Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR) called out Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) and his lies about service in Vietnam. As I have mentioned more than once on this blog, my father was both a WWII and Vietnam veteran.
He was drafted in October 1940 before WWII, served in the Caribbean Defense Command during the war, married my mom in 1945, and got his GED and college degree after he was discharged. He rejoined the Army in 1953 and served continuously from then until his medical retirement in 1973 caused by a transient ischemic attack and the beginnings of COPD. Along the way, he went to Vietnam in 1967-68 and again in 1970-71.
I hate politicians like Blumenthal who have lied about their service and I always will. Cotton, by the way, was a Harvard Law grad and practicing attorney when he applied for Officer Candidate School. He could have gone JAG but went Infantry and has his Combat Infantryman Badge. I respect that.
.@SenBlumenthal lied for years about serving in Vietnam, which is all you need to know about his courage & honesty. Maybe he should reconsider before questioning Judge Kavanaugh’s credibility.
I saw this moments ago in The Outdoor Wire. Too bad I won't be able to attend. I'm guessing Mr. Zinke will be talking about arrests for bear poaching. That is what it usually is.
WASHINGTON - U.S. Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke will host a press conference in Asheville, North Carolina, on Thursday, September 27th to announce the results of a major joint law enforcement operation. Secretary Zinke will be joined by Federal, Tribal, State and local partners. This will be the Secretary's third trip to the Asheville region since taking office. WHO: U.S. Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke Federal, Tribal, State, and local partners WHAT: A press conference to announce the results of a major law enforcement operation in Indian Country WHEN: Thursday, September 27, 2018 9:30 A.M. WHERE: Veach Baley Federal Building, 151 Patton Ave, Asheville, NC
UPDATE: Well it wasn't bear parts but drugs including opoids, Fentenyl, marijuana, meth, and pills. A task force of Federal, state, and tribal officials broke up a number of drug distribution networks on the Qualla Boundary in Cherokee, NC. That is the reservation of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians.
From what I've been told by a former student, teens are targeted by drug dealers at age 15-16. They want to get them dependent so that they can get their major payout from the trust funds enrolled members receive at age 18. The amount that an 18 year old will receive before taxes is (or was) in the $160,000 range.
I saw this posted this morning on MeWe by Kevin Z. Williamson. The more I watched it, the more I thought The Prisoner was way ahead of its time and that it was a preview of what we might see today from certain members of the Senate Judiciary Committee.
Will Judge Kavanaugh be found to be disharmonious? Will he be deemed unmutual? Will DiFi remember to wear her top hat and stripes?
Earlier today I published the prepared testimony of Judge Brett Kavanaugh which contained his unequivocal denial of participating in any and all sexual assaults. Needless to say, I believe him.
Dr. Christine Blasey Ford's attorney has now posted her prepared testimony which is scheduled to be delivered before the Senate Judiciary Committee tomorrow. If this were the court of law instead of the court of public opinion, this case would never have even gotten to trial. As it is, this was meant to be the Democrat's bombshell revelation that would take down a good man and destroy his chances of serving on the Supreme Court. I imagine it was also intended to force him to step down from his position as a judge on the Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit. I think it will fail as well it should.
Judge Brett Kavanaugh's prepared testimony for his appearance before the Senate Judiciary Committee has been released. In it, he addresses the charges by Dr. Christine Blasey Ford that he sexually attacked her at a party 36 years ago. He categorically denies it.
It is a strong statement but I wish he might have taken the approach of Justice Clarence Thomas and called it for what it is - bullshit. However, Kavanaugh is a more measured, judicious, and temperate person than I am which is why he's a judge and I'm not.
Mr. Chairman, Ranking Member Feinstein, and Members of the Committee:
Eleven days ago, Dr. Ford publicly accused me of committing a serious wrong more than 36 years ago when we were both in high school. I denied the allegation immediately, unequivocally, and categorically. The next day, I told this Committee that I wanted to testify as soon as possible, under oath, to clear my name.
Over the past few days, other false and uncorroborated accusations have been aired. There has been a frenzy to come up with something—anything, no matter how far-fetched or odious—that will block a vote on my nomination. These are last-minute smears, pure and simple. They debase our public discourse. And the consequences extend beyond any one nomination. Such grotesque and obvious character assassination—if allowed to succeed—will dissuade competent and good people of all political persuasions from serving our country.
As I told this Committee the last time I appeared before you, a federal judge must be independent, not swayed by public or political pressure. That is the kind of judge I am and will always be. I will not be intimidated into withdrawing from this process. This effort to destroy my good name will not drive me out. The vile threats of violence against my family will not drive me out. I am here this morning to answer these allegations and to tell the truth. And the truth is that I have never sexually assaulted anyone—not in high school, not in college, not ever.
Sexual assault is horrific. It is morally wrong. It is illegal. It is contrary to my religious faith. And it contradicts the core promise of this Nation that all people are created equal and entitled to be treated with dignity and respect. Allegations of sexual assault must be taken seriously. Those who make allegations deserve to be heard. The subject of allegations also deserves to be heard. Due process is a foundation of the American rule of law.
Dr. Ford’s allegation dates back more than 36 years, to a party that she says occurred during our time in high school. I spent most of my time in high school focused on academics, sports, church, and service. But I was not perfect in those days, just as I am not perfect today. I drank beer with my friends, usually on weekends. Sometimes I had too many. In retrospect, I said and did things in high school that make me cringe now. But that’s not why we are here today. What I’ve been accused of is far more serious than juvenile misbehavior. I never did anything remotely resembling what Dr. Ford describes.
The allegation of misconduct is completely inconsistent with the rest of my life. The record of my life, from my days in grade school through the present day, shows that I have always promoted the equality and dignity of women.
I categorically and unequivocally deny the allegation against me by Dr. Ford. I never had any sexual or physical encounter of any kind with Dr. Ford. I am not questioning that Dr. Ford may have been sexually assaulted by some person in some place at some time. But I have never done that to her or to anyone. I am innocent of this charge.
Cody Wilson and Defense Distributed parted ways as of Friday, September 21st, according to the new Director of Defense Distributed, Paloma Heindorff. The news came in a press conference held in Austin, Texas yesterday (September 25th).
Good morning, thank you for attending. My name is Paloma Heindorff, I’m the new director of Defense Distributed and CEO of Ghost Gunner. I spent last three years at DD working as director of development and VP of Operations. Cody Wilson tendered his resignation on Friday evening to focus on personal legal affairs. Defense Distributed Board of Directors accepted his resignation and thus his role at the company has been concluded.
