Thursday, January 17, 2013

Some officials vow to ignore Obama gun measures

"From Oregon to Mississippi, President Barack Obama's proposed ban on new assault weapons and large-capacity magazines struck a nerve among rural lawmen and lawmakers, many of whom vowed to ignore any restrictions, and even try to stop federal officials from enforcing gun policy in their jurisdictions," Jeff Barnard of The Associated Press reports. (AP photo by Susan Walsh: Obama signs order)

Republican Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant urged Congress to make it illegal to enforce any executive order that violates the Constitution. "If someone kicks open my door and they're entering my home, I'd like as many bullets as I could to protect my children, and if I only have three, then the ability for me to protect my family is greatly diminished," Bryant said, adding that he is standing against the federal government taking away civil liberties. Tennessee state Rep. Joe Carr wants to make it a state crime for federal agents to enforce any ban on firearms or ammunition. Similar proposals have popped up in Wyoming, Utah and Alaska.

"While such proposals are eye-catching, they likely could never be implemented," Barnard writes. The Supremacy Clause of the Constitution states that federal law always supersedes state law when there is a conflict between the two. University of Denver constitutional law professor Sam Kamin told Barnard that "such disdain of Obama's proposals is reminiscent of former Confederate states' refusal to comply with federal law extending equal rights for blacks after the Civil War."

Some rural sheriffs see the federal government as an adversary, and gun ownership is at the core of that belief, Barnard reports. Pine County Sheriff Robin Cole in Minnesota said he would refuse to enforce federal mandates about guns, and the Texas-based Constitutional Sheriffs and Peace Officers Association supports that view. The National Sheriff's Association has supported administration efforts to fight gun violence after Sandy Hook; the group's president, Larry Amerson, sheriff in Calhoun, Ala., said he understands rural people's frustration, but feels his oath of office binds him to uphold all laws. (Read more)

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

The real problem is that the Government is focused on “gun control” instead of “public safety”. If we are going to solve the problems of public killings of opportunity, like Sandy Hook, Columbine and Taft HS, we need to resolve the root causes of this criminal behavior, instead of trying to choreograph the future events. Biden and Obama have the problem solving skills of a 6-year old . . . together.

As an example, why is anyone talking about banning "high-capacity" magazines. According to VP, Biden 10 round magazines are okay, but 11 rounds should be outlawed. So I guess 11 bullets in a gun, held by a mentally disturbed person is criminal, but 10 bullets would be less lethal and fine. Does he really not care about the first 10 people who get shot, but only the 11th. What a flippin' idiot!