Top News Stories Concerning Your Gun Rights
March 22, 2013
Stage set for Senate gun control debate
Senate Democrats said Thursday they will take up gun control immediately after a two week Easter vacation, and said the bill they'll bring to the chamber floor will include universal background checks for all firearms sales and a crackdown on gun trafficking and straw purchases.
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March 22, 2013
Reid to bring gun bill to floor that would criminalize private transfers
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) will bring gun control legislation to the floor that includes a controversial expansion of background checks for private firearm sales. Reid said he would on Thursday evening begin the process of bringing legislation to the floor for consideration in April.
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March 22, 2013
New York: NRA group files suit against state gun law
In a case that backers vow to take all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, a major gun rights group filed suit Thursday in federal court in Buffalo seeking to toss out the state's new gun control law on a variety of constitutional grounds.The lawsuit by the New York State Rifle and Pistol Association, the state affiliate of the National Rifle Association, attacks the NY SAFE Act on several legal fronts, including claims that it violates interstate commerce protections and the Second Amendment's right to bear arms.
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March 22, 2013
New York: The shot heard 'round the state
Amid all the pious wailing we're reading in other papers about Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid's decision to take a pass on assault weapons, Albany has given us a homegrown reminder what happens when politicians rush to exploit a tragedy.So desperate was Gov. Cuomo to beat President Obama to the punch on gun control in the immediate aftermath of the Newtown massacre, the gun law that was passed made magazines with more than seven rounds of ammunition illegal.One problem: No one seems to make seven round magazines.
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March 22, 2013
Maryland gun law gets court's backing
A federal appeals court on Thursday upheld a key provision of Maryland's gun control laws, maintaining the state's tough restrictions on carrying handguns in public places.
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March 22, 2013
New Colorado gun control laws create dealer questions, store lines
Some gun dealers were greeted with a line of customers waiting to get into their business Thursday morning, the day after three new pieces of gun control legislation were signed into Colorado law. "We had a line of more than 20 waiting; not that we have much left to sell them," said Richard Taylor, manager of Firing Line in Aurora.
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March 22, 2013
Minnesota: House vote on background checks at gun shows
A Minnesota House panel on Thursday approved background checks for firearm sales at gun shows, but the measure may not have enough to support at the Capitol to become law.
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March 22, 2013
Wisconsin: Lawmakers propose criminalizing private transfers
Assembly Majority Leader Scott Suder, R Abbotsford, said the proposal would deny gun owners' constitutional rights. He called it a political stunt and unnecessary. Tom Evenson, a spokesman for Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald, R Juneau, said the legislation won't go anywhere while federal action is pending.
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March 21, 2013
Vulnerable senators face lose-lose scenario on "assault weapon" vote
The Senate’s upcoming vote on the assault weapons ban is going to put vulnerable Democrats in a difficult spot.
Democrats facing tough reelection races will either attract the ire of the National Rifle Association or prominent gun control activists such as New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg (I). A vote against the ban could spark primary challenges that could weaken Democrats in the general election.
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March 21, 2013
New York offers $500 reward for reporting "illegal" gun owners
“This initiative seeks to turn neighbor against neighbor and use their own tax dollars to pay for the $500 reward,” Republican Assemblyman Steve McLaughlin told the station.Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2013/03/21/new-york-state-offers-500-reward-for-reporting-illegal-gun-owners/?test=latestnews&fb_source=message#ixzz2OD7FeXUl
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March 21, 2013
Biden not giving up on semi-auto ban
The White House is still pushing for an assault weapons ban, Vice President Joe Biden said Wednesday, even though Senate Democrats all but sealed its fate by dropping it from the gun control package they plan to consider next month.
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March 21, 2013
Education secretary Duncan to speak about gun control
Education Secretary Arne Duncan will visit a Baltimore County high school next month to discuss gun control.
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March 21, 2013
Michael Bloomberg gave $2 million to his anti-guns group
Mayor Michael Bloomberg remains the sole donor to his super PAC, Independence USA, pitching in $2 million more to the group in February, new reports show.
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March 21, 2013
Gun control by the U.N.: The White House attempts an end run around the House
Bureaucrats from 150 nations are ramping up efforts to impose gun control through international pact. Here in the United States, the United Nations Arms Trade Treaty has become the vehicle to drive an agenda that is deeply controversial because once a treaty is ratified by the Senate, it becomes the supreme law of the land.