Also on the stage at the news conference were Defense Distributed's attorneys Josh Blackman of the South Texas College of Law Houston and Chad Flores of Houston law firm Beck Redden.
During the news conference, Heindorff continually emphasized that Wilson has no further involvement with Defense Distributed and that she would not answer any questions regarding his personal legal issues. She did say, "it was Cody Wilson's decision to resign and Defense Distributed supported him in that."
When she was asked by a reporter if anything in her views had changed on the case, Heindorff made a strong statement of her beliefs.
The same as we stood before. We believe in the right of people to have these files; we believe in our right to publish them. I believe very strongly in both the First and Second Amendment causes in the case. That's where I stand. The same as where I stood a week ago.
Asked if she had spoken with Cody Wilson, she said, "Cody and I have been speaking. It is important for the transition. We still have some paperwork to do."
Heindorff's background is in the arts. When asked why she left New York and moved to Austin to work for Defense Distributed, she had this to say.
It's the most effective and elegant activism I'd seen performed and I wanted to be a part of that. It's just so beautiful, isn't it, to exercise one's rights like that and to do so in a way that pushes authorities to allow you to. Too often people are perturbed by threats, and I found it incredible that this company persisted.
Heindorff spoke about this in more detail at last year's Gun Rights Policy Conference held in Dallas. You can see her comments in this video starting at about the 24:30 mark.
When asked about the case brought the attorney general of Washington State to prevent Distributed Defense from posting the files online , Josh Blackman emphasized that there was no change in the case. Later in the news conference, both he and attorney Chad Flores re-emphasized that they are DD's attorney and that Cody Wilson has his own attorney for his issues. With regard to legal issues, all three pointed out that the approximately $400,000 raised for legal fees was for Defense Distributed and no monies were being used by Cody Wilson for her personal defense on charges of sex with a minor.
The change of leadership at Defense Distributed and Ghost Gunner has received attention across the spectrum. You have stories by the NY Times, Fox News, NPR, and the Austin Statesman. You have stories by Recoil, Ammoland, and TTAG. The story was also covered by tech industry publications like Ars Technica and Wired.
Heck, even the Brady Campaign released a statement concerning the change in leadership. The funny thing in their statement is their acknowledgement that the "Pandora's box had been opened, and it won't go away with Wilson." Then they said they would continue to fight the threat. I find it funny that they realize the signal can't be stopped and then in the next breath say they are going to fight it. There is nothing to compare to the posturing of the gun banners when they know the fight is futile.
The whole news conference is shown in the video below. The actual news conference begins at about the 2 minute mark.
Illinois Carry is seeking foster parents in Illinois as plaintiffs in a Second Amendment lawsuit. I'm guessing it will be similar to the recent lawsuit in Michigan. In that case, a Michigan foster parent sued the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services over a requirement that firearms and ammunition to constantly locked and inaccessible. A Federal judge said the suit should be allowed to proceed.
From Illinois Carry:
Are You An IL Foster Parent?
Are You Willing To Be A
Witness/Co-Plaintiff In A Second Amendment Lawsuit?
Please contact IllinoisCarry spokesperson Valinda Rowe immediately by sending an email to:
VRowe@IllinoisCarry.com
Valinda Rowe has done incredible work in the Prairie State in advancing the cause of armed self-defense.
If you bought a Rossi revolver made between 2005 and 2017, you need to read this:
Rossi is issuing a voluntary safety warning on .38 Special and .357 Magnum revolvers made between the years 2005 and 2017 that may have a condition that could cause, under certain circumstances, the revolver to fire if dropped This Safety Warning covers .38 Special and .357 Magnum revolver models R351, R352, 461, R462, R851, R971, and R972 with serial numbers beginning with the letter Y, Z, or A through K. Rossi is developing inspection and repair solutions. Rossi will make every effort possible to ensure Rossi Revolvers will be inspected, serviced if necessary, and returned to customers in a prompt, timely fashion. Issues underlying this Safety Warning are currently pending before the court in a proposed class action lawsuit pending in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida styled Burrow v. Forjas Taurus, S.A., civil action file no. 1:16-cv-21606-EGT ACTIONS TO BE TAKEN: Stop using your revolver immediately. Call 855-982-8787 for assistance. If you no longer have this revolver, please inform current owner of this notice. We appreciate your business and value you as a customer.
RESCHEDULED NOTICE OF COMMITTEE EXECUTIVE BUSINESS MEETING
The Executive Business Meeting originally scheduled by the Committee on the Judiciary for Monday, September 24, 2018 at 10:00 a.m., in Room 226 of the Dirksen Senate Office Building has been rescheduled for Friday, September 28 at 9:30 a.m.
By order of the Chairman.
I. Nominees
Brett M. Kavanaugh, to be an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States
Jonathan A. Kobes, to be United States Circuit Judge for the Eighth Circuit
Kenneth D. Bell, to be United States District Judge for the Western District of North Carolina
Stephanie A. Gallagher, to be United States District Judge for the District of Maryland
Mary S. McElroy, to be United States District Judge for the District of Rhode Island
Carl J. Nichols, to be United States District Judge for the District of Columbia
John M. O'Connor, to be United States District Judge for the Northern, Eastern and Western Districts of Oklahoma
Martha Maria Pacold, to be United States District Judge for the Northern District of Illinois
Mary M. Rowland, to be United States District Judge for the Northern District of Illinois
Steven C. Seeger, to be United States District Judge for the Northern District of Illinois
I got a press release in my email today from Sig Sauer announcing Jack Barnes as their new VP for Commercial Sales. Normally, I would not be blogging about something like this. However, in the case of Mr. Barnes, his former employer was a company that lived up to its name more than once: Dick's Sporting Goods.
Here is the relevant paragraph from the press release:
Barnes comes to SIG SAUER with a robust background in retail commercial sales, serving the last nine years at Dick’s Sporting Goods where he was Vice President General Merchandise Manager. While at Dick’s, Barnes focused on the hunting and outdoor categories, and led the development of the Dick’s Sporting Goods, Field & Stream retail stores from concept to grand opening. He further led the continued growth and sustainability for Field & Stream stores through sales, inventory control, and merchandising. Prior to that, Barnes worked for twelve years at Wal-Mart in various management roles. Notably, Barnes gained tremendous firearms experience as a professional competitive shooter, before he began to focus his career in retail sales management.
I don't know whether Mr. Barnes left Dick's on his own or was forced out when Dick's CEO Ed Stack went full gun control after the Parkland mass murders. Regardless, I'm glad to hear he is now with a company that respects the Second Amendment.
