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Kerry and guns (again)

This article discusses Kerry’s attempt at courting both sides of the gun issue:

Democrats in West Virginia know that many of their state’s voters guard their gun rights jealously, and that their fear in 2000 that Al Gore was out to take their weapons — stoked by Republicans and the National Rifle Association — helped seal the former vice president’s defeat.

Then later in the same piece:

Last week in Washington, Kerry attacked President Bush for failing to push for an extension of the federal assault-weapons ban, a measure that gun rights groups have fiercely opposed. The Massachusetts Democrat had rarely mentioned his support for gun control laws until the ban was about to lapse, aware that many members of his own party who represent rural areas oppose such restrictions.

Kerry has worked aggressively to stake out a centrist position on the gun issue. He has been outspoken about his own experience with guns — going pheasant hunting with a local sheriff in Iowa last year, forming a group in April called Sportsmen for Kerry, and putting forth a “Sportsman’s Bill of Rights.” That list includes support for gun rights, easier access to hunting areas, and environmental measures to preserve wildlife.

I don’t find it odd that centrists favor gun control because most people don’t know what current gun laws are. For example, they think the assault weapons ban affected machine guns when it doesn’t. The article shows Kerry’s attempt to walk the line on gun control, which, for the most part, pro-gun folks aren’t going to buy. After all, anti-gunners claim their views are moderate. Meanwhile, this article asks if Kerry has just given up on appealing to gun folk:

Why on earth would John Kerry make his inaccurate, indeed, nonsensical comments about the ”consquences” of the expiration of the ”assault weapons” ban and President Bush’s decision to let it expire? Perhaps he has simply given up on trying to convince those who believe in our constitutional right to own fireams that he is one of them. That’s the opinion of Kimberley A. Strassel, writing in The Wall Street Journal (sic).

Strassel says that no one has worked harder than Kerry to neutralize the gun issue, which worked against Democrats in the last election. But no one seems to be buying his act–that he supports gun rights, identifies with hunters, and is not your typical liberal, who thinks (or, perhaps, feels is the better word) that gun ownership automatically makes someone an irrational, rednecked, and about-to-run-berserk and shoot-up the neighborhood post office.

Also, a gun law expert examining the Kerry shotgun kerfuffle concludes:

. . . accepting a gift shotgun from a private party out of his home state would be a five-year federal felony for Massachusetts Senator John Kerry, the Democratic candidate for President [see United States Code, section 922(a)(9)]. Giving him the gun would also be a felony [922(a)(5)].

Additionally, the Kerry campaign reports that Kerry returned the shotgun to the person who bought it (even though no one seems to be able to say where the shotgun currently is). No crime, just insincere political pandering.

10 Responses to “Kerry and guns (again)”

  1. Xrlq Says:

    I don’t find it odd that centrists favor gun control because most people don’t know what current gun laws are.

    Bingo. One of the dumbest, but most common polling questions is “do you favor more X, less X, or the same amount we have.” There’s never a test question to make sure the respondent knows how much X we have now, so the results are meaningless.

  2. countertop Says:

    Where did you see that Kerry returned the gun?

    I hadn’t read that.

  3. SayUncle Says:

    From the article listed at AFA.

  4. Crusty Says:

    For all you fact-checking people in pajamas, those sections would be found under United States Code Title 18.

    Oh, what the heck, I’ll just give it to you: http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/18/922.html

  5. Lee Says:

    Note: Kerry and his freinds are looking to make themselves “centrist” by putting out a sportsman’s rights law. But god forbid that you should need to defend yourself.

    But he’s from Mass. so the belief really is: “You don’t have to protect yourself, the police do that.” Except they don’t. Ever wonder why Mass. has such a high instance of concealed carry permits? Because if you want to target shoot or Hunt, you have to go through the same thing as if you were getting a concealed carry permit.

    That logic I think we could do without.

  6. Manish Says:

    I certainly hope that you aren’t implying that Bush isn’t trying to play both sides of the debate too since he supports the AWB officially.

    I did read somewhere that Kerry has given up on the hard-core gun enthusiasts since he figures they’ll vote Bush no matter what and is aiming at the more moderate gun owners.

  7. countertop Says:

    Ha. Thanks. I read right over that section and it didn’t register – though I was still somewhat asleep when I read this the first time 🙂

  8. SayUncle Says:

    Manish,

    when have i ever given bush a pass on the awb?

  9. kevino Says:

    Senator Kerry may have returned the shotgun that created problems for his campaign, but it is not over. Days after blasting Presdient Bush for not pushing to get the assault weapons ban renewed, an interview with Bush and Kerry appears in _Outdoor_Life_ magazine.

    OL: Are you a gun owner? If so, what is your favorite gun?
    Bush: Yes. My favorite gun is a Weatherby, Athena 20-gauge (over/under).
    Kerry: My favorite gun is the M-16 that saved my life and that of my crew in Vietnam. I don’t own one of those now, but one of my reminders of my service is a Communist Chinese assault rifle.

