BREAKING NEWS: Gun Bill Passes Senate Hurdle as Filibuster Falls Short

Hat tip to Fox News for this report

Controversial gun legislation cleared a key Senate hurdle Thursday, as lawmakers voted 68-31 to start debate on the package which includes expanded background checks and new penalties for gun trafficking. 

Senate Democrats, joined by (16 Republicans), were able to overcome an attempted filibuster by GOP senators opposed to the current bill. Those senators could still slow-walk the debate, but the Senate will ultimately begin votes on amendments — one of which is considered crucial to winning support for a final vote. 

The amendment likely to be at the front of the line is one from Sens. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., and Pat Toomey, R-Pa., which would scale back the call for universal background checks. The plan would expand checks to gun-show and Internet sales, but exempt certain personal transactions. 

The National Rifle Association and other gun-rights supporters voiced concern about the new proposal, saying it still goes too far. But the plan, offered by two lawmakers who are at the conservative end of their respective parties, could help ease opposition ahead of a final vote. 

The legislation required at least 60 votes to advance Thursday. If the bill ultimately passes the Senate, it would still have to pass the Republican-dominated House.

“The hard work starts now,” Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid acknowledged after Thursday’s vote. 

He assured Democrats that a proposal to renew the assault weapons ban and a ban on high-capacity magazines would get a vote as an amendment, though it was dropped from the main bill amid intense opposition. 

Reid lost two Democrats in Thursday’s vote — Sen. Mark Pryor, D-Ark., and Sen. Mark Begich, D-Alaska, both lawmakers from states with a strong tradition of gun ownership. 

More than a dozen Republican senators for days had threatened to hold up the bill Thursday. They voiced concern that the proposal — namely, the background checks provision — would infringe on Second Amendment rights and impose a burden on law-abiding gun owners. They also expressed frustration that, while Manchin and Toomey touted their compromise measure, the bill on the table Thursday did not yet include that. Rather, it included a stricter background checks measure. 

“Because the background-check measure is the centerpiece of this legislation it is critical that we know what is in the bill before we vote on it,” Sens. Rand Paul, R-Ky.; Ted Cruz, R-Texas; and Mike Lee, R-Utah, said in a statement. “The American people expect more and deserve better.”

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2013/04/11/gun-bill-clears-senate-hurdle-as-filibuster-falls-short/

 

NRA: Wayne LaPierre’s Bold Claim: Gun Registry Will Be Used to Confiscate Your Guns

Hat tip to The Blaze for this report

National Rifle Association executive vice president and CEO Wayne LaPierre continued speaking out against President Obama’s recent gun control proposals Saturday night, zeroing in on “the real consequences of background checks,” according to the NRA.

The organization has been targeted by many on the left in the wake of the tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary last December.  While the NRA argues that more guns in the hands of law-abiding citizens creates a safer community, many in the administration and on the left disagree, saying it leads to more gun violence and accidental deaths.

Most recently, the NRA has been publicizing a memo it by from the Justice Department that says the success of universal background checks would depend in part on “requiring gun registration,” and says gun buybacks would not be effective “unless massive and coupled with a ban.”

LaPierre began his speech with a reminder on why he believes it’s so important to counter strict gun control measures:

“The Second Amendment — it’s not just words on parchment.  It’s not a frivolous suggestion from our Founding Fathers to be interpreted on a whim.  It lies on the very heart of what our country was founded upon.  Our Founding Fathers knew that without the Second Amendment, all of our other freedoms could be in jeopardy.  [And] our freedoms  are the very essence of America.  They are what make America unique.”

Now, he said, we’re witnessing the single-most devastating attack on that right that “our country has ever seen.”

He discussed NRA proposals to make schools safer, noting that Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) admitted that she had gun control legislation in her desk for a year and was waiting for the “right time” to introduce it.  In his opinion, many gun control opponents more about politics than they are proven solutions.

“Waiting for an unspeakable act to occur so the American people could be persuaded to buy her political agenda?” LaPierre commented with disgust.  “It’s not about making our kids or our streets safer, it’s all about their decades-old agenda.”

He soon got to the heart of his speech: universal background checks, and what he claims they’re really all about:

“Don’t you be fooled.  There is nothing “universal,” nor “reasonable” about it.  They ought to stop pretending and stop calling it what it will never be.  Criminals will never be a part of it, and I have come to believe that the adjudicated mentally incompetent [won't either]…This so-called universal background check that you’re hearing about is aimed at one thing: it’s aimed at registering your guns and, when another tragic opportunity presents itself, that registry will be used to confiscate your guns.”

