NRA: Terror Suspects Have Gun Rights, Too
The National Rifle Association is urging the Bush administration to withdraw its support of a bill that would prohibit suspected terrorists from buying firearms.
Backed by the Justice Department, the measure would give the attorney general the discretion to block gun sales, licenses or permits to terror suspects.
In a letter this week to Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, NRA executive director Chris Cox said the bill, offered last week by Sen. Frank Lautenberg, D-N.J., "would allow arbitrary denial of Second Amendment rights based on mere 'suspicions' of a terrorist threat."
"As many of our friends in law enforcement have rightly pointed out, the word 'suspect' has no legal meaning, particularly when it comes to denying constitutional liberties," Cox wrote.
In a letter supporting the measure, Acting Assistant Attorney General Richard Hertling said the bill would not automatically prevent a gun sale to a suspected terrorist. In some cases, federal agents may want to let a sale go forward to avoid compromising an ongoing investigation.
Hertling also notes there is a process to challenge denial of a sale.
Current law requires gun dealers to conduct a criminal background check and deny sales if a gun purchaser falls under a specified prohibition, including a felony conviction, domestic abuse conviction or illegal immigration. There is no legal basis to deny a sale if a purchaser is on a terror watch list.
"When I tell people that you can be on a terrorist watch list and still be allowed to buy as many guns as you want, they are shocked," said Paul Helmke, president of the Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence, which supports Lautenberg's bill.
In the wake of the Virginia Tech shootings, lawmakers are weighing a number of measures to strengthen gun sale laws. The NRA, which usually opposes increased restrictions on firearms, is taking different positions depending on the proposal.
A 2005 study by the Government Accountability Office found that 35 of 44 firearm purchase attempts over a five-month period made by known or suspected terrorists were approved by the federal law enforcement officials.
© 2009 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Backed by the Justice Department, the measure would give the attorney general the discretion to block gun sales, licenses or permits to terror suspects.
In a letter this week to Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, NRA executive director Chris Cox said the bill, offered last week by Sen. Frank Lautenberg, D-N.J., "would allow arbitrary denial of Second Amendment rights based on mere 'suspicions' of a terrorist threat."
"As many of our friends in law enforcement have rightly pointed out, the word 'suspect' has no legal meaning, particularly when it comes to denying constitutional liberties," Cox wrote.
In a letter supporting the measure, Acting Assistant Attorney General Richard Hertling said the bill would not automatically prevent a gun sale to a suspected terrorist. In some cases, federal agents may want to let a sale go forward to avoid compromising an ongoing investigation.
Hertling also notes there is a process to challenge denial of a sale.
Current law requires gun dealers to conduct a criminal background check and deny sales if a gun purchaser falls under a specified prohibition, including a felony conviction, domestic abuse conviction or illegal immigration. There is no legal basis to deny a sale if a purchaser is on a terror watch list.
"When I tell people that you can be on a terrorist watch list and still be allowed to buy as many guns as you want, they are shocked," said Paul Helmke, president of the Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence, which supports Lautenberg's bill.
In the wake of the Virginia Tech shootings, lawmakers are weighing a number of measures to strengthen gun sale laws. The NRA, which usually opposes increased restrictions on firearms, is taking different positions depending on the proposal.
A 2005 study by the Government Accountability Office found that 35 of 44 firearm purchase attempts over a five-month period made by known or suspected terrorists were approved by the federal law enforcement officials.
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Just as blacks have a criminal profile, referencing "crime-type", so do whites, that's why the police first attributed the Washington spree killings to a white male, because this has been the criminal profile. They were shocked to learn it was two black males that were committing these crimes, because according to the criminal profile, this type of criminal behavior is typical of a white male between the ages of 25-35.
And if we must get technical considering the longevity of criminal activity in American society, black on white crime pales in comparison to the numerous acts of violence committed on blacks, taking into consideration European criminal behavior has spanned for centuries.
It is only recently with this generation of blacks, in which whites have seen an increase of criminal behavior perpetrated against them, but keep in mind these events are only recent, and not longstanding.
