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			    GENERAL-RKBA Digest 337
Topics covered in this issue include:
1) INFO: NRA-ILA Position on the Clinton Gun and Magazine Ban by NRA 
   Alerts 
2) INFO: Response to Article Appearing in Michigan Gun Owners's Newsletter 
   by NRA Alerts 
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Topic No. 1
Date: Thu, 19 Feb 1998 17:02:15 -0500 (EST)
From: NRA Alerts 
To: general-rkba-real.nra
Subject: INFO: NRA-ILA Position on the Clinton Gun and Magazine Ban
Message-ID: 
February 19, 1998
The following letter is being sent in response to queries about
rumors circulating on the Internet and elsewhere about NRA-ILA's
position on the Clinton gun and magazine ban.
--------------------------
Dear NRA Member:    
     Recently, there has been a rumor circulating about NRA-ILA's
position on the Clinton gun and magazine ban.  The rapid and
widespread reach of this erroneous information is clear evidence
of the need to confirm, with a reliable source, any questionable
information obtained via the Internet.  I thank you for taking
the time to do just that by contacting my office.
     The basis for this rumor was a conversation between one
particular individual and a representative from a telemarketing
firm contracted by NRA for membership recruitment. 
Unfortunately, in his zeal to sign up a new member, the
telemarketer made several false statements to this particular
individual regarding our position on the Clinton gun and magazine
ban.  The telemarketing firm in question has been suspended
pending further review of their procedures.  Furthermore, the
telemarketer involved in this incident has been removed from our
account.
     Let me assure you that NRA-ILA opposes the Clinton gun and
magazine ban and is committed to its full repeal.  We opposed
this ban when it was first introduced as stand-alone legislation;
we opposed it being attached to the rest of the 1994 Clinton
crime bill; and we are still opposed to the ban now that it is
law.
     Our efforts to defeat the ban in Congress are well-
documented.  During the summer of 1994, NRA-ILA led the charge
against this ill-conceived legislation.  We left no stone
unturned, no option unused in our effort to kill this bill.  When
it became clear that despite our best efforts, we did not have
the votes to block its passage, we orchestrated the legislative
maneuver that stalled its passage for two weeks.  Unfortunately,
with the vast resources of the United States Treasury at his
disposal, President Clinton was finally able to persuade enough
lawmakers to drop their opposition to his crime bill and force it
through Congress. 
     We did not give up, however.  That fall, we poured millions
of dollars into campaigns across the nation to defeat anti-gun
politicians and elect the most pro-gun Congress in decades. 
President Clinton himself "blamed" NRA for his party's decisive
defeat in the 1994 elections, and acknowledged during his State
of the Union address in January the politically devastating
impact of his anti-gun policies.  
     In 1996, on a bi-partisan vote, the House of Representatives
passed overwhelmingly a full repeal of the Clinton gun and
magazine ban.  Passage of this repeal was achieved only after
months of hard work by NRA-ILA to bring this legislation to the
floor.  Unfortunately, the Senate took no action on the repeal.
     While we relentlessly exploited every legislative remedy at
our disposal, we simultaneously pursued this matter in the
courts.  In 1995, NRA filed suit in the U.S. District Court for
the Eastern District of Michigan challenging the law.  When that
suit was dismissed, NRA appealed to the Sixth U.S. Circuit Court. 
Last November, that court reinstated the challenge to the federal
gun ban, and as I write to you today, the staff of NRA's Office
of General Counsel is busy preparing their arguments in this
case.
     Clearly, an organization that supported the Clinton gun and
magazine ban would never go to such lengths to abolish it.  In
fact, NRA has invested more money and time in the effort to scrap
the Clinton gun and magazine ban than any other organization in
the United States.  And I would remind you that our battle
against gun bans is by no means limited to the Federal level. 
Right now, in California, NRA is fighting a semi-automatic ban
that threatens to put law-abiding gun owners like you and me in
jail.  
       I hope this information puts to rest any concerns you may
have had about this matter.  Please do not hesitate to contact us
again if you ever have any questions about this or any other NRA-
ILA policy.
Sincerely,
Tanya K. Metaksa, Executive Director
NRA Institute for Legislative Action
=+=+=+=+
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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