Another Senator jumps off the S. 10 Bandwagon!
-- Time to light another fire under the "turkeys" as the Holiday
approaches
by Gun Owners of America
8001 Forbes Place, Suite 102, Springfield, VA 22151
(703)321-8585, fax: 321-8408, http://www.gunowners.org
(Monday, November 24, 1997)
GOA And Activists Keeping The Pressure On. On November 9,
Senator Bob Smith (R-NH) became the second senator to withdraw
his name as a cosponsor of S. 10, the anti-gun crime bill
introduced by Sen. Hatch (R-UT). [Senator Wayne Allard (R-CO)
was the first senator to pull his name from the bill.] Both
Senators Smith and Allard withdrew their names after being
contacted by GOA staff and after receiving a significant amount
of faxes and mail from GOA activists.
S. 10, as reported by the Senate Judiciary Committee, has
undergone considerable changes from the form in which it was
introduced. But it still remains a dangerous piece of anti-gun
legislation.
Originally, S. 10 could have sent a gun dealer, manufacturer or
owner to prison for up to 20 years for something as minor as two
record-keeping errors. Also, the original bill would have punished
average gun owners for very technical offenses, such as possessing
two semi-automatics where the cosmetic features did not comply with
the 1994 Clinton gun ban.
Sen. Hatch and the Judiciary Committee have modified the most
onerous provision in the bill. But having said that, don't think
that S. 10 is now safe for gun owners. It certainly is not!
The bill still applies draconian penalties for the most
innocuous offenses, such as increasing penalties for the parent who
takes his son pistol shooting without a written note of permission
which is required by federal law (section 207). Likewise, the bill
could still apply a 25 year sentence on the father if he, under
similar circumstances, brings his family of five pistol shooting
(section 203).
Moreover, the bill would still encourage lawsuits against gun
manufacturers, who could find themselves bombarded by the same sort
of huge lawsuits which have been aimed at the tobacco industry --
lawsuits generated by Handgun Control, Inc. devised to force the
forfeiture of manufacturing businesses and to bring about an end to
the firearms industry in America (section 206). (For a more detailed
analysis, visit the GOA webpage at
http://www.gunowners.org/anas10.htm and see how this bill threatens
gun owners, as well as gun dealers and manufacturers.)
ACTION: Urge the following Senators to follow the lead of
Senators Smith and Allard in removing their names from S. 10. All 26
Senators listed below are still cosponsors of Sen. Orrin Hatch's
anti-gun crime bill (S. 10). If your Senator is not listed below,
thank him and urge him not to support S. 10. Call the Capitol at
1-800-522-6721, 1-888-723-5246, or 202-224-3121.
Fax the message below to the following S. 10 cosponsors!
Fax Numbers: (All are area code 202)
Abraham (R-MI) Faircloth (R-NC) Mack (R-FL)
202-224-8834 202-224-7406 202-224-8022
Ashcroft (R-MO) Gorton (R-WA) McConnell (R-KY)
228-5126 224-9393 224-2499
Bond (R-MO) Grams (R-MN) Murkowski (R-AK)
224-8149 228-0956 224-5301
Burns (R-MT) Grassley (R-IA) Roberts (R-KS)
224-8594 224-6020 224-3514
Coverdell (R-GA) Hagel (R-NE) Sessions (R-AL)
228-3783 224-5213 224-3149
Craig (R-ID) Helms (R-NC) Thomas (R-WY)
228-1067 228-1339 224-1724
D'Amato (R-NY) Hutchinson (R-AR) Thurmond (R-SC)
224-5871 228-3973 224-1300
Domenici (R-NM) Kyl (R-AZ) Warner (R-VA)
224-7371 228-1239 224-6295
Enzi (R-WY) Lott (R-MS)
228-0359 224-2262
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Dear Senator,
I am writing to urge you to withdraw your name as a cosponsor
of the anti-gun "juvenile justice bill," S. 10. This bill would
apply the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO)
to gun owners, gun dealers, and gun manufacturers (section 206).
Thus, gun manufacturers could find themselves bombarded by the
same sort of huge lawsuits which have been aimed at the tobacco
industry -- lawsuits generated by Handgun Control, Inc. devised to
force the forfeiture of manufacturing businesses and to bring about
an end to the firearms industry in America.
Likewise, the "criminal gang" provision in the bill could
impose RICO-like penalties on unsuspecting gun owners (section 203).
If a gun owner regularly took his family of five pistol shooting,
and his kids failed to possess the written permission slip required
by law, he could be subject to twenty-five years in prison.
Clearly, this abomination cannot be allowed to pass into law.
Again, please withdraw your name as a cosponsor of S. 10 and do
everything in your power to assure that the Senate does not approve
any legislation to apply RICO to the Second Amendment.
Sincerely,
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The above message should be sent to Senators that have
cosponsored S. 10. There is another action you can take to help
defeat S. 10: the GOA Auto-mailer has been updated. At
http://www.gunowners.org/mailerx.html you will find a pre-written
e-mail message addressed to Senator Bob Smith. Now that he has
withdrawn his support for the bill, we would like to see him take
the extra step of placing a "hold" on S. 10. Please drop by the
website and use the Auto-mailer program to contact Sen. Smith.
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Clinton Import Ban. Earlier this month, GOA reported on
President Clinton and his plans to ban the importation of
semi-automatics that are supposedly not suitable for "sporting
purposes." [Currently, he has only "suspended" their importation;
but he is using both the 1968 Gun Control Act and former President
Bush's import ban from 1989 as a precedent for considering a
permanent ban.] GOA is still encouraging people to support H.R.
2734, a bill that will, in essence, nullify Clinton's import ban.
Also, Rep. Ron Paul has introduced H.R. 2721, which will repeal the
"sporting purpose" test from federal law. [Paul's bill would also
repeal both the 1994 gun ban and Brady Law.] The best avenue for
action that grassroots activists can now take is to ask their
Representatives to cosponsor these bills. GOA will keep you up to
date on any further developments.
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Boycott Sara Lee Corporation! Women Against Gun Control urges
gun rights supporters everywhere to participate in a world-wide
boycott of Sara Lee products. The boycott is to protest Sara Lee's
presentation of its "Humanities" award to Sarah Brady, as well as
its donation of $50,000 to the Center to Prevent Handgun Violence.
Stop buying products distributed by Sara Lee or its
subsidiaries: Sara Lee, Ball Park, Hillshire Farm, Jimmy Dean,
Aoste, Douwe Egberts, Hanes, Hanes Her Way, L'eggs, Bali, Playtex,
Champion, Coach, Dim, Sanex and Kiwi. Let Sara Lee know that you
disapprove of its efforts to undermine your Second Amendment rights.
Call, write, fax, or email Sara Lee today!
Contact Info. for Sara Lee Corporation
3 First National Plaza
Chicago, IL 60602-4260
Ph: 800-621-5235
Fax: 312-726-3712
Web comment form: http://www.saralee.com/tools/suggestions/
For more information, http://www.wagc.com is the Women Against
Gun Control website.
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