NRA Reports On Senate Attempt at Gun Control
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Austin, TX -(AmmoLand.com)- On Thursday, December 3, the U.S. Senate took up H.R. 3762, the Restoring Americans’ Healthcare Freedom Reconciliation Act.
Despite the seemingly innocuous title, the bill set up a dramatic showdown over Second Amendment rights. The bill was brought under budget reconciliation, an expedited legislative procedure for a budget resolution to meet fiscal targets.
Under this procedure, the bill required only 51 votes to pass the Senate and was limited to 20 hours of debate. It was also subject to a rule which prohibits non-budget related provisions from being added. Anti-gun Democrats were nevertheless determined to exploit both the bill and recent tragedies to attach as many gun control amendments as possible. To proceed to debate on these out-of-order amendments, however, they had to reach a supermajority of 60 votes to suspend the rules. The pro-gun Senate you elected held the line. Every anti-gun amendment was defeated.
Long-time Second Amendment opponent Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) offered a far-reaching amendment that would have given the U.S. Attorney General what amounted to a discretionary veto on gun sales to anyone “appropriately suspected” of having some connection to “terrorism.” Anti-gun bureaucrats would have been empowered to deny Second Amendment rights based merely on their own “reasonable belief” concerning someone’s present or future intentions.
Gun control advocates have made clear, however, that they don’t trust anybody with a gun, and they have slandered pro-Second Amendment Americans as dangerous “right wing extremists” and worse. Equally clear is that many supporters of this amendment have no stomach for effective measures to keep America safe from terrorists, chief among them ensuring that foreign nationals involved in or supportive of terrorist groups are kept out of America in the first place. Feinstein’s Amendment failed by a vote of 45-54.
Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) also dredged up his ill-fated ban on private firearm transfers between friends and many family members. That was defeated by a vote of 47-50 – receiving seven votes less than it got two years ago. Manchin’s background check bill has been a rallying cry for anti-gun activists since its historic defeat in 2013. Fortunately, that cry once again fell on deaf ears as reason prevailed over hyperbole and opportunism.
In the days leading to the vote, gun prohibitionists and their allies in the media had whipped themselves up to a veritable frenzy. The pressure they brought to bear on the Senate was intense. Nevertheless, cooler heads prevailed, backed by sound research and empirical evidence.
No doubt the defeated anti-gunners will be venting their displeasure over yet another round of clear defeats. Please make sure to let your Senators know in the days ahead how you felt about their votes. In particular, those who stood on the side of freedom deserve to hear a hearty thanks and well-done.
No one supports criminal activity of any kind but we do not sacrifice the rights of the law-abiding to criminals and terrorists.
In conclusion:
Thanks for responding and giving the gift of TSRA membership, especially at the 3-year level.
Be careful out there and Keep the Faith.
Alice Tripp
Legislative Director
Texas State Rifle Association
the NRA state affiliate
About the Texas State Rifle Association:
Headquartered in Austin, Texas, the Texas State Rifle Association is a non-profit organization dedicated to defending the rights of law-abiding Texans to own, enjoy and use firearms as guaranteed by the Constitutions of the State of Texas and the United States of America. TSRA represents Texas gun owners before the state legislature, and is the NRA state affiliate association.
For more information on membership or supporting the Texas State Rifle Association, call 512.615.4200 or visit www.tsra.com.
When I retired and first came to Texas, my neighbor did two things: He made me read a book about the beginnings of the Texas Republic, and he made me join the Texas State Rifle Association. Both of those actions have stood me in good stead. I am now a life member of the TSRA.
So get off the fence. Read your own history and join every 2nd Amendment Civil Rights organization that you can.