“Imagine right now, your name on a massive government list,” he asked the audience, noting that it would be pretty “handy” for a drug dealer, thug, or criminal.  “How safe do you think that government list will be?” he continued, noting the flood of personal information released this year by various media outlets on gun owners.

LaPierre proceeded to highlight other gun control proposals state by state, concluding with a word on how the Mexican government has asked the U.S. Senate for a registry of all gun owners in the United States.

“What is the point of that?” he asked.

“They have all the security they want,” LaPierre said, referring to politicians.  “Our ​only​ means of security is the Second Amendment when the glass breaks in the middle of the night, and we have a right to defend ourselves…They don’t have the right to take that right away.”

“Was this what our Founding Fathers intended?” he asked.  What Washington needs to do is recognize that Americans really have shared goals: they want their communities to be safer, and they will do anything to protect their kids.

Start focusing on that, he said, and “stop trying to convince the American people that all law-abiding gun owners are criminals in waiting.”

He concluded with an inspiring statement on how many gun control proposals have failed, and NRA members and Americans need to continue standing up and making their voices heard.  He told the crowd to call their congressmen and senators this week, then sit down and write a hand-written letter, and follow up with an email.

“We will not be duped.  We will not be demonized.  And we will not be divided,” he said.

“As lawful gun-owners, we deserve nothing less than absolute respect as people that believe in our individual rights, believe in individual responsibility, believe in protecting our families, and believe in defending our country.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2013/02/23/watch-it-live-nras-wayne-lapierre-confronts-the-real-consequences-of-background-checks/

My Second Amendment Rights shall not be… INFRINGED

Amendment II

A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the Security of a Free State, the right of the People to Keep and Bear Arms, shall not be INFRINGED

ANY QUESTIONS?

 

They Aim to take your Guns America

Hat tip to The Blaze for this report

Missouri Dems Introduce Alarming Gun Confiscation Bill Giving Law-Abiding Gun Owners 90 Days to Turn in Certain Firearms or Become Felons

Democrats in Missouri introduced startling anti-gun legislation that would require gun owners to hand over their legally purchased so-called “assault weapons”  to “the appropriate law enforcement agency for destruction” within 90 days.

Under the proposed bill, “Any person who, prior to the effective date of this law, was legally in possession of an assault weapon or large capacity magazine shall have ninety days from such effective date to do any of the following without being subject to prosecution.”

Here are some additional provisions found in the gun control bill:

(1) Remove the assault weapon or large capacity magazine from the state of Missouri;

(2) Render the assault weapon permanently inoperable; or

(3) Surrender the assault weapon or large capacity magazine to the appropriate law enforcement agency for destruction, subject to specific agency regulations.

4. Unlawful manufacture, import, possession, purchase, sale, or transfer of an assault weapon or a large capacity magazine is a class C felony.

So essentially the law would turn a law-abiding gun owner today, into a felon tomorrow.

State Reps. Rory Ellinger (D-86) and Jill Schupp (D-88) reportedly introduced the anti-gun legislation, House Bill 545, this week.

Gun confiscation is being talked about more and more by lawmakers as a means to get so-called “assault weapons,” which are really semi-automatic rifles, off the streets. Democrats in California last week also proposed legislation that called for the potential confiscation of the state’s 166,000 legally purchased semi-automatic rifles.

California Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg (D-Sacramento) defended the massive gun control package, saying “we can save lives.”

http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2013/02/14/missouri-dems-introduce-alarming-gun-confiscation-bill-giving-law-abiding-gun-owners-90-days-to-turn-in-certain-firearms-or-become-felons/

Breaking: MN Democrats Introduce Law to Confiscate Guns… Give Gun Owners 6 Months to Turn in Weapons

Posted by Jim Hoft on Thursday, February 14, 2013

Breaking: MN Democrats Introduce Law to Confiscate Guns… Using Same Language as MO Democrats

(thegatewaypundit.com)

Don’t Let this Happen to America

ANY QUESTIONS?

Related articles

• Be Vigilant America: They want your Guns! (ireporters.wordpress.com)
• IT BEGINS! Missouri Dems Introduce Alarming Gun Confiscation Bill (twighlightslastgleaming.wordpress.com)
• Breaking: MN Democrats Introduce Law to Confiscate Guns… Using Same Language as MO Democrats (thegatewaypundit.com)
• TYRANNY ALERT: Debunking Obama’s “We don’t want to take away your guns” myth; Missouri and Minnesota Progressives introduce legislation to do just that. (pumabydesign001.com)

 

President Obama’s Egyption Muslim Brotherhood Support Erupts into Riots

Hat tip to CNN for this report

30 dead after Egyptians angry about riot verdicts try to storm prison

By Reza Sayah and Amir Ahmed, CNN

Cairo (CNN) — A stern Egyptian court ruling tied to a soccer riot spurred clashes that left at least 30 people dead on Saturday, the latest round of violence in the unsettled North African nation.