By the way, this afternoon I drove right by a Field and Stream store and kept on going. Mr. Barnes did a good job in developing them but I refuse to spend my money with a company that advocates for gun control.
In late August, California Attorney General Xavier Becerra (D-CA) moved to have the lawsuit against him and the California DOJ over their ineptness implementing the new registration of bullet button weapons moved to Federal court. One would have thought that he'd want to keep a suit against the California Department of Justice in state court.
The case was moved to US District Court for the Eastern District of California and assigned to Judge Morrison England, Jr.
Today, the plaintiffs which include a number of individuals and a number of civil rights organizations filed an amended complaint. Joining the plaintiffs is the Madison Society Foundation. The amended complaint also adds a Section 183 claim for deprivation of due process rights.
While I might have been tempted to just say "screw it", all the individual plaintiffs spent hours trying to comply with the law requiring registration of their firearms. Some of the plaintiffs are IT professionals and tech savvy. Nonetheless, the database system was so screwed up, most of them were not able to do so. The response of Cal DOJ was "you procrastinated, so tough". From the complaint:
The following Monday, July 2, 2018,
Plaintiff (Terry) Jahraus contacted the DOJ for assistance, but the DOJ official told him, essentially, “it
was [his] responsibility to comply with the law [and] that he had all year to do so.” In other
words, DOJ blamed him for failing to register, even though its own statutorily-mandated
registration system was inaccessible and defective throughout the entire period he had attempted
to register it well before the deadline.
The joint release of the Second Amendment Foundation, Calguns Foundation, Firearms Policy Coalition, Firearms Policy Foundation, and the Madison Society Foundation is below:
SACRAMENTO, CA (September 24, 2018) — Attorneys for seven California gun owners and five advocacy organizations announced a new court filing in a now-federal constitutional rights lawsuit over the State of California’s “assault weapon” registration debacle. The case, Sharp, et al. v. Attorney General Xavier Becerra, et al., was originally filed in the County of Shasta Superior Court. But in late August it was removed to federal district court in Sacramento at the request of Attorney General Xavier Becerra and the DOJ defendants. The new court filing is online at https://www.firearmspolicy.org/sharp.
On August 24, the California Attorney General moved the case to federal court on the basis that the plaintiffs’ claims present a federal constitutional question, in addition to their state-based claims. That same day, the lawsuit was assigned to District Court Judge Morrison C. England, Jr. Two years ago, Judge England issued a bench ruling to enjoin a California statute that criminalized the use of Assembly video footage in political advertisements in a case brought by Firearms Policy Coalition and its Proposition 63 ballot initiative political committee, FPC Second Amendment Defense Committee.
“While it’s interesting that Attorney General Becerra doesn’t want his own state’s courts to hear how badly he mis-administered the mandated firearm registration program, we welcome the opportunity to show Judge England how the DOJ violated the constitutional rights of the plaintiffs and others like them,” said George M. Lee, lead counsel for the plaintiffs. “General Becerra’s actions and failures affected many gun owners from San Diego to Eureka. These law-abiding gun owners tried to register their weapons as required by law but could not do so because DOJ’s registration system was wholly inadequate to do the job. We are simply asking that those injuries be reasonably remedied so that those citizens are not subject to criminal liability for possessing illegal, unregistered weapons – solely as a result of DOJ’s failures.”
In the latest complaint, submitted last Friday, the plaintiffs added a claim for deprivation of their due process rights under Title 42, Section 1983 of the United States Code. The complaint also adds as an institutional plaintiff the Madison Society Foundation, a nonprofit organization that fights to protect the right to keep and bear arms.
The plaintiffs say that Becerra and the DOJ had a legal and constitutional duty to provide a functional registration system during the registration period, but that they were unable to exercise their own rights and legal duties “due to the Defendants’ actions and failures, including but not limited to the inaccessibility, defects, and/or non-functionality of the DOJ’s CFARS-based registration system.” The plaintiffs alleged that the DOJ’s ‘botched’ “assault weapon” registration scheme – including the error-prone Internet application for registration that often crashed completely – violated both the U.S. Constitution and California Constitution’s guarantees of due process. They also allege that the failed DOJ system violated the plaintiffs’ and other similar gun owners’ statutory rights.
“Even though the lawsuit is now in a federal district court, it’s still just a straight-forward case about how Attorney General Becerra and his DOJ didn’t do the job they were mandated to do,” explained Firearms Policy Coalition President Brandon Combs. “Their actions and failures violated the rights of thousands of California gun owners. It’s just that simple.”
Under California’s voluminous gun control laws, someone merely transporting an unregistered “assault weapon” to the shooting range – even if one believes it was legal and registered under other DOJ systems, like DROS – “is guilty of a felony” and potentially subject to a prison sentence of “four, six, or eight years.” Other crimes can be added on to that, including common separate charges like possession and manufacturing.
The complaint says the plaintiffs “seek an un-extraordinary result, compelled by the basic tenets of due process: That they simply be allowed to register their eligible firearms and comply with the law, and that the Attorney General, the DOJ, and their officers and agents similarly comply with the law by allowing such registrations and ensuring they are properly and timely processed through a functioning online database as they have been required by statute to do.”
“This unjust California government-created problem must be stopped immediately,” Second Amendment Foundation Founder and Executive Vice President, Alan Gottlieb, said in a previous statement. “Gun owners should not be put at risk due to state regulatory incompetence.”
The plaintiffs said that they would soon be asking Judge England for a preliminary injunction to protect affected gun owners’ rights and property while the case goes forward to summary judgement or trial.
The plaintiffs are represented by attorneys George M. Lee and Douglas Applegate of San Francisco-based Seiler Epstein Ziegler & Applegate LLP, as well as Raymond M. DiGuiseppe, a former California deputy attorney general and prosecutor. Attorneys Bradley Benbrook and Stephen Duvernay of the Sacramento-based Benbrook Law Group, who earlier this month secured a major First Amendment victory in a case that challenged a different California gun control statute that banned truthful, non-misleading speech about handguns, have been added to the legal team.
The lawsuit is backed by The Calguns Foundation (CGF), Second Amendment Foundation (SAF), Firearms Policy Coalition (FPC), Firearms Policy Foundation (FPF), and Madison Society Foundation (MSF), also institutional plaintiffs in the case.
Californians who tried to register their firearms as “assault weapons” before July 1 but were unable to, or who suffered a privacy breach at DOJ, should contact the organizations’ Legal Action Hotline immediately at https://www.firearmspolicy.org/hotline or by telephone at 855-252-4510.
