------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor ---------------------~-~> eGroups is now Yahoo! Groups Click here for more details http://click.egroups.com/1/11231/1/_/356655/_/982194192/ ---------------------------------------------------------------------_-> On Wed, 14 Feb 2001 16:36:28 -0500, [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: Please note: It has come to GOA's attention that a number of activists did not receive the 02/09/01 e-mail alert. Since the alert is by all means still timely, it is being re-sent. If you haven't acted yet, for whatever reason, please take a moment to contact Sen. John McCain. ---------------------------- While a Flurry of New Gun Bills Descends upon Capitol Hill... A proposed McCain bill requires your attention right now Gun Owners of America E-Mail/FAX Alert 8001 Forbes Place, Suite 102, Springfield, VA 22151 Phone: 703-321-8585 / FAX: 703-321-8408 http://www.gunowners.org (Friday, February 9, 2001) -- Now that the 107th Congress is underway, legislators on Capitol Hill are scurrying to get their bills introduced. As one would suspect, many anti-gun bills have already been introduced, and many of them by the usual suspects: Feinstein, Schumer, Boxer, etc. Gun Owners of America is currently analyzing all bills affecting gun rights and hopes to have them summarized on our website by the end of next week. Once the flurry of new bills subsides to a mere trickle, GOA will also report on the bills that gun owners especially need to watch -- as well as the ones that need support. But one bill deserves your attention right now. Earlier, GOA heard whispers on the Hill about a proposed bill being crafted by Senators John McCain (R-AZ) and Joe Lieberman (D-CT). Well, those whispers are no longer mere speculation. Roll Call, one of the newspapers that covers events and legislation on Capitol Hill, announced yesterday that both Senators were working on a gun control "compromise" aimed at putting heat upon the new President, as well as the Republican leadership. (See an excerpt of the story below.) While it still has yet to be introduced, the McCain-Lieberman bill: * Would slam the door on private sales at gun shows unless the buyer submits to a registration background check; * Would force gun owners to purchase "lock up your safety" devices; and * Even more troubling, would force federal agents to increase efforts at arresting and convicting honest gun owners who, in many cases, may inadvertently violate one of the many federal anti-gun laws which punish mere technicalities, such as gun possession. A gun owner who travels with a gun through a school zone or who uses one of the family handguns to go target shooting with a 15-year old son (when the son does not have written permission to handle the firearm) could find Project Exile sending him or her to prison. And an individual who uses a gun for self-defense in a way that a court subsequently finds to be inappropriate could be sent to prison for a MANDATORY MINIMUM of five years. ACTION: 1. Please contact Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) and ask him to stop selling out gun owners. You can use the SAMPLE LETTER below, along with the following contact information: Phone -- 202-224-2235 E-mail -- [EMAIL PROTECTED] Fax -- 202-228-2862 McCain has spent the last few years trying to become a "media darling," but in doing so, he has compromised the very freedoms he fought for years ago. McCain's voting record has dipped to a C- in recent years, and gun owners in Oregon and Colorado will remember that he even used TV ads to push gun control referendums in their states right before the November elections last year. 2. ALL GUN OWNERS should contact Sen. McCain. After all, he is a fomer (and perhaps, future) presidential contender. He should care about your opinion, whether you live in Maine, Florida, Washington or Arizona. So EVERYONE, please write your own letter -- or use the sample letter below to help direct your comments to Sen. McCain. 