Wednesday, April 18, 2007
2008 Candidates Weak on Firearms Rights
AP Reporter Calvin Woodward authored an extreme Leftist piece on gun control that shows the bias I would expect from an AP reporter. (How bad was it? Well, I had to properly sanitize my monitor afterwards.)
However, there are a few gems in this Leftist diatribe. Woodward briefly summarizes the pro-gun control records of announced 2008 candidates - the records that they have been running from thus far on the campaign trail.
On Guiliani:
His emphasis on state-by-state solutions to gun control in the GOP primaries contrasts with his past enthusiasm for a federal mandate to register handgun owners — an even stiffer requirement than registering guns.
On Romney and Guiliani:
Giuliani, as New York mayor and former Senate candidate, and Mitt Romney, as Massachusetts governor, supported the federal ban on assault-type weapons, background checks on gun purchases and other restrictions reviled by many gun-rights advocates.
On McCain:
McCain has a long record of voting for gun rights in the Senate but changed some of his views, sponsoring legislation to support the gun show restrictions he once opposed.
On Clinton:
The other New Yorker in this race, Democrat Hillary Rodham Clinton, also supported proposals for state-issued photo gun licenses, as well as a national registry for handgun sales, in positions laid out for crime-weary New Yorkers in 2000.
On Edwards:
And Democratic candidate John Edwards, despite recently highlighting his boyhood outings hunting birds, rabbits and deer as well as his respect for gun ownership rights, backed his party's main gun control measures when he was in the Senate.
On Obama:
Illinois Sen. Barack Obama, as a state lawmaker in the 1990s, supported a ban on semiautomatic weapons and tougher state restrictions on firearms.
But my real hope is that the Democratic candidates listen to their special interest groups on this issue. Please follow the advise of Third Way policy specialist James Kessler:
"I don't think that a candidate will be punished for supporting gun safety measures this time around."
Yes, Hillary, Barack, and John, listen to James. Support gun control. Put on trigger locks for the cameras ala Parris Glendenning. Try to balance your support for taking the "self" our of "self-defense" while standing in full camo after a hunting photo op. Attack the NRA, GOA, and other pro-Second Amendment groups.
Do that, and watch your chances at the White House evaporate in 2008.
However, there are a few gems in this Leftist diatribe. Woodward briefly summarizes the pro-gun control records of announced 2008 candidates - the records that they have been running from thus far on the campaign trail.
On Guiliani:
His emphasis on state-by-state solutions to gun control in the GOP primaries contrasts with his past enthusiasm for a federal mandate to register handgun owners — an even stiffer requirement than registering guns.
On Romney and Guiliani:
Giuliani, as New York mayor and former Senate candidate, and Mitt Romney, as Massachusetts governor, supported the federal ban on assault-type weapons, background checks on gun purchases and other restrictions reviled by many gun-rights advocates.
On McCain:
McCain has a long record of voting for gun rights in the Senate but changed some of his views, sponsoring legislation to support the gun show restrictions he once opposed.
On Clinton:
The other New Yorker in this race, Democrat Hillary Rodham Clinton, also supported proposals for state-issued photo gun licenses, as well as a national registry for handgun sales, in positions laid out for crime-weary New Yorkers in 2000.
On Edwards:
And Democratic candidate John Edwards, despite recently highlighting his boyhood outings hunting birds, rabbits and deer as well as his respect for gun ownership rights, backed his party's main gun control measures when he was in the Senate.
On Obama:
Illinois Sen. Barack Obama, as a state lawmaker in the 1990s, supported a ban on semiautomatic weapons and tougher state restrictions on firearms.
But my real hope is that the Democratic candidates listen to their special interest groups on this issue. Please follow the advise of Third Way policy specialist James Kessler:
"I don't think that a candidate will be punished for supporting gun safety measures this time around."
Yes, Hillary, Barack, and John, listen to James. Support gun control. Put on trigger locks for the cameras ala Parris Glendenning. Try to balance your support for taking the "self" our of "self-defense" while standing in full camo after a hunting photo op. Attack the NRA, GOA, and other pro-Second Amendment groups.
Do that, and watch your chances at the White House evaporate in 2008.
Labels: 2008 General Election, Second Amendment
Permalink posted by Rob Huddleston @ 7:47 AM 
