We grow increasingly concerned over politician’s executive power and control every day. With each new day comes a new gun-control measure or law, or at the very least, the threat of stricter gun control. Tragically, it seems like we grow closer to an America where we are no longer allowed our freedom and right to own any firearm we choose. Our Second Amendment rights are threatened every day. Sadly, this past week, the news from the courts proves just that…
Headlines
2nd Circuit Court of Appeals Upholds Semiauto Rifle Bans
On Monday, the 19th, the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New York upheld New York and Connecticut’s bans on many semiautomatic rifles—what the two states ridiculously define as “assault weapons.” The suit will now have to go to the Supreme Court.
Michael Filozof for American Thinker writes, “If the SAFE Act is upheld by the Supreme Court, nothing prevents Congress from summarily outlawing tens of millions of firearms overnight. Once those firearms become contraband, the government may confiscate and destroy them without compensating the owner (just as the government confiscates and destroys illegal drugs).”
Florida Democrat Urges Pres. Obama to use Executive Power
House Representative Alcee Hastings (D-Florida) recognizes that gun control will never pass through Congress, so in a letter to President Obama, Hastings urged the president to use his executive power “immediately to help save lives.” In the letter to the President, Rep. Hastings suggested including “unfinished receivers” into the BAFTE’s definition of a firearm, close “loopholes” in the federal domestic abuser ban, as well as changes the laws for those who conduct firearm sales. Hastings said, “Given the intensity of today’s gun violence epidemic. I believe that it must be addressed as fully and quickly as possible.”
Hearing Protection Act Introduced
House Representative Matt Salmon (R-Arizona) introduced legislation to remove suppressors from the National Firearms Act (NFA). The American Suppressor Association helped Congressman Salmon draft the bill.
The law would drop suppressors from the NFA and instead, require buyers to pass the NICS check before purchasing.
Pres. Obama Threatens to Veto Defense Policy Delaying CCW for Military Personnel
Politicians have been busy drafting a provision allowing more service members to arm themselves while on base. The provision states that the Sectary of Defense would have a year to implement new policy giving military commanders the right to decide if more soldiers on military installations could carry personnel weapons for self-defense. The provision is going in 2016’s defense authorization bill. Supporters of the new policy wrote, “Commanders should take steps to arm additional personnel … if they believe that arming those personnel will contribute to that goal.” However, President Obama has already threatened to veto the 2016 defense authorization bill “on unrelated budget matters” delaying the new carry policies.
Florida Senate Committee Approves Open Carry and Other Pro-Gun Bills
Separate Senate Committees in Florida approved new pro-gun measures last week—those bills included open carry for concealed carry permit holders, guns on college campuses, and a bill making it easier to claim self-defense due to ‘Stand Your Ground.’
“I believe in the right of a person to protect themselves and their family the way they best feel comfortable. Some people don’t like guns. I’m okay with that. Get a can of wasp spray if it works for you,” said Bradford County Sheriff Gordon Smith. Supporters of the new pro-gun bills said, “There is a need.”
‘Impeach Hillary’ House Rep. Says
House Representative Mo Brooks (R-Alabama) says Hillary Clinton would be subject to impeachment were she voted in as President. During an interview on a radio talk show, Brooks said, “And in my judgment, with respect to Hillary Clinton, she will be a unique president if she is elected by the public next November, because the day she’s sworn in is the day that she’s subject to impeachment because she has committed high crimes and misdemeanors.”
CNN Admits: Americans Don’t Want More Gun Control
CNN released the results of a combined CNN/ORC poll Wednesday. Findings included that a little over half of Americans polled are against stricter gun control laws. Read more of the poll’s results at CNN.com.
Meanwhile, an unrelated Gallup Poll found that 56 percent of Americans believe the country would be safer if more people were trained and carried concealed handguns.
Chicago’s Mayor Implements $250K Gun Buy-Back Program
Chicago, Illinois Mayor Rahm Emanuel announced a $250,000 gun buy-back program. Community organizers of gun buy-back events will apply for the money to fund the events through the police department.
Experts who have studied and researched gun buybacks find that they never yield the types of firearms criminals use. The director of the Center for Problem Oriented Policing at the University of Wisconsin’s law school, Michael Scott says, “But gun buyback programs recover such a small percentage of guns that it’s not likely to make much impact.”
Italian Mayor Vows to Give Citizens Money to Buy Guns
Gianluca Buonanno, the mayor of Northern Italy town Borgosesia, vows to give his citizens nearly $280 towards the purchase of a gun for self-defense in response to Italy’s “jail-emptying” laws. Buonanno’s political party the Northern League supports gun rights for Italians due to the recent increase in shootings in the country.
Product News
Hornady to “Change Everything?”
Hornady released a teaser about a new product the company is revealing on October 27, 2015. The trailer calls this new product a “huge development” and “the implications are huge for the industry.”
