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The Democrats have been singing a sad song about how misunderstood they were, as they actually did love the Second Amendment, and were suppporters thereof. The dirge went on, seemingly without end. Interestingly, they showed their true colors in The Senate yesterday, with their votes for retaining and extending for another 10 years, THEIR Assault Weapons Ban, though they were originally supported by some Republican votes, and as of yesterday, continued to have the benefit of some Republican support. Pretty much the same story applied to the Warner/McCain amemdment to require background checks for gun purchases at gun shows. Solid Democratic support for ANTI-GUN AMENDMENTS, helped along by some turncoat Republicans. The names of the guilty parties are avaialable on senate web sites. Find and retain a suitable listing thereof, and make same available to your friends.
Re the upcoming elections, November 2004, the names of all who voted ANTI-GUN, Democrat as well as Republican should be remembered, especially those who are running for re-election this year. For god sakes, don't forget the rest of them, those who aren't seeking re-election this year, but who will be, in the future. The favor they bestowed on the law abiding gun owner must be returned, IN SPADES. Read on for the Times article.
Senate Leaders Scuttle Gun Bill Over Changes
By SHERYL GAY STOLBERG
Published: March 3, 2004
Gun Control
WASHINGTON, March 2 — The Senate on Tuesday overwhelmingly rejected a measure to shield gun manufacturers and dealers from lawsuits. The defeat came after a roller-coaster day in which Republicans abruptly withdrew their support for the bill because Democrats had tacked on amendments to renew the 10-year assault weapons ban and require background checks on customers at gun shows.
The lopsided 90-to-8 vote against the measure capped a week of debate in which both sides thought the bill, which was backed by the White House, would pass with bipartisan support. Instead, it injected the volatile issue of gun control squarely into the presidential campaign.
Senators John Edwards of North Carolina and John Kerry of Massachusetts took breaks from their presidential campaigns on Super Tuesday to cast their first votes of the year, in favor of the weapons ban and background checks. Vice President Dick Cheney was also on hand, briefly, in case his vote on the amendments was needed to break a tie; it was not.
"There was a growing element of presidential politics in this bill that may have overtaken it, more than I realized," Senator Larry E. Craig, the Idaho Republican who was chief sponsor of the bill, said after the vote.
Earlier, Mr. Craig had taken the unusual step of urging senators to vote against the bill he had fought so hard to pass, saying it had been "dramatically wounded."
Both sides agreed that the outcome shifted the political landscape surrounding the contentious issue of gun control. Democrats, many of whom had been backing away from the issue since Al Gore's defeat in 2000, embraced the assault weapons ban and background checks. Mr. Kerry took the occasion to deliver what amounted to an eight-minute stump speech on the Senate floor in support of the amendments, a talk that advocates of gun control credited with helping to pass them.
"This is a huge victory," said Richard Aborn, former president of the Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence. "Kerry has placed the gun issue on assault weapons firmly back into the presidential debate."
But Wayne LaPierre, executive vice president of the National Rifle Association, which has made legal immunity for gun makers and dealers one of its top legislative priorities, predicted the votes would hurt Democrats. Referring to the chairman of the Democratic National Committee, Mr. LaPierre said, "I can just see Terry McAuliffe cringing in his office all day long."
The defeat of the immunity bill came after Mr. LaPierre sent e-mail messages to senators urging them to reject it. Some Senate Democrats who supported immunity were spotted reading the e-mail message on their BlackBerry pagers; within minutes, a copy of the message — in which Mr. LaPierre said his group would use the vote "in our future evaluations and endorsement of candidates" — was circulating in the Democrats' cloakroom.
"I'm a bit numb," said Senator Dianne Feinstein, Democrat of California, the lead sponsor of the assault weapons ban, said after the final vote. Of the rifle association, she said: "They had the power to turn around at least 60 votes in the Senate. That's amazing to me."
The weapons ban, enacted in 1994, expires in September and Tuesday's vote left its future in doubt. Backers said they would try to tack the measure onto other bills, or to pass it on its own, though it is unclear if they can generate the 60 votes necessary to overcome a Republican filibuster.
"We will come back, and we will come back, and we will come back again," Mrs. Feinstein said.
Backers of the bill that would shield gun makers and dealers from lawsuits, so long as they did not sell defective weapons or violate any laws, also vowed to try again. But asked if the bill was doomed for this year, Mr. Craig replied, "That would be my first reaction."
The gun industry says it needs immunity as protection from possible jury awards that could put gun makers out of business. But opponents, including big city mayors and police chiefs, describe the measure as a special interest giveaway.
