-Caveat Lector- Bush Condemns 'Evil,' Not Gun Laws By Ron Fournier AP Political Writer Thursday, September 16, 1999; 6:14 p.m. EDT GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (AP) -- Republican presidential candidate George W. Bush said Thursday that ``a wave of evil'' -- not a lack of gun control laws -- is the cause of rampant gun violence in America. Scrapping two fund-raisers to rush home to Texas and the scene of a deadly shooting spree, the GOP front-runner said the tragedy had not softened his pro-gun views. ``I don't know of a law -- a governmental law -- that will put love in people's hearts,'' the Texas governor told reporters at a news conference. He toured a local elementary school and met privately with former President Gerald Ford before leaving for Texas. His eyes red and moist, Bush said: ``It's hard to explain how hatred lurks in somebody's heart to the point where he walks into a church where children and adults were seeking God's guidance and shoots them.'' Seven people were fatally shot Wednesday night at a Fort Worth, Texas, Baptist church before the gunman killed himself in a pew. Authorities did not know the man's motive. The shooting posed a potential political problem for the two-term governor who signed a 1995 law allowing Texans to carry concealed weapons with a permit. Democrats have questioned his commitment to federal and state efforts to require background checks at gun shows. Bush, who spoke to police in Texas shortly before the news conference, said he was told the suspect did not have a concealed-weapons permit. ``I don't know his background, but it sounds to me like he's mentally deranged,'' Bush said. ``You bet, I'd like to make sure people like him don't have guns.'' Yet he didn't budge from his belief that new anti-gun laws are not the answer. ``There seems to be a wave of evil passing through America now and we as a society can pass laws and hold people accountable for the decisions they make, but our hopes and prayers have got to be that there is more love in society,'' he said. ``This man obviously was acting as a result of evil in his heart,'' Bush said. ``I would hope that Americans would collectively pray for love in people's heart.'' Like most Republicans generally in line with the National Rifle Association, Bush said current laws need to be enforced. Punish people who illegally sell guns or who commit crimes with a gun; keep weapons out of the hands of felons and mentally ill people; ban certain assault weapons and require background checks at gun shows, he said. However, he embraced a GOP-backed bill in the House this year which the White House and gun-control advocates said would weaken existing laws governing gun shows. Democrats in Texas criticize Bush for failing to back a state gun show bill, though the governor said federal law made the measure unworkable. Bush said that ``most Americans want somebody reasonable who has a rational view'' of the topic. He canceled the remainder of his Michigan trip, including a gathering of state Republicans on Mackinaw Island, a weekend trip to Kennebunkport, Maine and a Sunday event in New Hampshire so he could attend memorials for the victims. In Texas, Bush met privately with some hospitalized survivors at John Peter Smith Hospital and later called for a higher authority to heal the hatred. ``This is now a time in our state and this great city to remember that Fort Worth is full of decent and caring people,'' Bush said outside the hospital. ``I wish I knew the law to make people love one another. We'd pass it in Texas.'' http://search.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WAPO/19990916/V000475-091699-idx.htm l Bard DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion and informational exchange list. Proselyzting propagandic screeds are not allowed. Substance�not soapboxing! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory', with its many half-truths, misdirections and outright frauds is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRL gives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credeence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply. Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector. ======================================================================== Archives Available at: http://home.ease.lsoft.com/archives/CTRL.html http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/ ======================================================================== To subscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SUBSCRIBE CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] To UNsubscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SIGNOFF CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] Om