Thanks
to The Gun Feed for the tip.
New FDE Distributor Exclusives from Walther
Cheaper Than Dirt! is now shipping distributor exclusives from Walther. The PPS and PPQ M2 are now available in Flat Dark Earth (FDE). Both are striker-fired, polymer-framed, and chambered in 9mm; however, the PPS has a 3.2-inch barrel, holds seven rounds, while the PPQ M2 has a 4-inch barrel, and holds 15 rounds. The PPQ M2 is $626.11 and the Walther PPS is $458.89.
In case you missed them, here are the top 10 read blog posts this week:
- It Ain’t a Party ‘Till the Trunk Guns Come Out: Top 10 Choices
- How to Setup the Best AR-15 on a Budget
- Taurus Settlement Details Released
- What’s in Your Bug-Out Bag?
- Cimarron’s Wild Bunch 1911
- Top 10 AR-15 Rifles 2014
- You Can Tell the Weakness of the Opposition’s Argument By Length of Their Noses
- Fifteen of the Best Cheap AR Accessories
- Readers Choice: The REAL List—The Best 12 Concealed Carry Guns
- After Action Report: McMillan Precision Rifle Marksmanship Course
What developing stories are you closely following? Are there any stories would like us to cover more in-depth? Tell us in the comment section. If you have a news story you would like to share, send us a link at content@cheaperthandirt.com.
Don’t like how these news headlines read? Don’t stand for any more gun control laws! Tell your representatives now! Use the NRA’s “Write Your Lawmakers” feature and make your voice be heard. The NRA makes it easy to contact your politicians and lawmakers on Capital Hill. All you have to do is fill out a simple form including your name, address, email, and phone number and the NRA sends off an already-written letter in support of 2A rights on your behalf. Send off your letter now by clicking here.
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About closing the “loopholes” — in the “Great” State of Commifornia, most of those so-called loopholes were closed long time ago (which, BTW, most of the gun grabbers always fail to mention): mandatory background checks for ALL the transactions (including gifts and close family members transactions); no internet or mail orders on ammo in such places like LA, San-Fran, San-Diego and some others; mandatory fingerprinting while purchasing ammo in LA and San-Fran; ban on 80% finished lowers; ban on standard-capacity mags (those morons call them “high-capacity” mags); bun on rifles with freely-detachable magazines (the infamous “California mag-release button”) and tons of other utterly senseless things which, according to the local law-makers, were designed to “save lives”. Do they work? NO. Do they save lives? NO. Do they make it safer to live in those places? One big NO. Do they decrease the number of guns in the hands of criminals? NO. But do those laws strip us of our liberties and freedoms? Oh, YES. Do they get us closer to a fully controlled society a-la former USSR or current North Korea? YES. Do they turn us into speechless sheep who hope that the Big Brother will come, give us a free bowl of beans and solve all the problems? YES.
Guys, I was born in the Soviet Union and I lived there for the first 25 years of my life. I came to this great country looking for personal freedom, for the civil liberties that soviet people couldn’t even dream of. I found all these things here. And I will NEVER allow anyone to take them from me again. NEVER. So, Ms. Clinton, Mr. HUSSEIN Obama and all your socialist and muslim friends, just so you know — there are millions people like me in this country, both born and naturalized citizens, who will FIGHT for their freedom, who will not go without a fight, who will not allow you to turn them into brainless slaves who would be ultimately supporting all your anti-American ideas and agendas. Not a chance!
For those on a tighter budget there is a fantastic low cost alternative to the field dark earth colored 9mm Walthers. Take a look at the Canik TP-9. Closer in design to the Walther P99, this is an exceptionally high quality gun that rivals weapons at twice its price. It is imported from Turkey by Century International Arms and can be had for as low as $299.95 with free shipping if you search hard enough. CTD does carry some of the Canik line, but I don’t believe they carry this particular model.
It is a law enforcement and military grade weapon produced in an ISO 9000 certified factory. Aside from the gun itself, unbelievably the low price includes a high quality hard case cushioned inside with form fit foam cut-out to also hold the included two high quality 18-round magazines, a polymer Serpa style holster with two mounting options (paddle and belt attachment), a cleaning kit (bore brush and rod), and two sizes of backstraps.
It comes in 5 different colors. I got mine last Father’s Day in field Dark earth. With a black backstrap, mag foot, trigger, sight, port, slide and mag release against the entire field dark earth frame just puts the accents in all the right places to make this gun look sweet. I still can’t get over what a valuable deal this was.
On the Illinois gun buyback program you missed an important fact. Illinois is so cash strapped and has such monetary problems that there is no operating budget in place and anyone who wins more than $600 in the lottery receives an IOU from the state. Currently Illinois owes over $288 million in lottery winnings and is being sued for payment in Federal Court. How does the Governor free up $250K for a new program when the state already owes so much?