The see-saw day in the Senate began with Mrs. Feinstein and advocates of curbs on gun ownership celebrating their back-to-back victories. The Senate approved the weapons ban by 52 to 47, with 10 Republicans joining 41 Democrats and one independent to pass it. Lawmakers voted 53 to 46 to close what is known as the "gun show loophole" with 8 Republicans, 44 Democrats and one independent voting for the measure.
Backers of the amendments expected the votes to be much closer — so close that Mr. Cheney was summoned to the Capitol to break a possible tie. Had he done so, it would have put the White House in an awkward position. President Bush favors both the weapons ban and background checks, but urged the Senate to vote against them, saying he wanted the immunity bill to pass without amendment. A similar measure has passed the House.
Once the amendments passed, it seemed as though the House and Senate would be confronted with the difficult task of reconciling two vastly different measures in conference. Backers of the amendments, including Senator John Warner, a Virginia Republican who was a lead sponsor of the assault weapons ban, immediately began exerting pressure on President Bush to reverse himself.
"Clearly, by the presence of the two candidates from your party for the presidency of the United States, it becomes a presidential issue," Mr. Warner said to Senator Feinstein and Senator Charles E. Schumer, Democrat of New York, at a news conference. "Clearly when it goes to conference, the voice of the White House will be pivotal."
But by the afternoon, with Republicans repeatedly referring to the amendments as "poison pills," the issue of conference had become moot. Just eight lawmakers, five Democrats and three Republicans, voted in favor of final passage. Senator Kerry voted against and Senator Edwards, who had left the Capitol, did not vote.
The bill put some Democrats, including Senator Tom Daschle, the minority leader, in a political quandary. Mr. Daschle faces a tough re-election race in South Dakota, where many of his constituents favor gun owners' rights. He voted in favor of the assault weapons ban and background checks, but was a co-sponsor with Mr. Craig of the immunity bill.
In the end, the two men turned against one another. Mr. Craig complained bitterly to reporters that Mr. Daschle, who was one of the eight senators voting in favor of final passage, was threatening to block the bill from going to conference.
Mr. Daschle said: "It is mystifying that the Senate Republican leadership would defeat the bipartisan gun liability legislation that Senator Craig and I have worked on together because of two provisions supported by both President Bush and more than a dozen Republicans."
Other lawmakers also said they were mystified. Senator John McCain, the Arizona Republican who was a chief sponsor of the gun show background checks requirement, emerged from the Senate chamber laughing after the final vote.
"I've been around here 18 years," he said, "and I've never seen anything quite this bizarre."
The Democrats have been singing a sad song about how misunderstood they were, as they actually did love the Second Amendment, and were suppporters thereof. The dirge went on, seemingly without end. Interestingly, they showed their true colors in The Senate yesterday, with their votes for retaining and extending for another 10 years, THEIR Assault Weapons Ban, though they were originally supported by some Republican votes, and as of yesterday, continued to have the benefit of some Republican support. Pretty much the same story applied to the Warner/McCain amemdment to require background checks for gun purchases at gun shows. Solid Democratic support for ANTI-GUN AMENDMENTS, helped along by some turncoat Republicans. The names of the guilty parties are avaialable on senate web sites. Find and retain a suitable listing thereof, and make same available to your friends.
Re the upcoming elections, November 2004, the names of all who voted ANTI-GUN, Democrat as well as Republican should be remembered, especially those who are running for re-election this year. For god sakes, don't forget the rest of them, those who aren't seeking re-election this year, but who will be, in the future. The favor they bestowed on the law abiding gun owner must be returned, IN SPADES. Read on for the Times article.
Senate Leaders Scuttle Gun Bill Over Changes
By SHERYL GAY STOLBERG
Published: March 3, 2004
Gun Control
WASHINGTON, March 2 — The Senate on Tuesday overwhelmingly rejected a measure to shield gun manufacturers and dealers from lawsuits. The defeat came after a roller-coaster day in which Republicans abruptly withdrew their support for the bill because Democrats had tacked on amendments to renew the 10-year assault weapons ban and require background checks on customers at gun shows.
The lopsided 90-to-8 vote against the measure capped a week of debate in which both sides thought the bill, which was backed by the White House, would pass with bipartisan support. Instead, it injected the volatile issue of gun control squarely into the presidential campaign.
Senators John Edwards of North Carolina and John Kerry of Massachusetts took breaks from their presidential campaigns on Super Tuesday to cast their first votes of the year, in favor of the weapons ban and background checks. Vice President Dick Cheney was also on hand, briefly, in case his vote on the amendments was needed to break a tie; it was not.
"There was a growing element of presidential politics in this bill that may have overtaken it, more than I realized," Senator Larry E. Craig, the Idaho Republican who was chief sponsor of the bill, said after the vote.
Earlier, Mr. Craig had taken the unusual step of urging senators to vote against the bill he had fought so hard to pass, saying it had been "dramatically wounded."
