In the wake of the horrible Sandy Hook school massacre on December 14, 2012, true to Obama’s former chief-of-staff Rahm Emanuel’s advice to “never let a crisis go to waste,” the Left have been busy little beavers, churning out one gun control initiative after another.
Here’s the rundown.
At the National or Federal Level:
1. On the first day of the new 113th Congress last Thursday, 10 bills were introduced relating to gun violence, most of which came from Demoncrats seeking new restrictions on gun ownership. They are:
- H.R. 137: requires people prohibited from buying firearms to be listed in a national database.
- H.R. 138: prohibits the transfer or possession of large capacity ammunition clips.
- H.R. 141: requires criminal background checks on all firearms transactions at gun shows, which would close the so-called gun-show loophole.
- H.R. 142: requires face-to-face purchases of ammunition, the licensing of ammunition dealers, and the reporting of bulk ammo purchases. HR 137, 138, 141, and 142 were introduced by Rep. Carolyn McCarthy (D-N.Y.), whose husband was shot to death in 1993.
- H.R. 34 and H.R. 177: tighten firearms licensing requirements. Introduced by Rep. Bobby Rush (D-Ill.) and Rush Holt (D-N.J.), respectively.
- H.R. 65: raises the eligibility age to carry a handgun from 18 to 21. Proposed by Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-Texas).
- H.R. 21: requires background checks for all gun sales; gun owners must report when their guns have been stolen. Reintroduced by Rep. Jim Moran (D-Va.).
- Countering the above are H.R. 35 and H.R. 133 that would end federal law requiring that areas around schools be designated as “gun free zones.” Introduced by two freshman Republicans, Rep. Steve Stockman (R-Texas) and H.R. 133 from Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.), in response to findings that violence in and around schools has increased since the gun free zone law took effect in 1990.
2. Companion bills to the above proposed House legislation could be introduced on the Senate side, but Senate leaders have reserved January 22 as the first day on which new Senate legislation can be proposed. However, Sen. Diane Feinstein (D-Ca.) already has prepared a bill, provisionally called the “2013 Feinstein Assault Weapons Legislation,” which seeks to ban the sale, transfer, importation, or manufacturing of some 120 specifically-named firearms, including semiautomatic rifles, shotguns, and certain handguns; as well as requires that grandfathered firearms be registered.
3. Yesterday, VPOS Joe Biden revealed that the POS might use yet another executive order to deal with guns: “”There are executive orders, there’s executive action that can be taken. We haven’t decided what that is yet. But we’re compiling it all with the help of the attorney general and the rest of the cabinet members as well as legislative action that we believe is required.”
4. In remarks today before a meeting with the NRA, VPOS Joe Biden intimated the Obama regime is seriously considering outlawing unregulated “private” gun sales.
At the State Level (source: Breitbart):
1. In Connecticut, where alleged Sandy Hook shooter Adam Lanza violated dozens of gun laws, the legislature thinks the solution is more laws. A new bill proposed by State Senator Beth Bye would create a massive 50% sales tax on the sale of ammo and magazines, ban ammo buying via internet, and limit the sale of ammo to those with a gun permit.
2. In New York, Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who has actually publicly pitched all-out gun confiscation (or alternatively, forced gun buybacks), is now preparing new legislation designed to strip New Yorkers of “assault weapons,” as well as restrict the size of magazines.
3. In Illinois, the state legislature is considering a bill to ban vast swaths of semi-automatic weapons and magazines, as well as destroy shooting ranges.
4. In Chicago, which has the distinction of having some of America’s worst rates of crimes involving guns despite stringent gun control laws, there are calls for more gun regulation. Mayor Rahm Emanuel is asking the Illinois legislature to ban “assault weapons”.
5. In Maryland, Gov. Martin O’Malley is pushing for more gun regulation.
6. In California, legislators are considering harsh regulation on sale of ammunition.
7. In Florida, the Democratic House is looking to prevent concealed weapon permit holders from taking their guns to public events.
8. In New Jersey, Gov. Chris Christie says, “you’ve got to do stuff on guns.”
10. In Iowa, State Rep. Dan Muhlbauer told a local newspaper, “We cannot have big guns out here … the semi-automatics and all of them…. Those are not hunting weapons. We need to get them off the streets…. Those guns should not be in the public’s hands. There are just too many guns.”
H/t WildBillAlaska for the posters!
~Eowyn