    Source: http://www.outdoorlife.com/outdoor/news/article/0,19912,696240-4,00.html

  10. Alan Korwin Says:

    I guess you’ve already seen my release on this, would be glad to keep you informed as this and other issues develop.
    Alan.

    Kerry Off Hook In Shotgun Incident?

    Shotgun Incident Worsens for Kerry

    New legal research by gun-law expert Alan Korwin indicates that merely accepting a gift shotgun from a private party out of his home state would be a five-year federal felony for Massachusetts Senator John Kerry, the Democratic candidate for President [see United States Code, section 922(a)(9)]. Giving him the gun would also be a felony [922(a)(5)].

    National news reports picture Kerry proudly holding the gift in Racine, West Virginia, during a Labor Day celebration. Bringing the gun back to his home state would be an additional five-year federal felony, under the massive and bewildering federal gun laws, as previously reported by Bloomfield Press.

    The shotgun, identified in published reports as a semiautomatic Browning, was actually a semiautomatic Remington model 11-87. News reports suggesting it was a gift from Remington would be an illegal donation from a corporation to a candidate, and the value of the shotgun would exceed campaign donation limits as well.

    In a statement published in Gun Week, Remington CEO Tommy Millner denied any involvement with the gift, saying, “Rest assured, we were neither aware of this presentation in advance nor in any way supportive of its intent to support Senator Kerry. In fact, the Company remains amused by ongoing photos of Senator Kerry shooting without either ear or eye protection while discharging a firearm.”

    Reportedly outraged at the implication of an illegal gift, Remington rushed the release a public statement denying any association with the gift, saying, “Remington Arms Company has made no endorsement of any presidential candidate. This endorsement and presentation by the UMWA was made independently of the Remington Arms Company and the Company did not coordinate with or endorse the actions of the union.”

    A local of United Mine Workers of America (UMWA) represents workers at the Remington plant in New York where the highly regarded shotguns are made. UMWA President Cecil E. Roberts presented the gift according to Gun Week.

    The greatest news error however appears to be that Mr. Kerry may have not accepted this gift, despite so many reports to the contrary, which cast the Senator as a pro-gun politician.

    Reporter Matt Drudge had previously noted that Kerry introduced a bill which would have outlawed this particular sporting shotgun, because it is semi-automatic and has “any characteristic that can function as a grip.”

    Dave Workman, senior editor at Gun Week, contacted Washington, D.C.-based Kerry campaign spokeswoman Kathy Roeder, who said the shotgun was, “returned to the person who bought it,” and that the gun is still in West Virginia. This reportedly took place immediately after all the photographs were taken of the Senator holding the gun. The actual current location of the shotgun is not known.

    According to Workman’s report in Gun Week, “Roeder acknowledged that Kerry could not legally have accepted the shotgun and taken it with him, anyway, under existing gun-control laws.” It is not clear whether Roeder and the Kerry campaign were aware of this when the stories of the gift and photos were taken and widely circulated.

    Questions as to Kerry’s intent, in leading the media to believe he was in fact a gun supporter, by smiling and gladly receiving the shotgun gift, are unresolved as this Bloomfield Press news release was posted.

    This places many news outlets in a difficult position. If they all retract their stories that Kerry accepted this gift, it will harm the image they conveyed of Kerry as a gun-friendly candidate, seen as necessary to win states like West Virginia. Al Gore lost largely democratic West Virginia (and Tennessee and Arkansas) in 2000 due to the gun issue, according to many observers.

    News outlets are known to sometimes be reluctant to retract stories. If the media refuses to retract the stories, or if the Kerry campaign fails to issue a correction, then all the published articles and photos stand as evidence that the candidate committed the felony offense. Additional information is posted at the Bloomfield Press website, gunlaws.com, under the blue News Accuracy button.

    In an effort to help smooth the waters, nearly 3,000 news outlets nationwide are being notified of this situation by Bloomfield Press. The public is encouraged to send this report to their local newspapers and broadcasters. It is hoped that the media will contact Kerry directly, and either retract the story, or confirm their account. Did John Kerry, in fact, receive a gift of a fine Remington shotgun?

    If Kerry did accept the gift as widely reported, and as a legal matter, his transfer of it back to an unidentified person in West Virginia, without involvement of a licensed dealer, an FBI background check, and with no paper trail, may also be a felony.

    Gun-law expert Korwin is again calling for calm, as these unbelievably confusing laws are sorted out, so the democratic candidate for president can continue his effort to attain the highest office in the land.

    “Again, I implore the public to have patience. If the democratic candidate for president cannot figure out the gun laws, how on earth could mere gun owners be expected to do the same. Kerry deserves the same leniency we would all expect to receive. This is America, where we’re all treated equally under the long arms of the law.”

    ###

    Contact:
    Alan Korwin
    BLOOMFIELD PRESS
    “We publish the gun laws.”
    4718 E. Cactus #440
    Phoenix, AZ 85032
    602-996-4020 Phone
    602-494-0679 FAX
    1-800-707-4020 Orders
    http://www.gunlaws.com
    alan@gunlaws.com
    Call, write, fax or click for a free catalog.

    If you can read this, thank a teacher.
    If you’re reading this in English, thank a veteran.

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