Senator Obama: Protecting Your Job and Your GUNS?

October 18, 2008 | Denton, Texas | Vetting explained

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Last updated: October 22, 2008

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Recently, Huffingtonpost.com showed the AFL-CIO's new mailer touting Obama's defense of gun rights. Let's see about that... Here's the post: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/10/14/afl-cio-mailer-touts-obama_n_134472.html Considering the Democratic Party is widely believed to have lost Congress in 1994 because of Clinton's "Assault Weapon" Ban, I tend to question the motivations behind the mainstream media largely ignoring the issue and Obama's record, especially before the distracting credit crisis. To those in and out of the media who take Senator Obama at his recent word regarding his positions on gun control, and the rights of gun owners and would-be gun owners, I ask you to revisit his record with me here. Senator Obama never stood up for the rights of lawful gun owners in Illinois. In fact, he voted for legislation to further restrict and criminalize legal gun ownership in a bill which would have confiscated firearms already in possession within 90 days of the law's enactment under felony penalty of law (SB1195, 2003). He lied in the presidential primary debates about his documented support (in TWO separate political surveys with his handwriting on them) of a ban on production, transfer, and possession of all semi-automatic firearms and all handguns. Chicago already has a total ban on handguns and most long gun ownership, and Obama has never challenged that. In fact, he was in the small minority of the state legislature in voting against a protection from weapons charges for people who use a gun in otherwise lawful self-defense in their home. In 2004 Obama told the Chicago Tribune that he supported Federal legislation to outlaw concealed carry nationwide, and has said he doesn't believe in the concept despite its well studied record of safety. In the US Senate he voted for an amendment by Ted Kennedy which would set such a low and vague threshold for banning armor piercing ammunition that it would, by its wording and definitions, ban nearly all hunting ammo designed for anything but small game (amdt.1615 to S.397 2005). If you believe that Senator Obama thinks the 2nd Amendment protects an individual right to arms, you weren't paying attention in the primary debates when he was pressed by the moderator and confirmed that he believes the Washington D.C. gun ban, which the Supreme Court shortly overturned, was, in fact, constitutional, even though it was a total ban on possession, at any time, of a functional firearm by people without criminal records. It banned mere possession of all handguns and semi-automatic firearms. The ban included no provision to load or unlock an allowed gun for self-defense, even if being attacked. He considers the ban a "reasonable" method for keeping "AK-47s out of the hands of criminals." Any study of D.C. crime statistics shows for 30 years it's only been successful in keeping even single-shot firearms out of the hands of innocent victims as they're raped, beaten, robbed, and killed in and out of their homes at unprecedented rates. The brilliant constitutional law scholar doesn't see his statements as contradictory, though. When he was on the board of the Joyce Foundation, Obama voted consistently to give millions of dollars to the most extreme anti-gun groups like HCI/Brady and VPC to fund dishonest propaganda campaigns and reverse engineered advocacy "research," which was then fed to the media and used by politicians to push the gun control agenda through lies and distortions. They even contributed hundreds of thousands of dollars to purchase full editorial control of, and distribute to jurists, issues of the Chicago-Kent, Fordham, and Stanford law reviews to present 100% anti-gun arguments cover-to-cover in an attempt to overcome the awakening to the individual-rights view of the 2nd Amendment by constitutional law icons like Obama's own Harvard mentor and liberal, Lawrence Tribe. (http://www.bookrags.com/wiki/Joyce_Foundation#Law_review_symposia) If you check the record and re-read all of Obama's statements about gun rights, he always parses his words in a way which leaves room for anything short of a federal law confiscating already-owned weapons (though he has voted for a confiscation bill!). Furthermore, he's never renounced any of his prior positions, votes, or statements-- only talked around them or deflected the questions. I haven't even given a comprehensive list of his positions here! I challenge you to research Obama with what I've said in mind-- check his voting record, check his statements from before the presidential campaign, and then ask yourself if you'd have a better option than a phone and an average nine minute wait for police to photograph your body if Senator Obama is able to enact the gun control laws he's supported for his entire political career, now with the help of a possible filibuster-proof Democrat majority in Congress. Furthermore, he will likely get to appoint at least one Supreme Court Justice. He has said he would appoint jurists like the exact four who opined to uphold the D.C. gun ban, who view the meaning of the Constitution as changeable without actually amending its words! And Obama is no moderate, having voted against both nominees to come before him of the five who ruled against the ban, and stating that he would not have appointed two others. Do not think the D.C. v Heller case is decided for all time; its scope is not settled, and it can be reinterpreted, misinterpreted, or overturned, especially as a 5-4 ruling and with the help of the dozens of lower court judges Obama will get to appoint! People should visit the NRA's admittedly cheesy website below to learn more, not because the NRA is always distortion free, but because they list Obama's anti-gun record with all the end notes you need to find the documentation for yourself! Google is your friend, Obama is not. Click: http://www.gunbanobama.com/Default.aspx?NavGuid=530ecfa4-ae4e-4819-97e6-892463d99f08 As for the "Assault Weapons" Ban, which Obama wants to renew and expand, according to the NIJ it pertains to only 2%-8% of crime guns and had no significant impact on crime rates or outcomes according to the government's own study. Here are two links that explain the basics. Make an informed decision. Video from a civilian: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sfKADcfE90U Video from a cop: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vbIIjIFKYYg&feature=related

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Campaign 2008

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