@ Daniel Wisehart.
Illinois, revenue maybe Cash Strapped. But Chicago’s Isn’t. Chicago Revenues are Independent of the State. There many Cities in this Country that Operate the Same Way. This way, if the City Fail’s the State doesn’t go Bankrupt trying to same the Failed City. And the City can Auction Off it’s assets.
I think we have to realize as much as it hurts to say that at least a couple of States are GONE, namely, as we speak the two listed by the blogger NY&CA (with several more teetering…). There’s just not enough push-back in those two States meaning that the Antis outnumber the Pro 2A Citizens. That’s another reason why we fear illegal immigration as 9-10 hispanics vote Democrat every time. The one fear we hear less about than we should is that the next POTUS may actually appoint the next THREE SCOTUS Justices over that 4-8 year period. I’m no lawyer but if the SCOTUS ever reverses the Second Amendment in anyway whatsoever the Nation will fragment overnight…Of course, our Founding Fathers said to expect as much.
@ Pro2Gug.
One of the reasons why the President hasn’t been Impeached YET. Is because of the Ninth Amendment, Article I, Section VIII. Which essentially allow the Executive Branch to SUSPEND the Bill of Rights in the Constitution for an Indefinite Period of Time. WW2 is an Example. It includes: Speech, Press, Assembly, Religion and the Right to Bear Arms. First such us was in Virginia in 1787-1789 Shays’ Rebellion (aka the Federalist Papers”by President George Washington…
There are certainly lots of examples of “suspension” of US citizens constitutional rights during WWII, but as I’m interpreting I/VIII, that authority lies with the Legislative Branch- not the Executive Branch.
Of course, as we have endured for the last 6 years, if the Chief Executive never gets challenged (impeached), I guess he can ignore the Constitution and any laws he does not agree with…
I am no legal scholar and didn’t sleep in a Holiday Inn but I thought that suspension of the Constitution and BoR was limited to the Legislative branch and NOT the POTUS for obvious monarchy type activities. I remember that several times they enacted temporary suspensions of various laws during the past 200+ years but I was unaware that any POTUS had that right including Washington.
Dr D
@ Dr. Dave,
You are absolutely correct to challenge Secundius, as he is spreading complete bunk. It is not just the President that has no authority to suspend the Constitution and Bill of Rights, but neither can Congress. The Constitution provides no such provision to allow suspension of itself or the Bill of Rights… by anyone… ever. That includes Congress.
But even if Congress could make such a law for itself, it is forbidden for them to ever extend such authority to the Executive Office. This is because the Constitution was written to explicitly exclude the President from having a hand in any aspect of the amendment process. Altering the Constitution through Amendments was left to Congress for approval and then the States for final passage through ratification. The President is never involved.
So despite Secundius’ claim, I can assure you George Washington could never have suspended any portions of the Bill of Rights. On a more humorous note, the Bill of Rights hadn’t existed yet during the period of Shay’s Rebellion nor had Washington been elected President yet; obviously making any such Constitutional suspension by Washington a historical impossibility.
One final footnote – in contrast to Secundius’ assertions, there is no such Article I, Section VIII to the Ninth Amendment. The Ninth Amendment is one simple paragraph consisting of 21 words and was written to tell the Federal Government that the Constitution lists specific rights, but that does not mean citizens are limited to only those rights written into the Constitution, because we also retain additional rights that may not have been listed. So how Secundius gets the idea that single paragraph gives the President authority to suspend the Constitution is beyond me.
Now then, there is an Article I, Section VIII within the main body of the Constitution, however that pertains to the specific authority the Constitution provides to Congress and tells it what it can and cannot do. But again, nowhere in that section does it give authority to Congress, or the President for that matter, to suspend the Constitution in any way, shape, or form.
All I can say is Secundius is really out there on this one.
@ G-Man.
Let me ask you G-Man? Have you FOUND that Kenyan Birth Certificate YET, Time’s growing Short You Know to IMPEACH…
@ Secundius,
As usual, yet another of your off-the-wall responses that has not even the slightest relation to the content or continuity flow of our dialogue. I honestly think you are either an alcoholic or in the early stages of dementia. In either case your condition is sad and in much need of treatment.
@ Pro2Guy.
If the Republican’s had something to Offer, Other THAN Arrest and Deportation. They’d Probably Just MIGHT Vote Republican, too.
The Hornady video looks really exciting!! I really like Hornady, and I depend on them for high quality 50AE XTP ammo, and I clean all my guns with their One Shot, which is good stuff that I depend on.
On the downside, because they don’t seem to package pistol ammo in 50 round boxes, so I opt for other makers of ammo for my other guns. And if there’s some out there that I didn’t know about, maybe it didn’t make the price filter.
Thanks. I like the updates.