Democrats Rush Holder Confirmation: In two days, Sen. Pat Leahy (D-Vt.) will begin the Senate Judiciary Committee confirmation hearing on Eric Holder, former Clinton deputy attorney general who is President-elect Barack Obama's highly controversial nominee to the office of Attorney General. Holder, best known for playing a major role in the Clinton pardon of fugitive financier Marc Rich, will face skeptical Republicans, including ranking Republican Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pa.). Specter has run into a Leahy roadblock in his attempts to get some of the background documents on the nomination. Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy has refused to sign off on document requests by Republicans relevant to the hearing from the Department of Justice and the Clinton administration archives at the library in Little Rock... http://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=30257 Urge Your Senators to Vote No on Holder Confirmation: Barack Obama is wasting no time poking a sharp stick in the eyes of gun owners. The incoming President's choice for U.S. Attorney General, Eric Holder, is an anti-gun extremist who has assailed gun owners since his days in the Bill Clinton administration. Holder, who served as Deputy Attorney General from 1997-2001, supports a 3-day waiting period for handgun purchases, one-gun-a-month rationing, licensing and registration of all gun owners, mandatory so-called smart gun technology, a lifetime gun ban for certain juvenile offenses and regulating gun shows out of existence... Gun Owners of America has asked all members of the U.S. Senate to reject this anti-Second Amendment activist. Now we're urging gun owners across the country to contact their own Senators and insist that they vote "NO" on Eric Holder... http://gunowners.org/a011309.htm The NRA's Position: Color me only slightly surprised by this news from Erick Erickson at Red State. The NRA will not use the confirmation vote on Eric Holder as a score for its national rankings this year, limiting their opposition to the nominee for Attorney General to a letter to members. Erick calls this a "pitiful sellout", but it looks more like a nod to reality.. http://hotair.com/archives/2009/01/13/the-nra-throws-in-the-towel-on-holder/ http://www.redstate.com/erick/2009/01/12/breaking-national-rifle-association-wusses-out-on-holder/ Further Commentary: http://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=30261 --- Congress Fires First Shot: ...If passed, this bill would require that anyone wishing to purchase, own, or possess a "qualifying firearm" - that's any handgun, and any long gun capable of accepting a detachable magazine - would have to be licensed by the state or the federal government in a licensing program managed by the Attorney General. To get a license you would have to prove you're you, provide a passport-style photo, a thumbprint, and take a written exam which includes questions about firearms safety, safe storage, the risks of firearms ownership, and anything else the Attorney General deems appropriate. All transfers would be required to go through a licensed dealer with the exception of occasional gifts or bequests between parents, children (18 or over), and grandparents, or loans of not more than 30 days between "persons who are personally known to one another." (It actually says that. I'm not making this up.) And all transfers would have to be recorded in a "Transfer Record" established and maintained by the Attorney General... http://www.firearmscoalition.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=315&Itemid=63 ... H.R. 45 is a resurfacing of 2007's H.R. 2666, which contained much of the same language and was co-sponsored by 15 other representatives and Barack Obama's current chief of staff, Rahm Emmanuel. H.R. 2666 was assigned to the House Judiciary committee, where no action was taken. H.R. 45 currently has no co-sponsors and is likewise assigned to the House Judiciary committee. http://www.worldnetdaily.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=86039 --- Bill Would Boost BATFE Funding: In an effort to crack down on illegal weapons smuggling and reduce drug-related violence near the U.S.-Mexico border, Sen. Jeff Bingaman, D-N.M, Monday introduced the Southwest Border Violence Reduction Act of 2009. Cosponsored by Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchinson, R-Texas, the bill was first introduced in spring of 2008. According to figures produced by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and released by Bingaman's office, 90 percent of weapons seized in Mexico come from sources in the United States. The weapons are used by drug cartels to control their drug shipment routes and funnel illegal narcotics into the U.S... The bill would authorize $30 million over the next two years to expand the U.S. Department of Justice's "Project Gunrunner Initiative," a successful program targeting gun trafficking networks. The funding would enable ATF to hire, train and deploy additional special agents in U.S. border states as part of the initiative... http://www.currentargus.com/ci_11439317 But Where Do They Get Grenades?: ... As scary as the guns may be, Newell said he is also worried about a new threat looming across the border. "We're seeing an alarming increase in the amount of hand grenades being seized," said Newell. Law enforcement officers in Mexico are now finding military grenades. In Nogales, Mexico, seven fragmented [sic] grenades were seized at a at a Mexican Military checkpoint in November. "Guns in the hands of violent criminals is a serious concern. Hand grenades in the hands of violent criminals is an even greater concern," said Newell. Newell admits he's concerned the grenades could make their way into Arizona and the Valley... (The marketplace is like water seeking its lowest level. The Mexican government is so corrupted that when it becomes too costly to get firearms from the US, they will come out of Mexican military armories, which is the likely source of the grenades.) http://www.abc15.com/content/news/centralsouthernarizona/story/ATF-concerned-about-increase-of-grenades-seized/VsuULS7agEeLgFZ77NX-4g.cspx --- Not "If" but "When": Are gun owners going to be a high priority target for the Obama administration? Jim Shepard, who writes the Shooting Wire, says: "Democratic insiders are telling us the firearms industry will be used as an object lesson to both sides of the aisle. To the left, it's the always-popular smackdown of a group of right-wing loonies (that's you and me, by the way) who want gunfights on the streets of our hometowns. To the right, it will represent a little payback for the rhetoric that was taken very personally by the incoming administration. In other words, a little taste of the whip should keep both sides nicely in line." We don't know yet what the Obama administration has in store for us, but as Shepard reminds us, it's a matter of "when," not "if," the Second Amendment is going to come under attack. I know you're ready to defend your firearms freedom, but if you know a gun owner who's not yet a member of the NRA, get them to join. We need to be as strong as possible in 2009 in order to fight these attempts to restrict your constitutional rights. http://www.nranews.com/blogarticle.aspx?blogPostId=485 --- The Beat Goes On: Outside Shooter's Supply in Loveland, six men line up on a Wednesday morning waiting impatiently for Marvin Mann to open the small shop at 10 a.m. so they can stock up on guns and ammunition. Less than 10 miles away, a frustrated Mike Sargeant laments how he can't find any .223-caliber rifle rounds for his customers at Country Attic Treasures General Store in South Lebanon. His distributor is out. Orders for AR-15 assault rifles are running six months behind. In Northern Kentucky, Alex Logsdon is seeing a rush of first-timers looking to buy a pistol at Shooter's Supply & Sporting Goods in Independence. "They come in looking like country-clubbers or people who have never considered owning a gun," Logsdon says. "They almost look like, 'I can't believe I'm in here. But I'm buying a gun because of the past election.'" ... http://news.cincinnati.com/article/20090113/NEWS01/301130067 --- NRA. GOA Settle San Francisco Suit: A federal lawsuit filed by the National Rifle Association to challenge a San Francisco Housing Authority ban on gun possession in public housing has been settled. The NRA sued the housing authority the day after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled on June 26, 2008, that the Second Amendment of the U.S. Constitution gives individuals the right to possess guns. Under the settlement, signed by U.S. District Judge Thelton Henderson on Monday, the agency will no longer enforce a 2005 rule that prohibited the otherwise legal possession of guns and ammunition in public housing units. But the settlement states that illegal possession of firearms and ammunition in the units remains strictly prohibited... In addition to the NRA, plaintiffs in the lawsuit included the Washington state-based Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms and an anonymous gay public housing resident who said he needed a gun for protection against possible hate crimes... (This was one of two lawsuits that conceivably, had it made it to the Supreme Court, could have led to incorporation of the Second Amendment against the states.) http://www.ktvu.com/news/18475359/detail.html?rss=fran&psp=news#- --- Virginia Panel Balks at Gun-Show Rule: The Virginia State Crime Commission on Tuesday declined to endorse closing the so-called gun show loophole in Virginia law, heightening uncertainty about the prospects of success in the General Assembly... Philip Van Cleave, president of the Virginia Citizens Defense League, a gun-rights group, said he was heartened by the commission's inaction, arguing that the measure would only make private transactions more onerous for gun owners and do nothing to stop crime... Gun owners note that the Virginia Tech gunman, Seung Hui Cho, obtained his weapons from federally licensed firearms dealers and underwent criminal background checks. Despite some opposition Tuesday, the commission recommended that lawmakers consider requiring Virginia State Police to be on hand at some gun shows to help monitor firearms transactions. The cost of the troopers' presence would be borne by gun show promoters. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/01/13/AR2009011301872.html?hpid=moreheadlines ... The 6-6 vote by the commission was largely symbolic and will not stop proponents from filing a bill to close the "loophole" in state law that allows private sellers at gun shows to avoid the background checks that commercial dealers are required to perform. However, whatever bill is filed in the 2009 General Assembly, which starts Wednesday, will not get the commission's approval. Similar bills have failed for at least the past five years, but supporters vowed to continue fighting for them... http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2009/jan/14/panel-deadlocks-over-closing-gun-show-loophole/ --- Gary Can Proceed with Lawsuit: The Indiana Supreme Court today declined to get involved again with the city of Gary's 10-year-old lawsuit against several gun makers, allowing the case to proceed to trial. The court's order, issued after the justices reviewed the gun manufacturers' request that they take up the case, lets stand an October 2007 Indiana Court of Appeals ruling. That 3-0 ruling said a provision in the federal Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act, passed by Congress in 2005, did not bar the Gary lawsuit from proceeding in state court... http://www.indystar.com/article/20090112/NEWS02/90112074 --- Pennsylvania Clergy Target Dealers: Citing frustration with the legislature's reluctance to pass tough laws against "straw" handgun purchases, a coalition of religious leaders stood outside a gun store yesterday and announced a plan to pressure retailers directly. "We . . . cannot stand by while towns and cities suffer senseless violence," said Bishop Allen Bartlett, assisting bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Pennsylvania. He was joined on the sidewalk in front of Colosimo's