Mike Hammond
Gun Owners of AmericaFebruary 15, 2009Those of you who regularly peruse the GOA website know that there are dozens of anti-gun abominations which are introduced as legislation in the Senate and House each Congress. These include, particularly, national gun licensing and broad gun bans.GOA provides a summary of these bills for the benefit of our members and friends. But we do not focus on most of these bills because they are so extreme that they have no chance of passage. They are cynically introduced so that the Brady Campaign can raise money by threatening anti-gun measures it could never pass.But the first anti-gun bill of the 111th Congress -– Chicago Congressman Bobby Rush’s H.R. 45 –- has caught the attention of many in the Second Amendment community as something we need to be worried about.This is because of the extremity of the bill:* H.R. 45 would require a federal license for all handguns and semiautomatics, including those you currently possess; and* It would require handgun and semi-auto owners to be thumbprinted at the police station and to sign a certificate that, effectively, the firearm will not be kept in a place where it would be available for the defense of the gun owner’s family.Pretty scary, huh? But, while this despotic nuttiness makes you wonder why a congressman from the Murder Capital of the Midwest would think that it would help to make the residents of New Hampshire, Alaska, and Wyoming comply with his blood-soaked city’s anti-gun laws, there have been other bills which are just as unconstitutional.Rather, what makes H.R. 45 troubling is its sponsor and its timing.Its sponsor is Congressman Bobby Rush –- a scion of the same super-corrupt Chicago political machine that produced disgraced Governor Rod Blagojevich and President Barack Obama.And as for its timing, it was introduced during the confirmation of Attorney General nominee Eric Holder — the man who tried exploit the Columbine tragedy in order to pass gun licensing as Deputy Attorney General in the Clinton administration.And make no mistake about it: Licensing is only a way-station to discouraging, arresting, or humiliating gun owners and outlawing guns. Under H.R. 45, for example, the applicant must also make available ALL of his psychiatric records, pass an exam, and pay a fee.So… are you a veteran who has ever consulted a psychologist or psychiatrist? Guess what? The FBI would soon be examining every confidential statement you have ever made during those consultations.Private sales of handguns and semi-autos would be outlawed, and reports to the attorney general of all transactions would be required, even when — as the bill allows — the AG determines that a state licensing system is sufficiently draconian to substitute for the federal license.But, you may be thinking, “I’m just a hunter with a deer rifle… surely, none of this is relevant to me”?Then you should know that, with virtually no exceptions, ALL firearms transactions (including person-to-person private sales of long guns, hunting rifles, shotguns, etc.) would be subject to the same paperwork hassles that are required when buying from a dealer.In addition, the bill would make it unlawful in virtually all cases to keep any loaded firearm for self-defense. A variety of “crimes by omission” (such as failure to report certain things to the government) would be created.Criminal penalties of up to ten years and virtually unlimited regulatory and inspection authority would be established.Combined with the Ammunition Accountability effort to outlaw ammunition in numerous states, this two-pronged attack would soon make gun ownership a thing of the past.Barack Obama was fond of saying during the campaign that he supported the Second Amendment. And we read of gun buyers who are flocking -– while it is still legal -– to purchase firearms, but who concede that they believed Obama’s assurances and voted for him.But we may soon see a more horrific, nastier side of Barack Obama… and a capacity to go after his political enemies. And we have to assume that he will view gun owners as just about the most important of those enemies.
The bill starts with a statement of purpose that says: "because the intrastate and interstate trafficking of firearms are so commingled, full regulation of interstate commerce requires the incidental regulation of intrastate commerce." They are saying that to control commerce between the states (which they have legal power to do), they have to control commerce within a state (which they explicitly do NOT have power to do). Basically, this eliminates the Tenth Amendment and the Interstate Commerce Clause. The Constitution can't legally be amended by statute like that. Is that enough to seek Mr. Rush's removal from office? I won't bore you with the other "purposes" which are as bad or worse.
Only "qualifying firearms" are affected. That means any handgun, or any semi-auto firearm that has a removable magazine (what they call a " detachable ammunition feeding device").
After the bill becomes law (IF it becomes law), it's illegal for you to get or have those firearms, even if you already own them, without a special federal license. There are grace periods up to two years to register yourself once the law is passed.
Do you see how clever this is? You cold-dead-fingers guys can keep your guns if you like, refuse to register yourselves, and then you're subject to arrest on the spot. If you go anywhere with your guns -- to the range, a store, a gunsmith, a friend's house, hunting, competition -- and you're spotted, you go straight to jail. If you're already on a list (can anyone say "carry permit" or "hunting license"?) and you don't sign up, well, just connect those dots.
