconsin residents to defend themselves and their families is not arbitrarily restricted.
NRA will be closed tomorrow, Friday, November 11, for Veteran’s Day.
We will re-open on Monday, November 14, at 8:30 a.m., EST.
On Veteran’s Day, please think about our men and women in uniform,
and the sacrifices they have made, and are making, for all of us.