In addition to those killed, more than 300 were wounded when people in the northeastern city of Port Said clashed with authorities outside a prison where their kin were being held, the head of Port Said hospitals told state-run Nile TV.

They were angry because 21 of their relatives had just been sentenced to death for their role in a February 1 riot in a Port Said stadium.

That 2012 incident — during a game between Cairo’s prestigious Al-Ahly football club and the host Al-Masry team — ended with 73 dead.

Two months later, Egypt’s general prosecutor charged 75 people with “premeditated murder and attempted murder,” while three Al-Masry officials and nine police officers were charged with “assisting the murderers.”

According to the prosecutor’s office, those in the latter group knew about the assault ahead of time, didn’t confiscate weapons in advance, didn’t stop them and — in the case of an electricity engineer who was charged — turned off the lights directly over the bleachers where the Al-Ahly fans were sitting right after the visiting team wrapped up its 3-1 victory.

Fans from both sides bashed each other with rocks and chairs, yet prosecutors claimed the Port Said supporters were also armed with knives and other weapons.

Many died after falling from bleachers inside the stadium, while others suffocated.

It was unclear whether intense sports rivalries or political strife sparked the riot, though witnesses said tensions had grown throughout the game with Al-Masry fans throwing bottles and rocks at the opposing players.

That violence begat more on Saturday, after some of the defendants’ relatives tried to storm the Port Said prison to free their loved ones being held inside, Interior Ministry spokesman Brig. Gen. Osama Ismail told Nile TV.

The reaction was far different in Cairo, where Saturday’s verdict was issued due to security concerns.

One man cried for joy, feeling that “justice has been survived” following the death of his oldest son, the married father of two children.

“I finally felt that I am in a civilized country,” added a woman in Cairo’s capital. “My son (did) nothing wrong. But my son’s legacy will live on, because of the true justice served here.”

Egypt embroiled in deadly political unrest

Saturday’s Port Said violence comes on the heels of other bloodshed around the nation, which was tied more explicitly to unrest about Egypt’s current leadership but nonetheless symptomatic of instability and insecurity two years after longtime President Hosni Mubarak was ousted.

More recently, protesters have focused their anger at current President Mohamed Morsy.

The former Muslim Brotherhood leader, who became Egypt’s first democratically elected leader last year, has come under fire by some who compared him to Mubarak and said he amassed power for himself and his Islamist allies. He has insisted his moves were necessary to move Egypt forward in the face of pressing issues and persistent obstacles.

On Friday — the anniversary of what some call the January 25 Revolution — six people were killed in Suez and one in Ismailia, amid clashes involving anti-government protesters and those supportive of Morsy, as well as police. Hundreds more were injured in the unrest nationwide.

Opinion: U.S. gets it wrong on Egypt again

Referring to this violence and what happened Saturday in Port Said, Information Minister Salah Abdul Maqsoud read a statement on state TV saying the government was considering implementing a state of emergency in some areas.

“The (National Defense Council) denounces the acts of violence and demands all national and political forces be committed to the peaceful ways to express their opinion,” Maqsoud said after a meeting led by Morsy. “(The council) calls for wider national dialogue, led by (prominent) figures, to discuss the issues of political disagreement and reach national accordance.”

On Saturday in Suez — about 90 miles south of Port Said — the government deployed troops and armored military vehicles in response to the previous day’s clashes.

Brig. Gen. Adel Refat, the head of security in Suez, asked for the help after declaring the area “out of control,” according to state news. Protesters accused Egyptian forces of opening fire during the demonstrations, a claim Refat strongly denied.

Meanwhile, in Cairo, clashes extended to areas around the Shura Council, the upper house of parliament. Protesters overnight waged a standoff outside the Nile TV offices, with some tossing Molotov cocktails and police responding with tear gas.

Journalist Ramy Francis and CNN’s Reza Sayah reported from Cairo; CNN’s Amir Ahmed reported Atlanta. CNN’s Chelsea J. Carter, Greg Botelho, Yousuf Basil and Hamdi Alkhshali contributed to this report.

http://www.cnn.com/2013/01/26/world/africa/egypt-unrest/index.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+rss%2Fcnn_topstories+%28RSS%3A+Top+Stories%29&utm_content=My+Yahoo

ANY QUESTIONS?