3. Please circulate this alert. ----- Pre-written message ----- Dear Senator McCain: I was greatly dismayed to see the Roll Call article (2/8/01) which reported on the gun control "compromise" that you and Joe Lieberman are fashioning. I would hope that you would CEASE and DESIST immediately from selling out gun owners' rights. The Second Amendment states that the people have a right to keep and bear arms that "shall not be infringed." What part of "not infringed" don't you understand? All of the proposals you are pushing will chip away at the rights of decent, law-abiding citizens. Should you succeed -- and I will do everything in my power to oppose your efforts -- I want you to know that you will greatly undermine the freedoms that Americans now enjoy. Furthermore, I should inform you that I will never support a candidate who consistently tries to undermine the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. Yours for the Second Amendment, -------------------------------------------------------------------- McCain Planning Gun Control Bill By Mark Preston of Roll Call http://www.rollcall.com/pages/news/00/2001/02/news0208c.html Seizing on Congress' failure to reach a bipartisan agreement on gun safety legislation, Sens. John McCain (R-Ariz.) and Joe Lieberman (D-Conn.) are quietly working together to draft an alternative compromise that both parties can support. The discussions between McCain and Lieberman are still in the infant stages, but the bill is likely to include a reworked version of the controversial gun show loophole, trigger locks and more funds and support for the law enforcement community, aides to both Senators said. Some of McCain's GOP colleagues believe that the Arizonan's interest in the gun issue and other hot topics, such as HMO reform, is an attempt to undercut President Bush's agenda. "[McCain] is just trying to set the presidential agenda, and there is a discomfort with that," griped a GOP Senator close to the Republican leadership team.... Staffers for both McCain and Lieberman have been talking about a compromise gun bill since late last year; however, the two Senators were able to discuss the issue in greater depth during their official visit to Munich, Germany, this past weekend. "This is not done," a source close to McCain cautioned. "But we are working on it." A spokesman for Lieberman acknowledged that the Connecticut Democrat is eager to work with the Arizona Republican, whom he "deeply respects." "This would be an opportunity to chart a third way on stopping gun crime by dedicating more resources to enforcing existing gun laws while also fixing some of the loopholes that persist in those laws," Lieberman spokesman Dan Gerstein said.... "With Senator McCain joining Senator Lieberman on this debate, you are all but guaranteed it is going to register on the public's radar screen," said a senior Senate Democratic aide, who noted that the Senate Democratic leaders would likely embrace Lieberman's efforts to pass a gun safety bill. "McCain is unbelievable," the aide added. "He has got absolutely no fear of antagonizing his leadership." McCain's decision to tackle this issue is likely to further infuriate his Senate GOP colleagues, who are working hard to implement Bush's legislative priorities. "There is a lot of frustration," a Republican Senator said. "He has got his own agenda."... -------------------------------------------------------------------- For more information on Sen. John McCain's anti-gun activities, please see: http://www.gunowners.org/cgv.htm (simply go to the Senate votes to view McCain's record) http://www.gunowners.org/smu0599.htm (shows what the New Hampshire Union Leader had to say about McCain's anti-gun actions in 1999) ************** Special: Become a GOA Life Member ($500) and receive one thousand dollars ($1000) in free world-class training! Front Sight Firearms Training Institute offers a two-day defensive handgun course, two-day tactical shotgun course, or a two-day practical rifle course PLUS a one-day submachine gun course where they provide the Uzis and all the ammo! This $1000 value is free for new GOA Life Members. Please see http://www.gunowners.org/subguns.htm for details. Note: On Friday, March 09, GOA Executive Director Larry Pratt and Sheriff Richard Mack will attend the subguns course. Both will be speaking that evening after the "rock'n roll." While your Front Site certificate will be good anytime, those taking advantage of the offer are urged to show up that weekend. ************** Do not reply directly to this message. To subscribe to free, low-volume GOA alerts, go to http://www.gunowners.org/ean.htm on the web. Change of e-mail address may also be made at that location. To unsubscribe send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word unsubscribe in the subject line. Problems, questions or comments? The main GOA e-mail address [EMAIL PROTECTED] is at your disposal. Please do not add that address to distribution lists sending more than ten messages per week or lists associated with issues other than gun rights. -- Charles L Hamilton Houston, TX email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To join the RELOAD-L list. The URL is: http://www.yahoogroups.com/subscribe.cgi/reload-l ======= RKBA! Please keep replies trimmed. That includes that annoying advertisement above - chas