The 33rd Gun Rights Policy Conference in Chicago ended yesterday. I was honored to be on the panel speaking on Using New Media to Advance Gun Rights. I was joined on the panel by Don Irvine of Accuracy in Media, Paul Lathrop of the Polite Society Podcast, and Charlie Cook of Riding Shotgun With Charlie (on YouTube). This was my fourth time to be on the panel and I'm still surprised to be asked each year.
Below is my speech. This year I recognized that we are under attack like never before and need to up our game. I also recognized the diversity of those supporting our civil right to keep and bear arms. I don't care who you sleep with or the color of your skin or even your political beliefs so long as you unreservedly support the right to self-defense and the right to keep and bear arms.
I’m John Richardson.
I blog at No Lawyers – Only Guns and Money and am also a co-host of the Polite Society Podcast.
If anything this year and indeed this past week have shown, it is that we are in a culture war. Everything we hold dear is under attack by an unholy alliance of the well-financed gun ban lobby, tech oligarchs, and the mass media. They have the money, they control the air waves, and are increasingly controlling and censoring our social media. Moreover, they have gotten smarter, savvier, and are actually, unfortunately, gaining a grass roots.
Nothing but our personal destruction will satisfy them. One need only to look at what they are trying to do to Judge Kavanaugh or to the vile, personal, and vicious attacks by former Parkland student David Hogg on those who would oppose his gun control agenda to understand this. In my past talks on using new media to advance gun rights I took a kinder, gentler approach.
No more.
We are all warriors in this culture war or we wouldn’t be in this room this morning.
I look out across this room and I don’t see men or women, young or old, gay or straight, liberal or conservative, white, black, Hispanic, or Asian. I see the Special Forces of the gun rights movement – people who believe in freedom, the right to armed self-defense, and the right to keep and bear arms – and who have the will to fight for it.
We have to be like the Green Beret A Teams sent behind enemy lines to create insurgencies to sap the strength and will of those who would curtail our constitutional rights.
Let me give you an example. When a Federal court in Washington State ignored the First Amendment implications of suppressing computer code and issued a temporary restraining order preventing Defense Distributed and the Second Amendment Foundation from putting it online, a group of civil rights groups including the Calguns Foundation and the Firearms Policy Coalition who were not covered by the order set up a website and put the information online themselves. They knew you couldn’t stop the signal.
I and hundreds of thousands others downloaded it. However, we didn’t stop there. We put the links up on Facebook, Twitter, and elsewhere. When the oligarchs running Facebook and Twitter tried to suppress the links, we went around them and put up pictures of the links or used barcodes. CodeIsFreeSpeech.com is still up and running and it infuriates the anti-gun, anti-civil rights elites.
That is just one example.
Virtually everyone in this room right now has on their person a very effective weapon. I’m not talking about those who the state of Illinois allows to carry concealed but rather all the iPhones and Android cell phones. They allow you to take both pictures and video as well as being connected to the Internet.
What kind of pictures or videos?
Well, my favorite ones are of anti-gun politicians and gun control celebs like Mike Bloomberg, Shannon Watts, and David Hogg surrounded by their armed security guards. They don’t want you to be able to protect your family and yourself. However, they insist on their own armed protection. You know there is a word for people like that – hypocrites.
If you do get those kinds of pictures, post them on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and every other place you can think of. If you see them posted by someone else, share or retweet them. Make it go viral!
Likewise, if you are going out shopping or taking friends out for dinner and you come across a store or restaurant that is posted against carry, take a picture. Post it to social media. Ask why these establishments want to keep you defenseless and put you at the mercy of those who would harm you or your family. As Massad Ayoob has said many times, gun free zones are nothing but hunting preserves for psychopaths.
Go to events sponsored by the gun control lobby. If they are having a town hall, record it on your phone. Take pictures of the Demanding Moms or the student marchers. Compare the numbers reported in the media with what you see with your own eyes and call them out on inflated numbers. I remember my late friend Bob Owens of BearingArms.com going to an anti-NRA rally held by Shannon Watts in Nashville. He took pictures from all angles and then compared them to their “official” picture. He exposed their lies and showed how they rigged the photo to make it seem like there were a lot more people there than there actually were.
My final thought on using New Media to advance and protect our rights and our culture. We have all the tools we need. We just have to have the will to use them and use them effectively.
This is part three of my ten part series on the party platforms of the various Democrat state parties with regard to firearms, gun control, and the Second Amendment. I am publishing these in five state increments. This will probably be the last for this week as I leave in the morning for the Gun Rights Policy Conference as well as AMM-Con.
Hawaii
For a state with very strict gun control laws, the Democrat Party of Hawaii has very little to say about firearms or gun control. And that may be reason as there is little more that they can do without getting even the 9th Circuit to say no. They already require both permits to purchase and the registration of all firearms.
3. MAKE OUR COMMUNITIES SAFER NOW – in schools and on the streets and in our homes (including
advancing gun control measures such as ban on assault weapons and full background checks for all; make
elimination of police corruption a priority; advance restorative justice programs for offenders and oppose
privatization of prisons and provide an effective means of assisting victims of domestic violence).
Idaho
The Democratic Party of Idaho is one of the first states that I've researched so far that isn't calling for a ban on "assault weapons" (sic) or magazine restrictions. They do call for universal background checks. Nonetheless, it is good to see a state that seems to be generally out of step with the gun control lobby.
14. WE SUPPORT THE FULL TEXT OF THE SECOND AMENDMENT: “A WELL REGULATED MILITIA, BEING NECESSARY TO THE SECURITY OF A FREE STATE, THE RIGHT OF THE PEOPLE TO KEEP AND BEAR ARMS, SHALL NOT BE INFRINGED.”
● We demand universal criminal background checks.
● We demand laws that keep guns out of the hands of convicted domestic abusers.
● We support the rights of hunters and sportspersons in Idaho.
● We support scientific research on gun violence.
Illinois
According to Ballotpedia, the Illinois Democratic Party follows and adopts the national Democrats' platform. The DPI's website has no platform on it. That said, it is well known that Democrats in Illinois and especially in Chicagoland tend to be very anti-gun. There have been exceptions with Downstate Democrats but even that is changing a bit. Here is what the national platform has to say on "gun violence" (sic).
