Vice President Signs Supreme Court Brief Pushing for End to D.C. Firearms Ban

[Daemon688]

Politcis be dang, that is saying "I'm out of office in 11 months and I don't care who I piss off". What's right is right.

Haha, I never had the feeling that Cheney ever cared who he pissed off to begin with.

 

[LKB3rd]

The man is so corrupt, I wonder what ulterior motive lurks up his sleeve. It's like caring for old Aunt Alice so that she will bequeath her mansion and toy poodle to you in her as yet unfinished will.

It appears to me as if the ulterior motive is right in the story itself. They appear to be trying to get it to not go to the Supreme Court. Maybe they realize they can't worm their way out of a SC ruling, and would rather leave things as they are and continuously infringe on the 2nd amendment.

 

[TexasRifleman]

They appear to be trying to get it to not go to the Supreme Court. Maybe they realize they can't worm their way out of a SC ruling,

Huh? It's going to the Supremes, nothing is gonna stop that. They signed a brief specifically for the Supreme Court to consider. No one is asking the Supremes not to rule, they are asking the Supremes to agree with the lower court.

Jeez.....

Cheney joined more than 300 senators and representatives, led by Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, R-Texas, who want the court to rule that Washington's ban is unconstitutional.

 

[Deaf Smith]

If one looks at the bio of Cheney you will find he is hugely intellgent. As for what all he has done in his many years, well like they say in the Navy, he has "passed more ships mast than most people have telephone poles."

You know his draft deferments? Well the last one as in 67, well before the war went really hot. After that he was to old for the draft. Several times he defered cause he was in college (many many were, including Bill Clinton), and unlike Bill, Cheney worked his way through it. His last deferement he took cause his wife was 10 months pregnant.

He worked in many government assignments before being elected to congress. And after that as Secretary of Defense when Desert Storm croped up. And yes, after THAT he did become Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of Halliburton.

And of course, VP.

If you have ever heard him give a speach, a real talk, you would see he is very intellegent, and unlike other politicians, he speaks strait with no flowerly talk.

 

[tinygnat219]

Sorry, but the damage that Bush and Cheney have done to this country and the Constitution cannot be made up for with this brief.

 

[wbh]

Besides that accident shouldn't count against him, as he shot a LAWYER!

and if lawyers had been in season at the time, nobody would have blinked an eye

 

[bloodedsky]

Jungleroy,

You're right--I neglected to add the words, "in my opinion." I did so on purpose, because what Bush, Cheney, & the rest of them have done is nothing short of mass murder in order to achieve nice oil profits. (Which Dick, with his affiliation with oil & weapons company Halliburton, has done very nicely. Yes, it is a weapons company, too--HMMMMM.)

I take the war very personally because I have family who have been blown up in Iraq, thanks to this bunch. So you're right--not very High Road of me to omit the words "in my opinion." I believe in calling a spade a spade.

 

[fearless leader]

Quote: Letssee here now, 435 representatives + 100 senators= 535 total, right? Divided by 300= 69% of congress (seemingly) pro-gun. This, in and of itself, makes me feel better! If my logic is sound, then we may be better off than I first feared.

With approval rate of 30, I don't look for many people to stay in Congress in the next Congressional election.

 

[HK G3]

Looks like it took Cheney 7 years to do something useful.

Sorry, but Cheney's negligent discharge into his friend's face, waiting hours to say anything about the incident to the press (leading to somewhat credible speculation that he was in fact drunk at the time, and needed to sober up), and then forcing the victim to apologize to the press, then coming out as "strong proponent" of the 2A just gives the antis more fuel to add to the fire about how "safe" and "responsible" we gun owners truly are.

At any rate, as I'm sure everyone here knows, the judicial branch is meant to be independent of the legislative and executive branches, as the founding fathers intended, and act independently of the legislature/executive for the purpose of determining the Constitutionality of a law. Sending them letters, regardless of how many signatures are listed, or how influential the undersigned may or may not be should not persuade them one way or the other.

I just hope that they interpret the Constitution as it is written. Nothing more, nothing less.

 

[RancidSumo]

Jungleroy,

You're right--I neglected to add the words, "in my opinion." I did so on purpose, because what Bush, Cheney, & the rest of them have done is nothing short of mass murder in order to achieve nice oil profits. (Which Dick, with his affiliation with oil & weapons company Halliburton, has done very nicely. Yes, it is a weapons company, too--HMMMMM.)

