In typical, "screw your friends and appease your enemies," Republicanfashion, the Bush Justice Department has filed an amicus briefdefending the DC gun ban in the DC v. Heller case currently before theSupreme Court. The Justice Department calls on the Court toacknowledge the Second Amendment as an individual right, but asks thatthe Circuit Court's decision in the case be reversed and remanded(thrown out and sent back to the Circuit Court) with instructions todetermine whether DC's laws unreasonably restrict resident's abilityto exercise their rights. It appears that the "pro-gun," RepublicanDepartment of Justice fears that any decision from the Supreme Courtwhich held that banning any class of weapons was an infringement ofthe Second Amendment, might open the door to challenges against banson dreaded machineguns.
It is worth noting that Congress recognized back in 1934 that banningmachineguns would be a violation of the Second Amendment so theyinstead devised a plan whereby they could control such firearms withburdensome taxes and paperwork restrictions. It was not until 1986that the first ever federal firearms ban was enacted when NRA accepteda ban on private purchase or possession of any newly manufacturedmachineguns as an amendment to the McClure-Volkmer, Firearms Owner'sProtection Act. At that time, NRA-ILA chief, Wayne LaPierre declaredthat repeal of the machinegun ban would be NRA's top priority in thenext session of Congress. Even though Mr. LaPierre has been the ChiefExecutive Officer of the organization for more than 15 years now andreceives a compensation totaling more than a million dollars a year,no bill to repeal the '86 ban has ever been put forward by NRA.
If the Supreme Court follows the government's request in this matter,no firm decision about the practical value of the Second Amendmentcould be expected for at least another four years; many thousands ofdollars, and at least two new Justices from now. Republicanpoliticians and operatives across the country need to hear and feelthe wrath of GunVoters over this latest in a long list of betrayalsfrom our oh-so-reliable, pro-gun friends. Write to the President, theVice-President, your Republican Senators and Representatives, yourlocal Republican officials and your County Central Committee and letthem know that your anger will be reflected at the ballot box. Thisis just another example of why Republicans like Rudy Giuliani, MittRomney, and John McCain are completely unacceptable presidentialcandidates and why Republicans are likely to lose the Presidency andadditional Congressional seats due to a poor showing from GunVoters inthe coming elections.