Where does the cold-dead-fingers part come into play? I'll bet the ranges will start requiring you to show your papers before you can hit the line.
To get the license you must "submit to the Attorney General" (they chose that phrase right by golly): a passport-type photo, identifying info, any name you have ever used or ever been known by (I have nicknames, pen names, stage names, omitting any presumably violates the statute) a thumbprint, certification that any firearms will be "safely" stored (they'll write out what that means later in a regulation, I'm guessing unloaded and locked away will be their stance, even though the Heller case flatly prohibits that -- but it was Eric Holder's position in his brief in that case) and out of possession of people under 18, authorization to give up any mental health records, and a certificate that you passed a government-run test.
The test must include knowledge of: safe storage, safe handling, use of firearms at home, the risks of firearms at home, local state and federal legal requirements for firearms, reporting requirements for firearms, and ANY other subjects the AG decides are appropriate. You date and sign the submission, making it perjury if your info is inaccurate.
I'm skipping some details on who can accept the form, time periods for filing it and similar red tape on this 4,600 word bill. The AG "shall" issue the license if you pass the test and do everything else, and also "shall" charge you a tax for the privilege of getting your rights licensed, up to $25 at present. This gets you a tamper-resistant photo ID card with your official number, address, date of birth, signature and the expiration date of your "rights" (about five years, it's complicated). There's a renewal procedure (it's complicated) and no apparent limit on the renewal tax you will be charged (the AG gets power to control the details).
The license can be revoked for cause of course, and the AG "shall" make sure you give it up if it's revoked.
Once this thing is in place, it's illegal to transfer or receive any affected firearm (all handguns and any semi-auto with a magazine) without the license. Transfers can only be made to or from a licensed dealer, who has to jump through hoops and file papers, and has 14 days to get that done (a waiting period on the dealer's shoulders), to get government approvals and authorization numbers.
The dealer must send the feds the gun name and/or model number, maker, serial number, your license number, name, address and transfer date, which the feds must store in a "Federal Record of Sale System," a permanent national gun registry.
This needs to be said verbatim: "(c) Elimination of Prohibition on Establishment of System of Registration -- Section 926(a) of title 18, United States Code, is amended by striking the second sentence." That sentence says the feds can't register the firearms Americans own:
"No such rule or regulation prescribed after the date of the enactment of the Firearms Owners’ Protection Act [1986] may require that records required to be maintained under this chapter or any portion of the contents of such records, be recorded at or transferred to a facility owned, managed, or controlled by the United States or any State or any political subdivision thereof, nor that any system of registration of firearms, firearms owners, or firearms transactions or dispositions be established." The Bobby Rush bill says kiss that sentence and its extremely crucial protections goodbye.
There are a few small exceptions for an undefined "infrequent" firearm gift, bequest or intestate succession among parents, their kids and grandparents and grandkids, and also for lending a firearm " for any lawful purpose for not more than 30 days between persons who are personally known to each other." Sloppy language in this part of the bill bans the transfer of any firearm (not just "qualifying" firearms) between anyone without going through the hoops.
If you lose a handgun or magazine-fed semi-auto, or if one is stolen from you -- you've broken the law if you don't report that to the AG within 72 hours.
If you own such guns, change your address and don't notify the AG within 60 days -- you've committed a crime. In other words, they track you non-stop or you're subject to arrest. No victim, no harm, no foul, no evil, just government placing you in jail for failure to comply. Bobby Rush thinks this is good law, a legitimate use of government.
If you keep in your home a loaded firearm, or an unloaded firearm and ammo for it, and a person under 18 gets it and harms someone with it -- you've committed a crime. There are some flimsy exceptions (like you know or should reasonably know federal and state gun law for kids) and of course, all the "proper" authorities -- federal, state, local, military, elected, appointed, even employees of government on the job are exempted -- twice. Bobby Rush says OK for thee but not for me, tee hee.
Lengthy penalty sections include two-, five- and ten-year sentences and fines for paperwork violations, possession violations, transfer violations, child-access violations, safe-storage violations and of course, failure to pass the test if you still keep your guns.
The bill ends with sweeping powers for the Attorney General that could be interpreted to mean almost anything, so the details I've described might be little more than a smokescreen! For instance: "The Attorney General may issue an order prohibiting the sale or transfer of any firearm that the Attorney General finds has been transferred or distributed in violation of this Act, an amendment made by this Act, or a regulation issued under this Act."