With 33,000 Americans dying every year, Democrats believe that we must finally take sensible action to address gun violence. While responsible gun ownership is part of the fabric of many communities, too many families in America have suffered from gun violence. We can respect the rights of responsible gun owners while keeping our communities safe. To build on the success of the lifesaving Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act, we will expand and strengthen background checks and close dangerous loopholes in our current laws; repeal the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act (PLCAA) to revoke the dangerous legal immunity protections gun makers and sellers now enjoy; and keep weapons of war—such as assault weapons and large capacity ammunition magazines (LCAM's)—off our streets. We will fight back against attempts to make it harder for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives to revoke federal licenses from law breaking gun dealers, and ensure guns do not fall into the hands of terrorists, intimate partner abusers, other violent criminals, and those with severe mental health issues. There is insufficient research on effective gun prevention policies, which is why the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention must have the resources it needs to study gun violence as a public health issue.
I did learn a new acronym reading this - LCAM - which stands for large capacity ammunition magazines. That's what you and I would call standard capacity.
Indiana
The Hoosier Democrats take a less restrictive approach to gun control than do their neighbors to the west in Illinois. They make no mention of magazines, "assault weapons" (sic), or even the favorite buzzword of gun banners, commonsense. They do call for universal background checks and closing the non-existent "gun show loophole" among other things.
Close the gun show and terrorist watch-list loophole and ensure every transaction involving the sale
of a firearm includes a comprehensive background check. Strengthen child access prevention laws to
ensure the safe storage of firearms.
Iowa
Iowa Democrats have adopted a whole laundry list of gun control items including a return to may-issue concealed carry, mandatory training, and a ban on open carry along with the usual things. They also want the Dickey Amendment which restricts the CDC from using funds to advocate for gun control repealed. Iowa Democrats also want to ban the private transfer of post-1968 firearms that that don't have serial numbers. I'm not sure where that came from but I think it is aimed at 3-D printed guns and the like. They also oppose national concealed carry reciprocity (NCCR).
Gun Safety
We support:
340. guardian accountability for minor negligent-gun-access
341. public/private property gun-free zones
342. updated version of the Assault Weapons Ban of 1994, restricting:
a. silencers/suppressors
b. bump-stocks
c. high-capacity-magazines
d. fragmentary-rounds
This is a continuation of my series of posts pointing out the political platforms of the individual state Democrat parties on firearms, gun control, and the Second Amendment. Remember, this is the official position of the Democratic Party in each state and you can expect Democrats to work to enact laws along these lines.
Firearms and Gun Safety
We agree with individual ownership of firearms for hunting and personal safety, but also believe that firearms should be
regulated as follows:
1. Ban assault weapons, bump stocks, and high capacity magazines.
2. Enact universal background checks federally.
3. Enact restrictions: Must be 21 and must demonstrate competency with firearms to purchase a firearm.
4. Prohibit the possession and purchase of firearms by people with violent criminal offenses or on terrorist watch list.
5. Except for security personnel, ban firearms on K-12 schools, college campuses and allow cultural institutions to ban
firearms on their premises.
6. Enact Extreme Risk Protection Order law, which would allow families and law enforcement to seek a court order to
temporarily disarm a person who is dangerous to themselves or others.
7. Enact criminal penalties when adults fail to properly store firearms and minors gain access and harm themselves or
others.
8. Restrict firearms use in National Forest to designated areas, except during hunting season.
9. Allow the CDC and other government agencies to conduct gun violence research, and properly fund.
With regard to making schools gun-free zones, the Colorado Democrats say:
We oppose guns in school, more guns would make our schools less safe and but all (sic) students and staff at increased
risk of becoming a victim of gun violence.
Finally, with regard to public lands and wildlife, it says, "We support the restriction of shooting in National Forests and Parks."
Connecticut
As you might expect, Connecticut Democrats support gun control and make great claims for it. They don't go into great detail so they must assume all the post-Newtown restrictions have been accepted.
Guns
Connecticut Democrats are proud to stand behind common sense gun violence prevention measures. As a result, Connecticut has one of the lowest gun death rates in the country.
Gun violence in our urban centers needs to be addressed. This can be supported through incentivized proactive measures such as buybacks, and reinforcing “no questions asked” protections where appropriate in order to get guns off the streets.
Connecticut can do more. There is progress to be made in the areas of Domestic Violence and Extreme Risk protections as these scenarios are a source of mass shooting violence and gun suicide.
Delaware
The Delaware Democrats' platform adopts the usual buzzwords such as "common sense" and "weapons of war" without going into too much detail.
Preventing Gun Violence: Gun violence is taking far too many lives in Delaware.
Delaware Democrats support common sense gun safety measures while
respecting responsible gun ownership. We will build on successful efforts at the
state level and proposed efforts at the federal level to get weapons of war away
from criminals and off our streets, while preserving the Second Amendment rights
of law-abiding gun owners.
Florida
The Florida Democrats have a list of their "values" on their website instead of a platform. In addition to a statement on guns, they also have a separate "gun violence prevention" fact (sic) sheet.
Preventing Gun Violence
"Proud NRA sellout" Adam Putnam and his Republican party would rather give guns to people who shouldn't have them than enact comprehensive gun control policies. The Republican Party's dependence on the NRA for money is why they refuse to enact policies that a majority of Floridians support. Unlike Republicans, Democrats support banning assault weapons and high-capacity magazines, universal background checks, closing the gun show loophole, and a 3-day waiting period for gun sales. Democrats realize that this isn't about taking away the rights of responsible, law abiding gun-owners. This is about making our state safer so that there isn't another shooting in Parkland, Pulse, or anywhere else in Florida. Florida has endured 4 mass shootings in 18 months because of Republicans' refusal to implement common sense gun reform. Let's make sure there isn't a 5th.
Georgia
Georgia Democrats don't seem to have adopted a party platform since 2011. It is probably for this reason that their platform makes no reference to firearms or "gun violence" (sic). The only real item I could find is a 2013 press release supporting then President Obama's efforts at gun control post-Newtown including magazines bans and assault weapon (sic) bans.
I will have to assume that they will support the gun control platform of Stacey Abrams who is their nominee for governor.
As Governor, Stacey will:
Fight for common-sense gun reforms including universal background checks, repeal of campus carry, and extreme-risk protection orders
Support protections and services for victims of domestic violence
Invest in mental health services
Support community and hospital programs to stop the cycle of gun violence
Stacey’s Record:
Opposed legislation which required that guns confiscated in crimes be returned to the street
Opposed campus carry
Received only Ds and Fs from the National Rifle Association
Endorsed by Moms Demand Action and Giffords: Courage to Fight Gun Violence
The Second Amendment Foundation and the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms have released the tentative agenda for the 2018 Gun Rights Policy Conference. The conference is being held starting this Friday evening in Chicago at the Hyatt Regency - O'Hare Airport. While pre-registration is now closed you can register at the door.
