McCain and Gun Owners
The Hill has an interesting bit on how McCain has to mend some fences with gun rights folks:
“John McCain still has some work to do to give them a comfort level,” Chris Cox, executive director of the NRA, said during an interview with The Hill. “Truth be told, he’s not there yet.”
Cox said McCain and the anti-gun control group have endured some “high-profile disagreements” in the last several years that have left many gun owners concerned about his candidacy.
Specifically, McCain played a leading role in crafting the campaign finance reform law that bears his name and that also enraged many lobbying groups. The NRA was one of the most outspoken.
Of the three presidential candidates, McCain is the only one to sign on to the Heller brief.
April 10th, 2008 at 10:18 am
So did half the world. This guy is a piece of shit. Let’s look to candidates who will actually represent us.
April 10th, 2008 at 1:19 pm
It’s a little late for that.
April 10th, 2008 at 2:00 pm
Yup.
And Bush II signed into law the Texas carry permit thingy when it let him look distinct from Ann Richards. He’s been a real friend to our RKBA since then. Not.
Oh and if and when this “parks carry” rule swicharoo kicks in at the sunset of Bush II’s term, well it will be real easy for the next President to reverse.
It’s almost as if they are saying “Vote Republican, or they’ll switch it back!” The Republicans have had years to appeal to us gun owners, and this is the best they are willing to do?
Sorry, “big tent” Republicans, y’all can do better. At this point I’m still staying home.
April 10th, 2008 at 2:28 pm
“Mending some fences” apparently would mean, “fooling us into thinking he’s something he’s not”.
April 10th, 2008 at 4:41 pm
Too bad we can’t count on anybody advanced gun rights, or I should say restoring our gun rights, this presidential election. All we can hope for is somebody not to go against the 2nd. I suppose McCain is the least likely, though, he seems like the most likely to kiss the ass of Big Media.
April 10th, 2008 at 6:23 pm
Shall Not Be Infringed (TM):
No, all he did was sign into law an improvement to that same friggin’ law during his tenure as governor, before going on to preside over the first friggin’ DOJ to officially recognize the Second friggin’ Amendment in 60 friggin’ years, and install two friggin’ Justices onto the Supreme Friggin’ Court to make that the friggin’ law in all friggin’ states. No friend of gun owners, that Bush guy.
As to McCain, it suffices to note that the NRA must look to something other than guns or the Second Amendment to conclude that “he’s not there yet.” I don’t like McCain-Feingold any more than they do, but I never claimed to be a single-issue organization.
April 10th, 2008 at 9:27 pm
Not one of the three can have my vote. If that pisses people off, let them join me. I’m tired of being told I must submit to evil, that my only choice is which evil I willingly submit to.
If my position hastens the day when some of these issues are settled by force, so be it. The choice is theirs. I will accept no responsibility for their choice. I may react to it.
April 10th, 2008 at 11:32 pm
Straigharrow, with all due respect you’re too fucking stupid to know evil if it bit you in the scrotum. Far from being pissed off, I’m actually quite glad you are throwing away your vote this election, in principle. The only problem in practice is that liberals who are just as ignorant as you won’t be throwing away theirs. Until they do, we need yours.
April 11th, 2008 at 11:18 am
nitpicking differences.
Which did what exactly again? I must have missed where that was anything other than window dressing
Who are obviously, rabidly pro-RKBA? Right? I mean, it’s not like you can get appointed to the supremes if you don’t keep your cards close to your chest.
Meanwhile we have the case of Mike Sullivan. Bush is still thumbs-up on the maggot. John McCain could always put a hold on his nomination. He could also suggest a replacement.
April 11th, 2008 at 6:38 pm
Not nitpicking differences. Substantial improvement. Not nearly as substantial as going shall-issue in the first place, but substantial nonetheless. Certainly substantial enough for Algore to give him shit about wanting people to pack in church.
You miss out on a lot. At the time , such “window dressing” had no immediate effect. Now, with Heller pending before the Supreme Court, its effect could be huge. Even if the Supremes were inclined to nullify the Second Amendment on their own (as they would be if Bush had lost in 2004), they are far less likely to do it over the objections of both coordinate branches of the government.
“Machine gun Sammy” Alito certainly is rabidly pro-RKBA in the eyes of his opponents. Both he and Roberts appear to be “rabid” enough to enforce the basic meaning of the Second Amendment, which is the most anyone should expect of the Supreme Court anyway. They’re certainly more likely to do that than anyone President Gore or President Ketchup-Widow would have appointed in their place.
April 12th, 2008 at 1:30 am
And Bush supported this because he’s rabidly-RKBA? No, it was a way to differentiate himself from his opponent. It does not matter if the law ended up being “may” issue or Vermont carry, it’s his intent. Remember he offered to reup the “assault weapons ban”, if elected and it landed on his desk.
Ah good, I was worried that suddenly there were mass releases/pardons of people jailed strictly because they violated one of 10,000 of the nations gun laws, and I missed the whole thing.
Bush selected conservative judges that did not wear their Second Amendment interpretations on their sleeves. To suggest that this was all of secretly freedom-fanatic GWB’s master plan to let freedom ring makes you look like you have been smoking some space base.
And how many Kelo, Raich, or Morse v. Frederick type future cases do we get with our Heller?
April 13th, 2008 at 7:15 pm
… because he is sensibly pro-RKBA, which apparently isn’t all that popular with those more interested in contracting rabies than in advancing gun rights.
Which makes him imperfect on the Second Amendment, but no one ever argued that he was perfect, did they? FWIW, the “assault” weapons ban expired on his watch, in no small part because he didn’t lift a finger to advance it, as President Gore almost certainly would have done (Clinton had to twist more than a few arms in the Democrat-controlled Congress to get the original ban passed). Rather than bitching about the sausage making process, why not take a minute or two to enjoy the friggin’ sausage?
See above re sensible efforts to advance gun rights vs. fixation on rabies. I’m more interested in the former than the latter, but YMMV.
You say that like it’s a bad thing. Since when are judges supposed to wear any political agenda on their sleeves? This has got to be one of the strangest critiques of the Bush Administration that I’ve heard from anyone, and that’s saying a lot.
As a result of Bush’s appointments? None. The smart money says both Bush appointees would have voted with the dissent in Kelo, but that wouldn’t have affected the outcome since both of the justices they replaced were among the dissenters, too. But since you’re so eager to blame Bush for the outcome in Kelo, I’m sure you’ll find some way to blame Bush for the fact that nine non-Bush appointees ruled the way they did.
I’m tired of doing your basic homework for you, so I’ll let you dig up your own information on who ruled how, and how Justices Roberts and Alito would likely vote now, in the other cases you cited.