I have long been a staunch advocate and defender of Second Amendment rights, and I will continue to defend all of our sacred rights embodied in the U.S. Constitution. At a time of increased threats of terrorism and other violent crime, the last thing the Federal government should do is to continue limiting the rights of its citizens.
I believe that it is time to stop passing gun control laws that don’t reduce crime but do infringe upon a citizen’s right to own a firearm, and to enforce the crime laws we already have on the books. Throughout our Nation’s history, law-abiding people have owned guns and used them safely and responsibly for hunting, sporting activities, and personal protection. The possession of guns by private American citizens is not new, nor is it the problem. Congress needs to tackle the real source of the crime problem – the criminals, and stop trying to window dress it by gutting the Second Amendment.
I, too, am concerned about the level of crime in our society, but restricting the rights of law-abiding citizens to own a firearm is not the answer. Restrictions on legal gun purchases have an adverse effect on law-abiding citizens, not criminals. We can do more to reduce crime by keeping criminals behind bars, and not letting them out of jail early. We must prevent criminals from getting their hands on guns. A better alternative is to crack down on gun sales that are currently illegal.
Lawsuits against gun manufacturers
Recent litigation against the tobacco industry that forced multibillion dollar settlements has inspired lawsuits against the much smaller firearms industry to hold it financially responsible for the harm caused, through no fault of its own, by those who criminally misuse its products. While some of these lawsuits have been dismissed, and some States have acted to limit them in one way or another, the fact remains that these lawsuits continue to be aggressively pursued.
These lawsuits amount to nothing more than a brazen attempt to accomplish through litigation what opponents of Second Amendment rights have not been able to achieve by legislation and the democratic process. Various courts have correctly described such suits as ``improper attempts to have the court substitute its judgment for that of the legislature.”
The bottom line is that lawful firearms and ammunition manufacturers are not criminals and they should not be treated as such by being punished and penalized with reckless lawsuits for crimes and damages that are not their fault.
Assault Weapons Ban
As you may know, in 1994, Congress banned for 10 years the possession, transfer, or further domestic manufacture of so-called semiautomatic assault weapons (SAWs) and large capacity ammunition feeding devices (LCAFDs) that hold greater than 10 rounds that were not already legally owned or available prior to the date of enactment (September 13, 1994). The law defined a rifle as a semiautomatic assault weapon, if it was able to accept a detachable magazine, and included two or more of the following five characteristics: (1) a folding or telescoping stock; (2) a pistol grip; (3) a bayonet mount; (4) a muzzle flash suppressor or threaded barrel capable of accepting such a suppressor; or (5) a grenade launcher. These characteristics were largely cosmetic, and nothing to do with the power of the gun, or the way it operated internally. For example, if you had a so-called semi-automatic rifle with a folding stock and a bayonet lug, it was deemed an illegal gun under the bill. However, if you took that very same gun, and removed the bayonet lug, it became legal. The ban was essentially meaningless, and in the opinion of many experts a violation of every American's Second Amendment right; and Congress allowed it to expire on September 13, 2004.
The change in Congressional leadership has emboldened gun-control proponents to try again, and I expect a number of gun control-related issues will sooner or later be considered by the House of Representatives; including issues like (1) retaining Brady background check records for approved transactions, (2) more strictly regulating certain long-range fifty caliber rifles, (3) further regulating certain firearms previously defined in statute as "assault weapons," and (4) requiring background checks for firearm transfers at gun shows.
I strongly believe in every American's Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms, and I will be carefully scrutinizing any gun-related legislation brought before the House of Representatives to ensure that it does not unfairly and unnecessarily infringe upon that constitutionally protected right.