There will be plenty of gun rights leaders from around the country with whom you can mix and mingle. There will also be these guys.
11:15 a.m. Using New Media to Advance Gun Rights
Charlie Cook, YouTube host, Riding Shotgun with Charlie
Don Irvine, chair, Accuracy in Media
Paul Lathrop, Polite Society Podcast
John Richardson, blogger, Only Guns and Money Blog
If you can't make it, the Polite Society Podcast will again be livestreaming the entire conference. That can be found on the Second Amendment Foundation's Facebook page and will be broadcast in 2 hour segments.
Sen. Chuck Grassley, Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, released a statement today regarding Dr. Christine Blasey Ford and her allegations of an attack by Judge Brett Kavanaugh while they were teenagers. The statement below does a good job at being respectful to Ford, calling out Dianne Feinstein and the Democrats, and nailing those in the media who leaked Ford's name. Grassley has always championed whistle blowers and he brings that credibility to this statement.
WASHINGTON – Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley issued the following statement regarding the nomination of Judge Brett M. Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court.
“Anyone who comes forward as Dr. Ford has deserves to be heard, so I will continue working on a way to hear her out in an appropriate, precedented and respectful manner.
“The standard procedure for updates to any nominee’s background investigation file is to conduct separate follow-up calls with relevant parties. In this case, that would entail phone calls with at least Judge Kavanaugh and Dr. Ford. Consistent with that practice, I asked Senator Feinstein’s office yesterday to join me in scheduling these follow-ups. Thus far, they have refused. But as a necessary step in evaluating these claims, I’ll continue working to set them up.
“Unfortunately, committee Republicans have only known this person's identity from news reports for less than 24 hours and known about her allegations for less than a week. Senator Feinstein, on the other hand, has had this information for many weeks and deprived her colleagues of the information necessary to do our jobs. The Minority withheld even the anonymous allegations for six weeks, only to later decide that they were serious enough to investigate on the eve of the committee vote, after the vetting process had been completed.
“It’s deeply disturbing that the existence of these allegations were leaked in a way that seemed to preclude Dr. Ford’s confidentiality.
“Over my nearly four decades in the Senate I have worked diligently to protect whistleblowers and get to the bottom of any issue. Dr. Ford’s attorney could have approached my office, while keeping her client confidential and anonymous, so that these allegations could be thoroughly investigated. Nevertheless, we are working diligently to get to the bottom of these claims.”
UPDATE: A special meeting is scheduled for Monday and both Ford and Kavanaugh will appear.
Judiciary Committee to Hear from Kavanaugh, Ford in Public Hearing WASHINGTON – Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) today announced that the Committee will hold a public hearing with Supreme Court nominee Judge Brett Kavanaugh and Dr. Christine Blasey Ford. “As I said earlier, anyone who comes forward as Dr. Ford has done deserves to be heard. My staff has reached out to Dr. Ford to hear her account, and they held a follow-up call with Judge Kavanaugh this afternoon. Unfortunately, committee Democrats have refused to join us in this effort. However, to provide ample transparency, we will hold a public hearing Monday to give these recent allegations a full airing,” Grassley said. Below is the official notice for Monday’s hearing. NOTICE OF COMMITTEE HEARING CONTINUATION The Senate Committee on the Judiciary hearing on the nomination of the Honorable Brett M. Kavanaugh to be an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States will continue Monday, September 24, 2018 at 10:00 a.m. in Room 216 of the Hart Senate Office Building.
By order of the Chairman.
Ian McCollum of Forgotten Weapons has a fine review of David Royal's A Collector's Guide to the Savage 99 Rifle. I know some people think that Winchester or even Marlin lever actions are the be all and end all of lever guns but my heart belongs to the Savage of which I have two. Both of mine are in .300 Savage.
My earlier post explains that I was intrigued to see what the individual state Democrat parties would have to say about the Second Amendment, gun control, and an individual's right to self-defense. I want to get this information out to my readers so that when it comes to midterm elections, they will know exactly where the Democrats officially stand on these issues.
Alabama
The Alabama Democratic Party doesn't as much have a platform as a list of guiding principles. These principles talks about things like progressive taxes, collective bargaining, public education, and the like. The closest it comes to talking about the Second Amendment is this bit on the law and crime:
That the government is of laws and not of men. We condemn any resolution of men's conflicts save through the legal processes. The Democratic Party stands for law and order and for a total and increasing war against crime, for the strengthening of our law enforcement agencies, and for justice under the law.
As I read it, they are for the rule of law and pro-law enforcement with nothing said about gun control.
Alaska
You might think that Democrats in the 49th State might be more like those in Alabama and less like the national Democrats. You would be wrong as their 2018 Party Platform makes abundantly clear.
Firearms. We support the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution which guarantees the
right of the people to keep and bear arms. We support responsible gun ownership, and policies
and programs to reduce gun violence and accidental gun deaths. This policy should include
completed background checks for all gun sales, and education on hunting and weapons safety.
We support a rational and safe policy for gun free zones. We support legislative action that
would ban the sale to the general public of military assault-style weapons. We support
legislation that requires the CDC to collect data on gun related injuries and fatalities. We also
support government funded research into gun safety.
Alaska Democrats also think people that are serving time in prison should be allowed to vote. I'm shaking my head over that one except to think they must think prisoners will tend to vote for Democrats.
Arizona
It is not surprising that the Arizona Democrat Party endorses gun control in their latest (2015-2016) party platform. It is after all the party of Gabby Giffords and the influence of her organization is shown in what the platform says about firearms.
Firearms
Arizona Democrats believe in effective enforcement of existing laws, strengthening background
check systems, and working together to enact commonsense gun safety improvements. Arizona
Democrats support gun control legislation that includes registration/background checks for every
person who purchases a firearm in any venue. We support a ban on assault weapons and denial of
gun purchases to those with a history of mental illness, domestic violence, or criminal acts.
As an aside, their featured speaker at the Hall of Fame Dinner will be Sen. Kamala Harris (D-CA) which tells me everything I need to know.
Arkansas
The platform of the Democratic Party of Arkansas makes no mention of firearms, the Second Amendment, background checks, or anything else firearm related. I find that refreshing and I even agree with them that the "War of Drugs" has been a failure.
California
It should surprise no one that the proposed platform for the California Democrat Party has a bulleted (no pun intended) list of gun control items. They include this under their "National Security" section of the platform which is less about national security than about diminishing the military.