I take the war very personally because I have family who have been blown up in Iraq, thanks to this bunch. So you're right--not very High Road of me to omit the words "in my opinion." I believe in calling a spade a spade.

I am sorry for your family but if you sign up for the military in a time of war and get killed, yes it is sad but you can't go and blame the President and VP. I think that a lot of people forget that it is not just the decision of the pres. to go to war and it is not like your family was drafted, they signed up. Once again, I am not being inconsiderate for your loss but they did sign up for the job.
Also, I do believe that the war in Iraq has acomplished many good things. I don't think that anyone would dissagree that taking Saddam out of power was a good thing and needed to be done.

 

[elrod]

With an approval rate of 30, I don't look for many people to stay in Congress in the next Congressional election.

Point well taken! By that election, prehaps the Demos will have screwed so much up that they will lose the mid-terms big time.......But then I am reminded of what happened after the election of '94......< sigh >

 

[orionengnr]

You're right--I neglected to add the words, "in my opinion." I did so on purpose, because what Bush, Cheney, & the rest of them have done is nothing short of mass murder in order to achieve nice oil profits.

Which is, once again, an unsubstantiated opinion.

And in some people's opinions, an asinine one.

Try working on your logic and argumentation skills. In this crowd, you are well behind the power curve, and not off to a good start.

 

[bogie]

We know that Cheney is a bad person, because we keep reading about it from internet posters who we don't know, and media pundits who we don't like or trust, but we know it anyway. So make sure you either vote for someone who opposes him, or just stay home.

Sincerely,

Democratic National Internet Strategy Committee.

 

[catfish101]

Jungleroy,

You're right--I neglected to add the words, "in my opinion." I did so on purpose, because what Bush, Cheney, & the rest of them have done is nothing short of mass murder in order to achieve nice oil profits. (Which Dick, with his affiliation with oil & weapons company Halliburton, has done very nicely. Yes, it is a weapons company, too--HMMMMM.)

I take the war very personally because I have family who have been blown up in Iraq, thanks to this bunch. So you're right--not very High Road of me to omit the words "in my opinion." I believe in calling a spade a spade

I agree with Rancid, Jungleroy. I am sorry for your lose but I have been there and there alot of wonderful things that have been done. Which very little will ever be on the news..

I was there in 90 and 91. I saw first hand what was done to the citizens there.

I may not agree with the way some things have been done because my own experience but the overall goal is not a lost cause.

Alot of people back in the 1700's felt like you do but look at the end result. You now have the right to come on this forum and speek your mind and own your gun.

I can understand your hate but don't let your lose create hate. Be pround of your loved ones, which I am sure you are, and what they represented.

 

[Barrel First]

I suppose it will do absolutely nothing to convince those with BDS, but imagine what the response would have been had we been suffering under a Democrat administration.

Those who ignore history, etc. ...

 

[LKB3rd]

Huh? It's going to the Supremes, nothing is gonna stop that. They signed a brief specifically for the Supreme Court to consider. No one is asking the Supremes not to rule, they are asking the Supremes to agree with the lower court.

Jeez.....

I saw another post about this that said that was what was happening. I was wrong. Also, i've been conditioned to think that if Cheney is for it, it must be bad for me.

 

[plexreticle]

The US will have it's 2A rights as all the other ones are dissolved into nothingness in the name of terrorisms, war on drugs and save the children.

 

[PercyShelley]

Dick Cheney is not a creepy old man, he is a true friend to shooters, hunters and the 2nd amendment.

There may be something to that. Wasn't Cheney one of only four to vote against the bill banning (nonexistent) undetectable plastic handguns?

 

[Run&Shoot]

Since Cheney is taking a beating from sever Internet commandos I'll chip in with my slightly more direct experience. A friend of mine from work whom I greatly respect from her many years of honest no-BS leadership is a long-time family friend of the Cheneys. She says he is a very stand up guy, intelligent, and not at all like the media make him out to be. Gee, imagine that. Why would the NYT want us to believe Dick Cheney is evil?

You may not agree with his VP activities, but I don't think that is cause for sliming him as a person. I am not aware of an instance in which he has been duplicitous or equivocal. Bush drives ne crazy with some of his policies, such as immigration, but I still feel he personally is being honest. Wrong, but honest.