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March 21, 2013
More Colorado sheriffs balk at gun control measures
Routt County Sheriff Garrett Wiggins and Moffat County Sheriff Tim Jantz say they will join Weld County Sheriff John Cooke and not enforce gun control measures signed into law by Gov. John Hickenlooper on Wednesday.Wiggins and Jantz maintain the legislation passed by Colorado's House and Senate won't keep guns out of the hands of criminals and instead will punish law abiding citizens.
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March 21, 2013
Magpul Industries says move out of Colorado "underway," others will follow
Ammunition magazine manufacturer Magpul Industries said it plans to begin leaving Colorado "almost immediately," and other firms may follow suit in the wake of a new law that limits ammunition magazine capacities.
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March 21, 2013
Minnesota: House drops bill criminalizing all private transfers, keeps gun show restrictions
The farthest reaching gun control bill in the Minnesota House, which would have expanded background checks to nearly all firearm sales, has been greatly diminished, instead expanding checks to include all purchases at gun shows but not including other private gun sales or transfers.
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March 21, 2013
South Carolina: Senate panel OKs bill broadening carry options
A Senate subcommittee passed a bill to thunderous applause Wednesday that would allow people to carry guns in public in South Carolina without a concealed weapons permit.The vote was taken after a public hearing packed with gun supporters, who listened politely and cheered anyone who spoke about protecting the Second Amendment or pointed out criminals weren't likely to follow any gun laws.
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March 21, 2013
Michigan: Gun owners rally, lobby in support of Second Amendment at Capitol
Hundreds of gun owners are rallying at the Michigan Capitol to remind lawmakers of their right to bear arms.
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March 20, 2013
Cox: A universally bad idea
Will trampling the rights of law abiding gun owners really do anything to help keep our children safe? Will piling unnecessary weight on a federal regulatory system that's already drowning help keep guns out of the wrong hands? The answers, of course, are "no" -- which is why a so called "universal background check" system should be dismissed by any lawmaker who is serious about protecting constitutional freedom and improving public safety.A mandate for truly "universal" background checks would put the federal government squarely in the middle of every sale, loan or gift of a firearm between private individuals. In other words, it would criminalize all private firearms transfers, even between family members or friends who have known each other all of their lives.
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March 20, 2013
White House on assault weapons ban: 'We're going to find the votes'
White House chief of staff Denis McDonough said in an interview Tuesday that Senate Democrats' decision to introduce a gun control bill that doesn't include an assault weapons ban does not constitute a setback for President Obama's gun control efforts.In an interview with CNN's Jake Tapper, McDonough said the bill can still be brought up as an amendment and that there should still be a concerted effort to pass it."We're going to work on this. We're going to find the votes," McDonough said, according to a transcript. "And it deserves a vote and let's see if we can get it done."
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March 20, 2013
Poll: Is support for gun control dipping?
Although a majority of Americans favored major restrictions on guns or an outright ban in the wake of the shootings in Newtown, Connecticut, when a heavily armed gunman killed 20 young students and six adults, a new CNN/ORC International survey indicates that support has tumbled to just 43%, as more time has passed since that December tragedy.
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March 20, 2013
Colorado: Governor to sign gun restrictions
The Democratic governor plans to sign new limits on ammunition magazines and a landmark expansion of background checks on Wednesday in his office, surrounded by legislative sponsors and their guests.
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March 20, 2013
Connecticut: Bill to require state gun owners to buy insurance finds few friends at hearing
According to the bill, someone would need to obtain self defense insurance to provide coverage for civil and criminal defense costs in the event the person used a firearm in self defense. If gun owners did not maintain this insurance, according to the bill, they would be guilty of a Class A misdemeanor.
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March 20, 2013
New York: Gun law changes wrapped into budget talks
State lawmakers are contemplating an amendment to New York's just enacted gun law that would allow people to buy 10 round magazines -- which under current law will be banned for sale on April 15.
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March 20, 2013
New York: Gov. Cuomo's popularity drops following gun law
A poll shows more New York Republican voters for the first time disapproving of Gov. Andrew Cuomo's performance following the Democrat's push for a gun control bill.The Quinnipiac University poll finds 49 percent of Republicans disapprove of Cuomo while 38 percent approve of his job performance. That compares to 44 percent who approved and 43 who disapproved in a late January poll, a statistical dead heat.
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March 20, 2013
Delaware: Lawmakers resume committee hearing on criminalizing private transfers
A House committee is resuming consideration of bill expanding criminal background checks for gun purchases in Delaware to cover sales between private sellers and buyers.
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March 20, 2013
Most gun bills are languishing in firearm friendly Florida legislature
There have been more gun control bills filed in the Florida Legislature this year than any in recent memory -- but you wouldn't know it. Despite Democrats' push to spark a "conversation" about guns after the Trayvon Martin and Newtown, Conn., tragedies, the Republican led Legislature has traditionally shown little interest in entertaining the gun control debate.
