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			    GENERAL-RKBA Digest 334
Topics covered in this issue include:
  1) FAXALERT: First Amendment Fray by NRA Alerts 
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Topic No. 1
Date: Fri, 30 Jan 1998 22:33:54 -0500 (EST)
From: NRA Alerts 
To: general-rkba-real.nra
Subject: FAXALERT: First Amendment Fray
Message-ID: 
                        NRA-ILA FAX ALERT
           11250 Waples Mill Road * Fairfax, VA  22030
    Phone: 1-800-392-8683 * Fax: 703-267-3918 * GROOTS@NRA.org
Vol. 5, No. 4                                             1/30/98
                      FIRST AMENDMENT FRAY
     The much ballyhooed, yet misguided crusade for so-called
"campaign finance reform" legislation is once again rearing its
ugly head.  It's anticipated that as early as next week, the
McCain-Feingold bill (S. 25) will be back on the floor of the
U.S. Senate.  Readers of the NRA-ILA FAX Alert are familiar with
our concerns over this legislation.  Namely, passage of this bill
would severely restrict our ability to communicate critical
election information to our membership by cutting off our ability
to provide you with your NRA-PVF Political Preference Charts. 
S.25 is nothing more than an attack on the First Amendment and an
attempt to silence voices outside of the political party process! 
NRA has testified on many occasions against the McCain-Feingold
legislation, and we have urged you to make your opposition to
this outrageous attack on our Constitutional right to free speech
known to your elected representatives.  With a vote now appearing
imminent, we are once again asking you to contact your U.S.
Senators at 202/224-3121, and urge them to oppose S.25 -- the
McCain -Feingold Campaign Finance Reform Bill.  Tell them that we
hold all of  the Constitution to be inviolate - including the
First AND the Second Amendments!     
    LUNGREN DECIDES GUN CONTROL IS OUT, GUN CONFISCATION IS IN
     On Wednesday, January 28, 1998, in Rocklin, California, Mr.
William Doss presented his SKS Sporter rifle to local law
enforcement for confiscation -- a firearm previously and
expressly deemed acceptable by California Attorney General Dan
Lungren (R).  The crisis was brought about when Mr. Lungren
initially determined that a firearm popular with shooting
enthusiasts was legal under California's Roberti-Roos "Assault
Weapons Control Act" -- only to reverse course later and
pronounce the guns illegal.  In the Spring of 1995, while a
resident of Florida, Mr. Doss contacted the California Department
of Justice (DOJ) to inquire whether he could bring his rifle with
him when he moved to California.  In a letter dated April 5,
1995, DOJ wrote him that his rifle was indeed  legal and could be
brought with him. After becoming a California resident, Mr. Doss
received another letter from the DOJ dated November 24, 1997, 
announcing the policy reversal.  Mr. Doss, an Air Force veteran,
did the only thing he could do, he surrendered his rifle to local
authorities for confiscation.  "In California, the dream of the
gun ban movement has been realized.  California is confiscating
guns and threatening law-abiding citizens with prosecution," said
NRA-ILA Executive Director Tanya K. Metaksa in a Wednesday press
conference.  "The anti-gun agenda is on display in California,"
observed Mrs. Metaksa, "and it is a profoundly radical agenda. 
We are no longer debating gun control.  We are defending NRA
members against gun confiscation." Mrs. Metaksa concluded her
remarks by  pledging NRA-ILA's resources and commitment to Mr.
Doss and thousands of Californians like him. 
                     SURGEON GENERAL SATCHER?
     Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott (R-Miss.) has indicated
that next week, the U.S. Senate will take up the nomination of
Dr. David Satcher for Surgeon General.  As you know, while he
headed the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), a
division within the CDC funded numerous, unscientific, anti-gun
"studies."  As is clear from past FAX Alerts, the potential of
Dr. Satcher serving as Surgeon General causes NRA and gun owners
across the nation grave concern, and as such, we will keep you
posted on any future developments.
                       A LOOK AT THE STATES
ALABAMA: On Tuesday, February 3, NRA-backed "Instant Check"
legislation, House Bill 32, will be brought to the floor of the
House for a vote.  HB 32 would establish an instantaneous
criminal background check system, thus abolishing Alabama's two-
day waiting period for the purchase of firearms.   The bill also
caps the fee prospective buyers may be charged for performing the
check, and includes provisions protecting gun owners from
registration. Please contact your State Representatives and urge
them to support HB 32! 
COLORADO:  House Bill 1138, which would allow Coloradans to
exercise their right to self-defense if an intruder enters their
home or if they are threatened with bodily harm, passed the House
Judiciary Committee on Tuesday, January 27.  The bill now goes to
the full House for a vote. Please contact your State
Representatives and urge them to support HB 1138.  
DELAWARE: Due in large part to a flood of phone calls by NRA
members, consideration of Senate Bill 185 was postponed.  This
bill, which was scheduled for a floor vote in the House, would
not only allow a judge or a justice of the peace to strip you of
your right to own firearms for petty offenses, but it would allow
authorities to search your home and property without probable
cause.  Action on the bill will not take place until the
legislature reconvenes in March. 
MAINE: Second Amendment scholar and attorney Stephen P. Halbrook
will make two free presentations at the University of Maine
School of Law in Portland, Maine, on February 4. Presentation
times are 12 noon and 7 p.m. The topics will cover the recent
"Brady Bill" case of Printz v. U.S., and a variety of issues
concerning the right to keep and bear arms. For more information
on the presentations, contact Brad MacDonald at (207) 773-1513.  
MISSOURI: The House Miscellaneous Bills and Resolutions Committee
unanimously passed House Concurrent Resolution 10, which promotes
and encourages the use of NRA's award-winning Eddie Eagle Gun
Safety Program in Missouri's schools and communities. 
OREGON: Good news! Earlier this week, the Josephine County
Commissioners met and appointed pro-gun candidate Carl Wilson to
fill the vacant seat in House District 49.  
VIRGINIA:  NRA-PVF-endorsed candidate, Dick Black, (R) won last
week's firehouse primary in House District 32. The general
election will be held on Tuesday, February 3. If you live in
House District 32, be sure to head to the polls and cast your
ballot for Dick Black.  
WASHINGTON: U.S. Rep. Jack Metcalf (R-2) is starting his own fax
alert for constituents who share his concerns about Second 
Amendment issues. If you'd like to receive these special updates,
please call Lesley Dalton at Rep. Metcalf's Washington, D.C.
office at 202/225-2605.
=+=+=+=+
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
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End of GENERAL-RKBA Digest 334
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