And if you want statistics read an unbiased history book, research historical archives, or some scholarly article on the history of race relations in American society, which I%u2019m quite sure individuals such as you have little interest in the truth.
Not only does the violent acts perpetrated on blacks by whites exceed tremendously those committed by the hands of blacks, but let%u2019s not forget Native Americans over 90,000,000 slaughtered at the hands of Europeans.
Why????? Because we are so suspicious of our leaders intentions, it is highly probable the government will attach the noun "terrorism" to every American citizen. How insane!!!!
So, therefore, at the risk of circumventing our constitutional rights allow any thug, mentally challenged, and would-be mass-murderer the unfettered ability to buy a deadly assault weapon.
While on the other hand, these same individuals worry about constitutionality as congress tries to create policy that would thwart the sale of guns to possible terrorists and eventually thugs, gang bangers, etc.
These same individuals point their pseudo-self-righteous finger at blacks, Hispanics, etc., accusing them of being hedonistic, disrespectful, and uncivilized, but when congress tries to put a stop to the random attacks of violence perpetrated by mentally disturbed irrational individuals, no because it might spill over into their "camp", or, better yet, infringe upon their constitutional rights.
It makes you wonder, who is really uncivilized, hedonistic, and disrespectful, because any rational and logical human-being would lobby congress to create a gun policy that would keep guns out of the hands of thugs, the mentally challenged, and would-be mass-murderers.
And these same individuals are major lobbyist against gun control, because they get a perverse vicarious excitement when random violence perpetrated by blacks, Hispanics, etc. is splashed on the news.
So, they can say %u201CI told you so%u201D over and over again, see those people don%u2019t know how to act, their all degenerates, negating the fact most random mass murders are committed by whites, and now Asians.
Negating the fact, on the West Coast the all-white gang %u201CPublic Enemy%u201D has terrorized law enforcement, communities, etc., pulling bank robberies, credit card fraud, identity theft, convenient store hold-ups, etc., along with Asian gangs.
But, as long as, they can have a scapegoat to project their inadequacies, one that mirrors their own decadent behavior then by all means let%u2019s preserve the sanctity of the Constitution, if nothing for, but to see that these degenerate blacks and Hispanics continue their decadence, so they can keep on saying %u201CI told you so%u201D.
I had to battle to get my e mail program to work with msn. I love e mail as an older person my hearing is not what use to be.
Also as a girl I had to never voice anything. As a young woman the same. I have always felt I HAVE A RIGHT TO MY SAY. I was born in the US of A.This was men that told me this. Yes I care about our world/nation.I feel for the kids now as are they being taught properly. Are the teachers doing their jobs. I am just an old lady. I think the school systems could be better but it is not right to not educate properly. That was pure laziness in my day as it is now. There are good teachers but it seens we only hear about the bad ones.Children need to step upto the plate as well.
So if they are not taught properly they have robbed of so much.They can't read,write,spell,do math,use gammar right,fill out forms,take notes etc. I am talking from xp here.
1. born legally blind in one eye none in the other.
2 Phy. handicapped.
3 FEMALE
4 from a broken home/Mum walked out at age 5.
5spent my life being abused in foster homes/ moved from home to home.Taken in for money only.
6.attended special ed classes from age 10 to high school.I was the only blind kid in them classes so therefore I got nothing out of the schooling due to my special needs.I am way behind my peers. I needed to learn cane travel got that after I graduated high school poorly schooled. It was dumbed down in the 60s and 70s. Worse now. There are blind children as I write this who don't get a proper education. Be mindful we did not have computer. I am in tears alot of times due to this. I never had large print text books. So I could not see to read them.So I hunt and peck to try to get my words out. There were no ADA law then..
It's really great to see young people like you writing here and caring about these things.
Posted by ttinsly at 09:23 AM : May 06, 2007
You might want to read back a bit. Unless my poor memory fails me MichelleM99 is over 52 years old.