Support a common-sense ban on deadly assault weapons and devices used to turn rifles into automatic weapons such as bump-stocks;
Support the expansion of universal background checks;
Support keeping firearms out of dangerous hands by expanding firearm prohibitions to those who, based on past behavior or condition, are deemed at risk of acts of violence; and promote policies and programs to limit access to firearms by children, suicidal persons, and those in crisis;
Work to deter gun trafficking, “straw purchasing,” and illegal guns by identifying, reforming, or shutting down "bad apple" gun dealers in California;
Support California’s strong gun laws by providing the necessary resources and funding for implementation, training, and enforcement of those laws, including the Armed Prohibited Persons System Program, the Gun Violence Restraining Order, the tracing of all crime guns, and the investigation of all denied firearm purchasers;
Protect California’s strong gun laws from court challenges and federal intrusion, including defeating forced concealed carry reciprocity and any removal of silencers from current regulations;
I found it amusing that they spoke of the "fundamental human right of free speech" in their communications section while promoting the enforcement of the state's gun laws that actually suppressed speech. That suppression of speech involving gun shop advertising of handguns was found unconstitutional earlier this month in the case of Tracy Rifle and Pistol v. Becerra.
I will publish the next five states, Colorado through Georgia, tomorrow.
After reading the 2018 Colorado Democrat Party Platform with regard to Second Amendment rights, I was intrigued about what was in the platforms of other states. What I have found so far isn't encouraging in terms of respect for the Second Amendment and for an individual's right to provide his or her own self-defense.
I will be posting from the platforms of the various state Democrat parties over the next few days. There are some states that only have old platforms, others that have none, and others that just say they've adopted the national platform. With midterm elections coming in less than two months, it will be interesting to see just how widely the state parties have been co-opted by the gun control lobby.
I saw this infographic posted on Twitter by Rep. Richard Hudson (R-NC) and think it is a timely reminder given the flooding that Hurricane (now TS) Florence is bringing with it.
The other thing I would have added to this is to heed flood warnings and evacuation notices.
Ari Fleischer, former press secretary for Pres. George W. Bush, has come up with a new word for the political lexicon. It is Feinsteined. This is when an anonymous letter from an anonymous source with an unknown allegation is supposedly sent to the FBI in an effort to derail the nomination of a judicial candidate. In this case, the nominee is Judge Brett Kavanaugh and the allegations may or may not be something non-sexual he did at a party with a girl when he and she were 17 years old.
First came getting “Borked.” Now there is getting “Feinsteined.” A secret source. An unknown allegation (from high school) and an FBI referral. This isn’t advice and consent. It’s attack and burn. https://t.co/YKWlox1klo
In the interest of full disclosure, I may or may not have gotten drunk at a New Year's Eve party when I was 17 and may or may not have kissed a girl at the stroke of midnight who was another guy's girlfriend and may or may not have gotten in trouble with my mom for coming home drunk from a party.
With Hurricane Florence slated to come ashore in North Carolina today, the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission has announced the following closures to ranges and game lands ahead of the storm. I might add that the US Forest Service has closed all campgrounds and recreation areas in both the Pisgah and Nantahala National Forests here in western North Carolina.
CLOSINGS
Education Centers:
John E. Pechmann Fishing Education Center in Fayetteville - Closed Friday, Sept. 14, 2018
Outer Banks Center for Wildlife Education in Corolla - Closed Tuesday, Sept. 11 through Sunday, Sept. 16, 2018 (due to mandatory evacuation)
Pisgah Center for Wildlife Education in Pisgah Forest - Closed Friday, Sept. 14 and Saturday Sept. 15, 2018, due to closure of Pisgah National Forest-USDA Forest Service
Shooting Ranges:
Flintlock Shooting Range in Montgomery County - Closed Saturday, Sept. 15, 2018
John Lentz Hunter Education Complex in Richmond County - Closed Friday, Sept. 14 and Saturday, Sept. 15, 2018. Shotgun field closed Wednesday, Sept. 12, 2018 at 12 p.m., through Saturday, Sept. 15, 2018
R. Wayne Bailey-Caswell Shooting Range in Caswell County - Closed Friday, Sept. 14 and Saturday, Sept. 15, 2018. Open Sunday - pending storm damage
Game Lands (listed alphabetically):
In anticipation of Hurricane Florence, gates are closed to vehicular access on the following game lands or game land tracts, effective Sept. 11, 2018, until further notice. These roads will remain closed until they have each been evaluated and deemed to be safe and suitable for public use.
Alligator River Game Land in Tyrrell County
Angola Bay Game Land in Duplin and Pender counties
Buckridge Game Land, in Tyrrell County
Chowan Swamp Game Land in Bertie, Hertford and Gates counties, on the following tracts: Wiccacon; Mapleton; and selected roads on Sand Banks
Columbus County Game Land in Brunswick and Columbus counties on the following tracts: Pireway; Old Dock
Goose Creek Game Land in Beaufort and Pamlico counties on the following tracts: Parker Farm, Tract 4
Gull Rock Game Land in Hyde and Tyrrell counties
Holly Shelter Game Land in Pender County
Juniper Creek Game Land in Brunswick and Columbus counties
Lower Roanoke River Game Land in Bertie and Martin counties, on the following tracts: Conaho; Whitley (Minges Impoundment)
Neuse River Game Land Craven County
North River Game Land in Camden and Currituck counties
Stones Creek Game Land in Onslow County
Van Swamp Game Land in Beaufort and Washington counties
Whitehall Plantation Game Land in Bladen County
CANCELLATIONS:
FFA Camp at White Lake has been cancelled.
Deer Processing Seminar, scheduled for Thursday, Sept. 13, 2018 in Raleigh, has been cancelled.
POSTPONEMENTS:
Back in the Woods Again 8th Anniversary Hunt for the Physically Challenged, scheduled for Sept. 14-15, 2018, has been postponed. A new date will be announced.
It is hard to believe it has been 17 years since the attacks of September 11th. As others have noted, it is was one of those "where were you?" type of days just like JFK's assassination and the Challenger explosion.
The things I remember:
Watching the second plane hit the South Tower just after 9am on a small TV at Swain County Hospital in Bryson City, North Carolina. I had gone to the hospital on business and learned about the attack soon after I arrived.
Learning that one of my friends in Human Resources lost her older brother who was working on the 102nd Floor of 2 WTC and the outpouring of support she got from the Eastern Band of the Cherokee Indians. While she might have been an Italian-American from NY, her husband's family was Cherokee and thus the tribe felt a connection to 9-11.