Both sides agreed that the outcome shifted the political landscape surrounding the contentious issue of gun control. Democrats, many of whom had been backing away from the issue since Al Gore's defeat in 2000, embraced the assault weapons ban and background checks. Mr. Kerry took the occasion to deliver what amounted to an eight-minute stump speech on the Senate floor in support of the amendments, a talk that advocates of gun control credited with helping to pass them.
"This is a huge victory," said Richard Aborn, former president of the Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence. "Kerry has placed the gun issue on assault weapons firmly back into the presidential debate."
But Wayne LaPierre, executive vice president of the National Rifle Association, which has made legal immunity for gun makers and dealers one of its top legislative priorities, predicted the votes would hurt Democrats. Referring to the chairman of the Democratic National Committee, Mr. LaPierre said, "I can just see Terry McAuliffe cringing in his office all day long."
The defeat of the immunity bill came after Mr. LaPierre sent e-mail messages to senators urging them to reject it. Some Senate Democrats who supported immunity were spotted reading the e-mail message on their BlackBerry pagers; within minutes, a copy of the message — in which Mr. LaPierre said his group would use the vote "in our future evaluations and endorsement of candidates" — was circulating in the Democrats' cloakroom.
"I'm a bit numb," said Senator Dianne Feinstein, Democrat of California, the lead sponsor of the assault weapons ban, said after the final vote. Of the rifle association, she said: "They had the power to turn around at least 60 votes in the Senate. That's amazing to me."
The weapons ban, enacted in 1994, expires in September and Tuesday's vote left its future in doubt. Backers said they would try to tack the measure onto other bills, or to pass it on its own, though it is unclear if they can generate the 60 votes necessary to overcome a Republican filibuster.
"We will come back, and we will come back, and we will come back again," Mrs. Feinstein said.
Backers of the bill that would shield gun makers and dealers from lawsuits, so long as they did not sell defective weapons or violate any laws, also vowed to try again. But asked if the bill was doomed for this year, Mr. Craig replied, "That would be my first reaction."
The gun industry says it needs immunity as protection from possible jury awards that could put gun makers out of business. But opponents, including big city mayors and police chiefs, describe the measure as a special interest giveaway.
The see-saw day in the Senate began with Mrs. Feinstein and advocates of curbs on gun ownership celebrating their back-to-back victories. The Senate approved the weapons ban by 52 to 47, with 10 Republicans joining 41 Democrats and one independent to pass it. Lawmakers voted 53 to 46 to close what is known as the "gun show loophole" with 8 Republicans, 44 Democrats and one independent voting for the measure.
Backers of the amendments expected the votes to be much closer — so close that Mr. Cheney was summoned to the Capitol to break a possible tie. Had he done so, it would have put the White House in an awkward position. President Bush favors both the weapons ban and background checks, but urged the Senate to vote against them, saying he wanted the immunity bill to pass without amendment. A similar measure has passed the House.
Once the amendments passed, it seemed as though the House and Senate would be confronted with the difficult task of reconciling two vastly different measures in conference. Backers of the amendments, including Senator John Warner, a Virginia Republican who was a lead sponsor of the assault weapons ban, immediately began exerting pressure on President Bush to reverse himself.
"Clearly, by the presence of the two candidates from your party for the presidency of the United States, it becomes a presidential issue," Mr. Warner said to Senator Feinstein and Senator Charles E. Schumer, Democrat of New York, at a news conference. "Clearly when it goes to conference, the voice of the White House will be pivotal."
But by the afternoon, with Republicans repeatedly referring to the amendments as "poison pills," the issue of conference had become moot. Just eight lawmakers, five Democrats and three Republicans, voted in favor of final passage. Senator Kerry voted against and Senator Edwards, who had left the Capitol, did not vote.
The bill put some Democrats, including Senator Tom Daschle, the minority leader, in a political quandary. Mr. Daschle faces a tough re-election race in South Dakota, where many of his constituents favor gun owners' rights. He voted in favor of the assault weapons ban and background checks, but was a co-sponsor with Mr. Craig of the immunity bill.
In the end, the two men turned against one another. Mr. Craig complained bitterly to reporters that Mr. Daschle, who was one of the eight senators voting in favor of final passage, was threatening to block the bill from going to conference.
Mr. Daschle said: "It is mystifying that the Senate Republican leadership would defeat the bipartisan gun liability legislation that Senator Craig and I have worked on together because of two provisions supported by both President Bush and more than a dozen Republicans."
Other lawmakers also said they were mystified. Senator John McCain, the Arizona Republican who was a chief sponsor of the gun show background checks requirement, emerged from the Senate chamber laughing after the final vote.
"I've been around here 18 years," he said, "and I've never seen anything quite this bizarre."