Gun Center in the 900 block of Spring Garden Street by representatives of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Philadelphia, the Friends Yearly Meeting, and a synagogue... http://www.philly.com/inquirer/local/pa/20090113_Clergy_targeting_gun_dealers.html --- "More Guns, More Crime" Rebutted: A new article has recently appeared in a peer-reviewed journal on the issue of whether "shall issue" right-to-carry concealed weapons laws (reqwuiring authorities to issue concealed-weapons weapons to anyone who applies without a criminal record or history of mental illness). The article, found here, concludes that such laws are generally beneficial... http://volokh.com/posts/1231870158.shtml --- Gura Speaks in Iowa: The attorney who successfully persuaded the Supreme Court to overturn Washington, D.C.'s gun ban last year said the case is just the first step in a process to limit governments from restricting a person's right to own a gun. "No single case will ever tell us for all times when it's OK to bear arms and when it's not," Alan Gura said in a presentation at the University of Iowa College of Law on Monday. "This decision is just the first step. The constitution is forever, and interpreting it will never end." Gura was the lead attorney in the case District of Columbia v. Heller, which was heard by the Court last March and decided in June. At issue was a law restricting gun ownership by residents of Washington, D.C... http://www.press-citizen.com/article/20090113/NEWS01/90113007/1079 --- Marine Amputee Acquitted on Gun-Possession Charge: After being deadlocked twice, a D.C. Superior Court jury yesterday acquitted a Marine amputee on felony charges of gun possession stemming from an arrest while he was on the way to Walter Reed Army Medical Center. In the 2006 incident, Cpl. Melroy H. Cort, 24, and his wife, Samantha, were en route from their home in Columbus, Ohio, to Walter Reed. Cort's legs had been amputated above the knees when he was wounded by a makeshift bomb in Ramadi during his third tour of duty in Iraq... He was assigned a public defender, who encouraged him to plead guilty. But Cort refused, because a felony on his record could cost him his military benefits. So he decided to represent himself... Cort, who said he had a permit to carry the gun in Ohio, said he had it with him because he had moved out of his house in anticipation of an extended stay at Walter Reed. He said his commanding officer had advised him to take the gun to the armory on Walter Reed's base as soon as he arrived... Although acquitting him of the gun charges, the jury found Cort guilty of possessing ammunition, a misdemeanor. He was sentenced to time already spent in the D.C. jail... http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/01/13/AR2009011302840.html --- The Perry Stephens/George Perry Incident: A dramatic (and controversial) defensive shooting occurred in Baton Rouge on February 17, 2006. A citizen shot and killed a man who had overpowered and was viciously beating a police officer. The results of that incident have scarred the lives of several people and families. As with many shootings of this type, the basic facts of the event were covered, but finite details were left out of the reports. Print media will carry the gist of the story, but the nuts and bolts, the details that cover the precise nature of the incident are rarely discussed. Broadcast media reports do little more than cover the high spots, adding drama, but little depth... http://www.theshootist.net/2009/01/one-man-got-involved-perry_12.html --- Good Thinking: Altha Rider usually keeps a .38 pistol by her bedside. Thursday night, the 87-year-old woman was ready to use it. It wasn't long after Rider went to bed Thursday night that someone tried to kick in the front door of her home at 65 Brushy Road, she told an officer, whom she met at the carport door with pistol in hand... Rider went looking with the .38 pistol that she keeps by her bedside for protection. She said she also has a .410 shotgun, but realized that would only give her one shot before she would have to reload... (Further, the barrel on a long will generally give an assailant both purchase and leverage for a disarm.) http://www.guardonline.com/?q=node/50883 --- Rule Five Reminder: A veteran Seminole County teacher whose loaded handgun turned up on a driveway at Heathrow Elementary School is fighting to keep her job. Michele McGhee says she accidentally picked up the .357 Smith & Wesson with items to take to school and apparently dropped it on the bus loop on her way into the building on Dec. 12, 2007. A school secretary found the gun and McGhee's cell phone a few minutes later. Superintendent Bill Vogel said Wednesday the error is unforgivable and she must be fired... (Rule Five: Maintain control of your firearm.) http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/local/seminole/orl-gunflinger1309jan13,0,7920918.story --- More Pakistanis Carrying Guns: ... For years, guns have been signs of prestige for young men in Pakistan, especially in the rugged tribal regions and in the Punjab, where hunting is popular... But for young, middle-class professionals such as Mr. Noor, gun ownership is a recent phenomenon. "People are picking up guns because they feel there is no law and order in the country," said Islamabad-based defense analyst Ayesha Siddiqa. "The writ of the state is very weak and the police don't have the ability to protect its citizens. As a result, security has become privatized." ... The waiting time for a license can extend from months to years. Still, the Interior Ministry issued almost 50 percent more licenses for pistols and handguns in 2008 than the previous year. The most common way to purchase a gun is through connections, said Jehangir Shahzad, a journalist who covers these issues. "You know someone who knows someone and that's how you get a gun," he said... http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2009/jan/13/pakistanis-dont-leave-home-without-ak-47s/ -- Stephen P. Wenger, KE7QBY Firearm safety - It's a matter for education, not legislation. http://www.spw-duf.info .