From the New York Times, Barbara Boxer comments on the clout of the NRA:
“It is a shame,†said Senator Barbara Boxer, Democrat of California. “But you have to come to a realization around here that at this point in time, the N.R.A. gets the votes,†she said referring to the National Rifle Association.
“Either you are going to bring down the whole Senate and never do anything or you or going to swallow hard and say, ‘I will just vote my conscience on those amendments and speak out until people get a hold of their senses,’ †Mrs. Boxer said.
It must be painful for them. I would say I feel sorry for them, but I don’t really. What a pity your little plan to trash part of the Bill of Rights is falling on difficult times. It’s difficult times for everyone, right?
Everybody should send two emails. One to Couburn and thank him for the admendment. The second to Boxer asking her to read the consitution and if she can’t abide by it then she should resign becasue she is not upholdoing her oath of office. I know it want do any good but if enough of us do it it will at least be a pain in the ass for her.
I generally believe that amendments to legislation should be related to the original legislation, rather than being unrelated as is the case with this amendment.
Even though it’s somewhat hypocritical, I’m still glad it passed in this case.
Everyone whines when “the other side” uses such tactics — I recall the Republicans complaining when the Democrats used such amendments on various legislation during the Bush administration, and the Democrats complaining when the Republicans did so in the Clinton administration.
I also find it somewhat humorous when politicians blame “the NRA” or “the gun lobby,” rather than acknowledging that there’s a lot of private citizens who own guns and who value their rights.
AZ, the Philly media did a big “blame the NRA” piece over the weekend for the Senate vote. Of course, they never once acknowledged that NRA represents hundreds of thousands of voters – therefore hundreds of thousands of constituents of our two Senators who voted for the amendment. I don’t think I have ever seen a city so self-centered. They really seem to believe that they should be able to run the state even though they don’t have the votes.
This bill does not “allow” anybody to carry loaded firearms in national parks. It simply recognizes the sovereign authority of the states and takes away an internal police power that the federal government shouldn’t have claim to in the first place. Where in the constitution is a power granted to the feds to arrest people for carrying firearms in their home state , in accordance with that state’s laws?
Nothing in this bill prevents state governments from placing restrictions on carrying in parks. It’s a real shame that most people are too ignorant to understand this concept.
Where in the constitution is a power granted to the feds to arrest people for carrying firearms in their home state , in accordance with that state’s laws?
Here:
The Congress shall have power to dispose of and make all needful rules and regulations respecting the territory or other property belonging to the United States; and nothing in this Constitution shall be so construed as to prejudice any claims of the United States, or of any particular state.
Actually, for Babs Boxer those are outstandingly cogent thoughts.
She uncharacteristically used sentences with meaning, structure, flow, and even nouns and verbs. Apparently she is much better at describing the actions of the vast right wing conspiracy, then trying to to articulate what passes for though in her own head.