23 alumni from one high school - Monsignor Farrell HS in Staten Island - were killed that day. Two of my cousins had graduated from there and had graduated with some of those killed.
Feeling relief that my second cousin Kevin McEntyre was off-duty from his job with the Fire Dept of NY and had already gone home by the time of the attack. However, in the days that followed he was there helping with the cleanup and rescue efforts. He took a medical retirement a few years ago due to all the toxic dust he inhaled over those days and months.
That the United States was united in our resolve to fight back against those who attacked us.
These are indelible memories for me just like when Kennedy was assassinated which I remember as a first grader in Asheboro, NC.
Just when you thought California had more than enough gun control laws, the California legislature sends nine more to Gov. Jerry Brown (D-CA) for signature. With some sort of luck, he may - and I emphasize "may" - veto some of these laws. He has done that in the past.
Gun law attorney Adam Kraut discusses a number of these laws in this video from The Gun Collective. He also has some great alternative names to the official ones for these laws.
If you would like to know even more about these bill and would like to let Gov. Brown know your opinion on them, the Firearms Policy Coalition gives you that info in this release that went out on Friday.
FPC Seeks Veto of 9 Gun Bills from California Gov. Jerry Brown,
Asks for Approval of Public Records Act Bill
SACRAMENTO, CA (September 7, 2018) — Today, Firearms Policy Coalition asked California Governor Jerry Brown to veto nine “dangerous” gun bills that would “radically change” the state’s already-voluminous and complex laws. The advocacy organization also requested that Gov. Brown sign one bill that would help prevent state and local agencies from abusing the Public Records Act attorney fee provisions to chill the public’s right to access government files.
Historically, Brown signs most bills sent to him by the Legislature. But, FPC said, he does sometimes veto bills that don’t make sense to him and has rejected gun bills in the past. FPC’s legislative advocate and spokesperson, Craig DeLuz, thinks that Brown has plenty of reasons to reject the nine gun bills they oppose. “Some of these pieces of legislation are just headline-grabbing garbage because it’s an election year,” he said. “And Brown has vetoed some of these bills before, for good reasons. He may just put the brakes on expanding California gun laws in the last year of his last term to leave these decisions to the next governor.”
SB 1177, “just a few months ago an Education Code bill – would make it a crime to apply for the otherwise lawful purchase of a constitutionally protected firearm more than once a month. This bill is a case study of what happens when opportunistic legislators don’t have any real rules (or ethics),” FPC said in a letter. “The sky is blue, the sun sets in the west, and SB 1177 is yet another ego and animus-driven bill to put Senator Portanino’s name in bold print on yet another bill to attack the right to keep and bear arms.”
Another letter points out that San Francisco state senator Wiener’s SB 221 puts people and rights he doesn’t like in the crosshairs of the state. The bill, that would ban gun shows at the Cow Palace in Daly City if signed, was a health-related bill until it was “gutted and amended” just a few months ago. “In SB 221 the Legislature has targeted for especially unfavorable treatment those who would have the audacity to peacefully exercise their fundamental, individual rights protected under the First, Second, and Fourteenth Amendments,” FPC argued.
FPC-opposed bills that were passed by the Legislature include AB 1903, AB 1968, AB 2103, AB 2888, AB 3129, SB 221, SB 1100, SB 1177, and SB 1346. FPC supports SB 1244, a Public Records Act bill, by Bay Area Senator Bob Wieckowski.
Gun owners are encouraged to send Governor Brown a message voicing their opinion using FPC’s free Grassroots Take Action Tools at http://bit.ly/2018-ca-gov-brown .
OMG! A Parkland kid will be at the Gun Rights Policy Conference. What the heck?
Relax, it is one of the good ones - not "Camera" Hogg or Emma Gonzalez. The SAF just released that Kyle Kashuv will be one of the featured speakers at the Gun Rights Policy Conference. He has been a stalwart supporter of the Second Amendment and, if he keeps up his grades, will be the valedictorian of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas HS Class of 2019.
The Gun Rights Policy Conference will be held September 21st through 23rd at the Hyatt Regency O'Hare Airport in Chicago. Attendance is free but pre-registration is requested. There will be a whole host of other speakers including the SAF's 2017 Ray Carter Blogger of the Year (i.e., me).
33rd ANNUAL GUN RIGHTS POLICY CONFERENCE IN CHICAGO
BELLEVUE, WA – Teen Second Amendment activist Kyle Kashuv, a student survivor of the tragic shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, will be a featured speaker at the 33rd annual Gun Rights Policy Conference, which will be held Sept. 21-23 in Chicago. The conference will be held at The Hyatt Regency O’Hare, 9300 Bryn Mawr Avenue, Rosemont, IL 60018. It is co-sponsored by the Second Amendment Foundation (SAF) and Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms (CCRKBA). Hundreds of Second Amendment activists and experts are expected to attend. Kashuv is scheduled to be a keynoter during the annual Saturday awards luncheon. Also scheduled are SAF founder and CCRKBA Chairman Alan Gottlieb, plus Tom Gresham host of the nationally syndicated Gun Talk radio show and Mark Walters, host of the national radio show Armed American Radio, baseball pitching great Curt Schilling, as well as a cadre of Second Amendment attorneys will be discussing current noteworthy court cases. In addition, the Kavanaugh nomination to the Supreme Court will be a hot agenda item. In addition, SAF and CCRKBA leaders will be joined by representatives from Gun Owners of America, the National Rifle Association, Doctors for Responsible Gun Ownership and Jews for the Preservation of Firearms Ownership, who will also be speaking. The 2018 GRPC will feature some 70 speakers on subjects ranging from the midterm elections to personal protection. The weekend event typically attracts more than 800 gun owners, activists and experts from across the country. Attendance is free, and on-line registration is available at www.saf.org. WHO: National gun rights leaders WHAT: Speaking at the 33rd annual Gun Rights Policy Conference WHEN: Saturday, Sept. 22 & Sunday, Sept. 23 WHERE: Hyatt Regency O’Hare, 9300 Bryn Mawr Avenue, Rosemont, IL 60018
The Polite Society Podcast will be live streaming GRPC again this year. I'll have more details on that later.
Karl Kasarda, who along with Ian McCollum, produces InRange TV had an "interesting" experience with the Travel Security Administration on a recent trip. He had been selected for special security screening on a trip home from Scandanavia. He was screened twice - once in Stockholm and once in Chicago. You can guess in which screening he was treated with respect and courtesy. I'll let him finish the story.
I think I've made my feelings about TSA known over the years so I'll just leave it at that.
