-=Continued from previous post=- 
Topic No. 2
Date: Mon, 5 Jan 1998 22:42:47 -0500 (EST)
From: NRA Alerts 
To: general-rkba-real.nra
Subject: FAXALERT: 1998: The Year in Review
Message-ID: 
                        NRA-ILA FAX ALERT
           11250 Waples Mill Road * Fairfax, VA  22030
   Vol. 4, No. 52 * Phone: 1-800-392-8683 * Fax: 703-267-3918 
GROOTS@NRA.org                                       12/31/97
                     1998: THE YEAR IN REVIEW
(Editor's Note: The NRA will be closed on Friday, Jan. 2. 
Therefore, this week's FAX Alert is being transmitted tonight.) 
Listed below are some of the top stories we brought you in the
NRA-ILA FAX Alert over the past year.  We look forward to
providing you with timely stories via this alert in 1998!
                  ATTACKS ON THE FIRST AMENDMENT
In March, NRA joined a host of diverse groups in opposition to
the McCain-Feingold so-called "campaign finance reform"
legislation.  Thankfully, the bill never passed in 1997, but it
will be back next year.  NRA's primary concern over any "campaign
finance" measure is the impact it will have on our ability to
communicate critical election information to our membership --
specifically by cutting off our ability to mail you your NRA-PVF
Political Preference Chart.
           BATF CONFIRMS NRA's POSITION ON BULLET BANS
     In April, we reported how a draft study by BATF concluded
that no U.S. law enforcement officer "who was wearing a bullet-
resistant vest died as a result of any round or ammunition having
been fired from a handgun, penetrating that officer's armor." 
The study noted further that, "[E]xisting laws are working, no
additional legislation regarding such laws is necessary."  Of
course, the study was immediately discredited by anti-gun
bureaucrats in the Treasury Department.
                           HOLY MOSES!
     One of the biggest stories of the year emerged from NRA's
126th Annual Meeting of Members, where pro-gun stalwart Charlton
Heston was elected as NRA's First Vice President.  Heston went on
later in the year to mount a national campaign to educate a new
generation on the importance of the Second Amendment, and he
delivered a scathing speech at Washington's National Press Club
where he informed the media that the Second Amendment is
America's "first freedom."
                    BRADY ACT UNCONSTITUTIONAL
      Your June 27 FAX announced the U.S. Supreme Court's
decision to strike down the "background check" provision of the
Brady Act on 10th Amendment grounds. In siding with the majority,
Justice Clarence Thomas noted that, along with the Tenth
Amendment, "[t]he Second Amendment similarly appears to contain
an express limitation on the government's authority," and that
the "Federal Government's regulatory scheme...at least as it
pertains to the possession of firearms, runs afoul of that
amendment's protections." 
                 WILSON VETOES CALIFORNIA GUN BAN
     Gun owners in California and nationwide rejoiced in
September, when Gov. Pete Wilson (R) vetoed legislation that
would have banned affordable self-defense handguns and could have
led to a ban on all handguns. In his veto, Wilson noted the bill
would "fail to keep guns out of the hands of criminals [and
would] deprive law-abiding, legitimate gun users of the needed
protection of handguns."
                CLINTON PERSUADES INDUSTRY LEADERS
     Many gun owners were surprised in October when President
Clinton announced  an agreement reached between his
administration and several members of the firearms industry, who
agreed to provide locking devices with the handguns they sell. 
President Clinton was joined in the Rose Garden for the
announcement by representatives of 15 of the nation's gun
manufacturers (and Richard Feldman, who heads the American
Shooting Sports Council, a gun industry lobby ).
                BENDING THE LAW AS FAR AS POSSIBLE
     A special October 22 FAX Alert gave NRA members the heads up
on the Bigger Clinton Gun Ban.  This alert was a precursor to a
Presidential Executive Directive prohibiting the importation of
certain foreign made firearms that conform to current law. 
Recent alerts over the last few weeks have documented the
Clinton-Gore Administration's attempts to solicit input from
individuals and groups to determine whether some of these guns
meet the import criterion spelled out under the misguided
"sporting purposes" test.
71%-29%: Although the media failed to report on it in any detail,
your November 7th FAX Alert highlighted NRA-PVF's electoral
victories, including a resounding 71%-29% defeat of I-676 in
Washington State. I-676 was trumpeted by the anti-gun media as a 
"gun safety" proposal, but in reality, it called for, among other
things:  New York City-style  licensing, the requirement that
anyone who resided in a home where a gun was present to obtain a
government-mandated license, and it would have killed the
exemption for stalking victims to get a gun immediately for self-
defense. NRA was part of a coalition that worked to defeat I-676,
and we were joined by virtually all of the state's law
enforcement groups and a number of U.S. Representatives from
Washington's congressional delegation.
             RIGHT TO CARRY MOVING IN RIGHT DIRECTION
     In addition to H.R. 339 -- the national right to carry
reciprocity bill -- picking up more co-sponsors (currently 64),
1997 was a productive year for right to carry in the states as
well. Of the 31 states that allow their residents to carry
concealed firearms for personal protection, five made critical
reforms to their laws this year.  Some of the significant
improvements in Arkansas, Georgia, Oklahoma, Tennessee, and
Virginia included expanding areas where permit holders may carry,
reducing or capping fees, and extending permit duration. 
Additionally, Arkansas, Mississippi, North Dakota, Utah, and
Virginia passed legislation which will allow permit holders from
other states to carry in their states.  NRA-ILA is still working
with these states to iron out details concerning the requirements
for permit reciprocity.
     Have a Safe and Happy New Year!  We'll See You In 1998!
=+=+=+=+
This information is provided as a service of the National Rifle
Association Institute for Legislative Action, Fairfax, VA.
This and other information on the Second Amendment and the NRA is
available at: http://WWW.NRA.Org
------------------------------
End of GENERAL-RKBA Digest 325
******************************
...          ******** NOTE: THIS IS A FORWARDED MESSAGE ********
--- FMail 1.22
---------------