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March 20, 2013
Arkansas: House approves bill to ban gun restrictions in emergencies
The House on Tuesday approved a bill that would remove the governor's authority to suspend or limit the sale, dispensing or transportation of firearms during an emergency.
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March 20, 2013
Bill making weapons permit data confidential passes Iowa House
An overwhelming majority of Iowa House lawmakers approved legislation Monday that would make permits to purchase and carry firearms confidential.
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March 19, 2013
A universally bad idea
Will trampling the rights of law-abiding gun owners really do anything to help keep our children safe? Will piling unnecessary weight on a federal regulatory system that’s already drowning help keep guns out of the wrong hands? The answers, of course, are “no” — which is why a so-called “universal background check” system should be dismissed by any lawmaker who is serious about protecting constitutional freedom and improving public safety.
A mandate for truly “universal” background checks would put the federal government squarely in the middle of every sale, loan or gift of a firearm between private individuals. In other words, it would criminalize all private firearms transfers, even between family members or friends who have known each other all of their lives.
Such a sweeping and intrusive new mandate would crush the current National Criminal Instant Background Check System (NICS), which is already overwhelmed.
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March 19, 2013
Assault weapons ban dropped from Senate gun control bill
The leader of the Democrat-controlled Senate on Tuesday dropped a proposed assault weapons ban from the chamber’s gun-control package – dealing a blow to supporters of the ban, though it could still come up for a vote.
The sponsor of the measure, Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., revealed that Reid told her the proposed ban would not be in the initial package. Feinstein said she's "disappointed" with the decision, and is expected to nevertheless offer it as an amendment.
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March 19, 2013
Gun control groups turn focus to 'riders' backed by NRA
Gun control advocates are hoping to reverse some of the political influence of the National Rifle Association and other gun rights proponents by urging the White House to strip the president's next budget proposal of any provision that limits how federal agencies track firearms.
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March 19, 2013
Bloomberg says he's focused on criminalizing private transfers
While New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg said two months ago he was determined to fight for a ban on assault weapons, the outspoken gun critic said Monday he's concentrated on another legislative proposal."Our focus is on background checks," he said on CNN's "The Lead with Jake Tapper."
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March 19, 2013
Semi-auto ban loses steam
Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) said on Monday that a controversial assault weapons ban will not be part of a Democratic gun bill that was expected to reach the Senate floor next month.
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March 19, 2013
Georgia: Guns in spotlight at Legislature
The House Public Safety and Homeland Security Committee, meanwhile, will meet at 3 p.m. for a closer look at Senate Bill 101. The proposal would keep the names and personal details of gun owners licensed to carry a weapon in Georgia secret, and it would prohibit local officials from banning guns in public housing unless required by federal law or regulation.The bill would also get Georgia out of the business of licensing gun dealers. Out of state gun owners with permission to carry guns at home would be allowed to carry guns here. And it would lower to 18 the state's prohibition on anyone under the age of 21 from carrying a gun, but only for military service members who have completed basic training.
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March 19, 2013
Maryland: State Police busy processing gun applications
Since mid December, Bob Arthur has watched as the time Maryland State Police need to review a gun application stretched to more than a month.For the owner of Shooters Supply and other shop owners, the reason is simple: demand is high.
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March 19, 2013
Minnesota: House to take up bill criminalizing private transfers
Minnesota House lawmakers are weighing whether to expand background checks for firearm purchases, a critical step in whether that measure can pass and become law.
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March 19, 2013
Montana: Senate to take up Right-to-Carry bills
Montana lawmakers behind two pro gun measures said Monday that restrictions on carrying concealed weapons in cities and on university campuses violate Second Amendment rights.House Bill 240 would curb the Montana Board of Regents' authority to restrict firearms on college campuses.It followed two other pro gun measures on Monday including House Bill 304, which would allow people to carry concealed firearms without a permit in cities.
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March 18, 2013
Wayne LaPierre's full CPAC speech
It's great to be here today, among so many friends, and I appreciate your warm welcome. As you might imagine, I don't get invited to many parties in this town. That's okay. I came to Washington when I was about your age, but I didn't come here to be popular. I came here to stand for what I believe is true.The political elites may not like it. The liberal media can keep hating on me. But I'm still standing, unapologetic and unflinching in defense of our individual freedom. They can call me crazy and whatever else they want, but NRA's nearly 5 million members and America's 100 million gun owners will not back down -- not now, not ever.
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