 

A warning to Democrats on New Gun Control Laws from former President Bill Clintion

Hat tip to The Blaze for this report

Bill Clinton Warns Dems:

Don’t ‘Patronize’ and Look ‘Down Your Nose’ at Gun Culture

Former U.S. President Bill Clinton spoke with top Democratic donors at a private meeting on Saturday where, according to Politico, he warned the group to treat gun control differently than other political issues.

“Do not patronize the passionate supporters of your opponents by looking down your nose at them,” Clinton reportedly said.  “A lot of these people live in a world very different from the world lived in by the people proposing these things…”

He proceeded to explain how, though polling data is certainly useful for politicians, it doesn’t measure the emotion and enthusiasm associated with an issue.  And it’s the passion associated with gun control, Clinton argued, that makes it so delicate.

Politico continues:

Clinton dedicated a substantial portion of his 40-minute address before a joint meeting of the Obama National Finance Committee and a group of business leaders to the issue of guns and gun control, saying that it was a test-case for President Barack Obama’s grass-roots movements…

“The way the Obama campaign won Florida, won Ohio, won this election by more than projected was the combination of technology, social media and personal contact,” Clinton said. That’s “the only way that our side will ever be able to even up the votes in the midterms and as these issues come up, really touch people and talk to them about it.”

But he said that he understands the culture that permeates a state like Arkansas — where guns are a longstanding part of local culture.

“A lot of these people … all they’ve got is their hunting and their fishing,” he told the Democratic financiers. “Or they’re living in a place where they don’t have much police presence. Or they’ve been listening to this stuff for so long that they believe it all.”  [Emphasis added]

In the opinion of the former president, those who are patting themselves on the back for their “brave” efforts on gun control may not be seeing the full picture.

“Do not be self-congratulatory about how brave you [are] for being for this” gun control push, he said.  “The only brave people are the people who are going to lose their jobs if they vote with you.”

http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2013/01/19/bill-clinton-warns-dems-dont-patronize-and-look-down-your-nose-at-gun-culture/

 

Dear Gun Control Activists, Its time for you to Sober Up

ANY QUESTIONS?

The Oppression of America has begun…

There was a chemistry professor in a large college that had some exchange students in the class.

One day while the class was in the lab, the professor noticed one young man, an exchange student, who kept rubbing his back and stretching as if his back hurt. The professor asked the young man what was the matter.

The student told him he had a bullet lodged in his back. He had been shot while fighting communists in his native country who were trying to overthrow his country’s government and install a new communist regime.

In the midst of his story, he looked at the professor and asked a strange question. He asked: “Do you know how to catch wild pigs?”

The professor thought it was a joke and asked for the punch line.

The young man said that it was no joke. “You catch wild pigs by finding a suitable place in the woods and putting corn on the ground.
The pigs find it and begin to come every day to eat the free corn.

“When they are used to coming every day, you put a fence down one side of the place where they are used to coming.
When they get used to the fence, they begin to eat the corn again and you put up another side of the fence.

“They get used to that and start to eat again. You continue until you have all four sides of the fence up with a gate in the last side.

“The pigs, which are used to the free corn, start to come through the gate to eat that free corn again.

You then slam the gate on them and catch the whole herd.

Suddenly the wild pigs have lost their freedom.

They run around and around inside the fence, but they are caught.

Soon they go back to eating the free corn.

They are so used to it that they have forgotten how to forage in the woods for themselves, so they accept their captivity.”

The young man then told the professor that is exactly what he sees happening in America .

The government keeps pushing us toward Marxist/Communism and keeps spreading the free corn out in the form of programs such as supplemental income, tax credit for unearned income, tax exemptions, tobacco subsidies, dairy subsidies, payments not to plant crops (CRP), welfare, medicine, drugs, etc.
While we continually lose our freedoms, just a little at a time.

 

Let’s Roll for Love of Country my Patriot Friends

Hat tip to Partnering with Eagles for these Videos

Let’s Finish the Race

Related articles

• CRITICAL MASS 2012…The Video by PARTNERING WITH EAGLES (votingamerican.wordpress.com)

Mr. President, when you can’t run on your Record you Resort to a Smear Campaign

WAKE UP AMERICA

The most important Election in the History of these United States is about to take place and YOU will determine what America will Become or what she will Remain

Those Diverse, tolerant Liberal Democrats won’t look at the facts posted here but those of you who care more about America then a Political Party will.

VOTE THIS COMING TUESDAY

ANY QUESTIONS?

I am a Voting American and I approve this message

See all of Voting American’s Articles here:

http://votingamerican.wordpress.com/

Related articles

• How can anyone in their right mind Vote Obama/Biden? (twighlightslastgleaming.wordpress.com)