There's plenty of that in here, plus endless inspection powers, injunctive powers and even, "shall issue regulations... as the Attorney General determines to be reasonably necessary to reduce or prevent deaths or injuries resulting from qualifying firearms..." Is the AG someone we can trust? Or is it someone with utter contempt for the right to keep and bear arms? If it's Eric Holder, Obama's nominee, we get a guy who told the Supreme Court that a total gun ban in your own home is just fine and doesn't violate the Bill of Rights.
Oh, and one final kick in the ribs. Federalism, the idea that states have powers the feds don't, could get in the way. So the bill makes it clear that "...this Act may not be construed to preempt any provision of the law of any State or political subdivision of that State... except to the extent that the provision of law is inconsistent with any provision of this Act or an amendment made by this Act..." I am not making this up. The hubris and audacity of this bill's author is monumental. My lawyer friends will tell me that legal mumbo-jumbo has become SOP, as the feds usurp any remaining crumbs of your state's legitimate powers.
Maybe you've noticed that virtually none of this addresses criminals or crimes. Innocent gun owners are the target. This is about controlling the public and its private constitutionally protected property. Criminals are guaranteed to ignore the entire plan, and in fact, criminals CANNOT apply, since they can't possess firearms in the first place. Even if criminals could apply, they're protected from incriminating themselves by the Fifth Amendment, so they never would apply.
The bill of course makes no mention of this. That's my job. And people tell me I'm paranoid, that gun bans are just a delusional fantasy of the wacko fringe. What does that say about Bobby Rush from Illinois, the perpetrator of this travesty. He and every co-sponsor he can find should be removed from office. Wherever he appears, people should rise and turn their backs on him as a gesture of disgrace.
HR 45
Full BIll: http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/z?c111:H.R.45.IH:
What H.R. 45 DoesThe legislation has three main components.1. Increasing requirements for firearms purchases.2. Creating a national firearms registry overseen by the Federal Government.3. Stiffen penalties for bookkeeping errors related to the Federal Firearms Database formed in section 2.To purchase a firearm a person would be required to pass a written firearms examination, release all health records -- including mental heath records -- to the Attorney General's office, and submit to a two-day waiting period, as well as pay an "appropriate" fee of $25 per firearm.Additionally, every firearm sale would be recorded in a database, which would track the serial number, make, model and identity of the owner. The legislation would also make all private sales of firearms illegal, and a felony offense.In addition to these regulations, the legislation includes excessive regulations and penalties for bureaucratic missteps from simple failures to report address changes to failure to report stolen weapons.Provisions of H.R. 45 include:• Requires passing a written examination to purchase a firearm.• Releases medical records -- including confidential mental health records -- to the Attorney General for Government review.• Requires a two-day waiting period on all firearms purchases.• Institutes a fee of $25 or more on all firearm purchases.• Creates a national database with all firearms and firearms owners registered by serial number with the Federal Government.• A Federal ban on all private firearms sales.• Increases in penalties for clerical errors related to this national firearms registry.Who's sponsoring H.R. 45H.R. 45 -- President Obama's National Gun Registry and Citizen Disarmament Act --was written by Illinois Congressman Bobby Rush (D). It currently has no cosponsors.Representative Rush was a founding member of the Illinois Black Panther Party in 1968.The Black Panthers are a radical and militant organization.But will it pass Congress?Congressman Rush's bill an outrageous destruction of Constitutional Rights, but it's the compromises that are truly dangerousThough far-left gun-haters routinely sponsor pie-in-the-sky legislation (anyone remember the days of Sen. Moynihan's annual 1000% tax on ammo?), H.R. 45 has set new lows for the depths to which hoplophobes will sink.Is H.R. 45 dangerous? Yes. But is it likely to pass? No.... it's too far-reaching.What is likely to pass, though, is a compromise, a deal cut with the gun-grabbers and the group that ostensibly represents gun owners, the NRA.Think that can't happen? Rewind to the summer of 2007, when arch gun-hater Congresswoman Carolyn McCarthy sat down with NRA board member Congressman John Dingell to craft a deal to expand Brady Checks into new realms of mental health records. A few months later, H.R. 2640 passed...with the approval of the NRA and McCarthy.Congressman Rush's gun control ideas are much, much more dangerous as amendments to legislation that is already advancing.Remember the Brady Bill? It didn't pass as a stand-alone bill. It passed as an amendment.Even more frightening was that it passed with the approval of the NRA The same is true of the Lautenberg Domestic Abuse ban, the Assault Weapons ban, 1986 McClure-Volkmer (which bans the manufacture of transferable machine guns), the 1968 Gun Control Act, and numerous other examples (especially if you look at state legislation).Yes, we're watching H.R. 45. But beware the slight of hand -- it's often more dangerous.