When Cheney lends his voice in support of the 2nd Amendment then I believe he is being forthright and honest, and he disagrees with his boss. We shouldn't skewer our friends on RKBA just because we don't agree with other policies they have. we should encourage to be strong and even better.

This would be absolutely amazing if we can get a Sc decision finally in favor of the obvious meaning and application of the 2A. Lots of special interest working against it, but you never know when sanity might make a cameo appearance.

 

[littlegator]

Anyone know how one goes about filing a brief? I woke up one morning thinking if every one of us filed one...

Then I had a cup of coffee.

Usually, you have to have some credible and relevant standing to file an amicus brief that the S.Ct. will accept. Additionally, the brief should represent a group of interest, not merely an individual interest. In other words, a brief from an organization such as the NRA has already been filed and accepted. Before the brief is filed, you have to get permission from the Court.

 

[bogie]

I think that the majority of Cheney's "reputation" comes from him being associated with Bush. Since the media hates Bush, Cheney gets the fallout.

All you folks who have something to say about him, you owe it to yourselves to back up and think "Hey, where did I learn this tidbit of information, which I now take to be a given... Hmmm... It was people on the internet and on that news station who said it. Should I believe them?"

Just like the folks who poke fun at Bush, and how he speaks in public. In case you haven't noticed, he's a fairly articulate guy, but he stutters. And I'm guessing that he has to _really_ work to control it. I'm also guessing that getting up in front of a buncha folks, and trying to talk, is NOT one of his favorite things to do. Why? Been there, done that myself.

As it is, large portions of our culture are -dismissing- the very people who can save our culture, in favor of people who would like nothing better than have us go away. Why? because we've had seven years of nothing but "those people are bad" on television, and salted on the internet forums.

So, folks, just keep an open mind, and think. How do you know something? Did you research it yourself, or do you just believe it because you heard it/read it a few hundred times?

We're in a media battle folks, and we're still using slingshots ourselves...

 

[green-grizzly]

I have always admired Dick Cheney. He has an outstanding record of public service, serving as White House chief of staff under Gerald Ford in trying times, serving as a Congressman from the great state of Wyoming for five terms, and performing very capably as defense secretary during the first Gulf War.

I was very pleased that he signed the brief in opposition to the Department of Justice's position. He is a "true believer" on the RKBA and one of the best friends gun owners have left in the administration. The role and power of the Vice President is pretty limited under the constitution, but I admire the fact that he still found a way to do the right thing. For a man known for his loyalty, that must not have been an easy thing to do.

 

[LT1coupe]

I got this response from Harry Mitchell:

Dear Mr ------:



Thank you for contacting me regarding the DC gun ban. I appreciate hearing from you on this issue.



I agree with you that we need to ensure that responsible, law-abiding citizens retain their ability to exercise their Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms.



As you know, the Supreme Court has agreed to hear the District of Columbia's appeal in the case District of Columbia v. Heller. In this case, several D.C. residents challenged the District's 1976 law banning handguns and requiring rifles and shotguns to be registered, stored unloaded, and either locked or disassembled.



While I strongly support the rights of local and state government, I believe that the District's ban raises significant Second Amendment concerns. In anticipation of the Supreme Court's deliberation, I, along with 249 of my colleagues in the House and 55 Senators, recently signed an amicus brief advising the Court of Congress's long legislative history of upholding and protecting the Second Amendment.



You may also be interested to know that I am a cosponsor of H.R. 1399, the District of Columbia Personal Protection Act. This legislation would also repeal D.C.'s gun ban, while maintaining strong penalties for illegal gun possession and gun crimes.



H.R. 1399 was introduced by Representative Mike Ross of Arkansas on March 8, 2007. It is now pending consideration by the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee's Subcommittee on Federal Workforce, Post Office, and the District of Columbia. Should this bill come to the floor of the House for a vote, please be assured I will keep your concerns in mind.



Thank you again for contacting me on this issue. If you further comments, questions, or concerns in the future, please feel free to contact me again.



Sincerely,









Harry E. Mitchell

Member of Congress



HEM/mw

 

[langenc]

Maybe 69 per cent of congress but what per cent of the SCOTUS??

 

[bogie]

Well, if we go along with what the media and internet snipers have to say, we'll be allowing election of someone who'll get judges into the supreme court (and other courts, more importantly...) who _will_ find judgments in cases that we WILL NOT like...

Keep an open mind folks, and question the veracity of what you hear and read in the media and on the internet.