[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]This article was adapted from an article from Gun Owner’s of America’s blog.[/vc_column_text][vc_text_separator title=”” i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-file-text-o” color=”blue” el_width=”80″ add_icon=”true”][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner][vc_column_text]Call Rep. Frank Lucas (R) at 202-225-5565. Urge your congressman to oppose both the rule and final passage of any Omnibus spending bill which includes gun control measures like the “Take the Guns First” bill (aka, Fix NICS). You can also send your representative an email here. (Different letters will be sent to Republicans or Democrats.)[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]
A Vote for Fix NICS Is a Vote to Kill Concealed Carry Reciprocity
Late last year, the House Republican leadership notified us that they intended to combine reciprocity (HR 38) with the Fix NICS bill—also known as the “Take the Guns First” bill. Many of our members had real problems with this strategy because it probably meant the sacrifice (at least for this Congress) of our top legislative priority, reciprocity.
But the leadership did make a commitment to us and to pro-gun members of the House: If the Take the Guns First (Nix FICS) bill returned to the House without reciprocity, it would be thrown in the wastebasket. Now we are hearing that the House leadership may ignore their promise, and attach the Take the Guns First bill, without reciprocity, to the must-pass government funding resolution. This would effectively kill reciprocity for the year, as it would remove all the impetus to pass concealed carry reciprocity legislation.[/vc_column_text][vc_cta h2=”Call to Action” h2_font_container=”font_size:30px|color:%231e73be|line_height:35px” h2_google_fonts=”font_family:Adamina%3Aregular|font_style:400%20regular%3A400%3Anormal” h2_css_animation=”bounceInDown” color=”blue” el_width=”lg” add_button=”right” btn_title=”Do Something” btn_color=”primary” btn_align=”right” btn_css_animation=”bounceIn” add_icon=”left” i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-exclamation-triangle” i_color=”custom” css_animation=”appear” use_custom_fonts_h2=”true” btn_link=”url:https%3A%2F%2Fact.nraila.org%2Fcomposeletters.aspx%3FAlertID%3D1901||target:%20_blank|” i_link=”url:https%3A%2F%2Fact.nraila.org%2Fcomposeletters.aspx%3FAlertID%3D1901||target:%20_blank|” h2_link=”url:https%3A%2F%2Fact.nraila.org%2Fcomposeletters.aspx%3FAlertID%3D1901||target:%20_blank|” css=”.vc_custom_1521089640518{border-top-width: 2px !important;border-right-width: 2px !important;border-bottom-width: 2px !important;border-left-width: 2px !important;background-color: #f4f4f4 !important;border-left-color: #1e73be !important;border-right-color: #1e73be !important;border-top-color: #1e73be !important;border-bottom-color: #1e73be !important;border-radius: 5px !important;}” i_custom_color=”#dd3333″]I need you to call Rep. Frank Lucas (R) immediately at 202-225-5565.[/vc_cta][vc_column_text]
Take the Guns First, Due Process Second
As we have detailed before, the Take the Guns First or Fix NICS legislation would result in gun bans for military veterans, seniors, people with outstanding traffic tickets (yes, I’m serious), medical marijuana cardholders, and more. Usually, these illegitimate denials put the burden of proof on the innocent gun owner.
Remember when President Trump recently stated he wants to “Take the guns first, and go through due process second”? While he was talking about restraining orders, his statement demonstrates the problems with the FBI’s NICS background check system. Roughly 95 percent of initial denials under the background check system are “false positives.” When good people are illegitimately denied the right to purchase a gun, their rights are effectively taken away, and then they have the burden of proof to verify their innocence.
So here’s the problem: if the Take the Guns First bill were to be added to the government funding bill, gun owners would correctly view this as a vile trick and a repudiation of our promise from House leadership. The Second Amendment community would also conclude correctly that concealed carry reciprocity (HR 38) and restoring veterans’ gun rights (HR 1181) were nothing but cynical political games played by RINO’s who had no intention that they would ever be signed into law.
Finally, gun owners would conclude that the House Republican leadership was more than willing to join in the narrative that law-abiding gun owners are responsible for the Parkland shooting, and that disarming them would somehow prevent further incidents.
GOA to House Republicans: We Will Remember in November!
Yesterday, Erich Pratt, Executive Director with Guns of America, communicated with Republican congressmen in the House, and stated in his letter to them that if the GOP leadership moves ahead with its vile strategy, Gun Owners of America intends to do the following:
1. We intend to rate all votes on the Omnibus as “gun votes.”
And, we intend to oppose the “rule” which would set the conditions on which this bill would be considered. Coupled with the fact that Democrats normally routinely oppose Republican-drafted “rules,” a few dozen pro-gun congressmen might be able to defeat the rule and bring down the bill.
2. Our (Gun Owners of America) membership will remember getting knifed in the back on election day.
Any Republican representative who thinks a Washington group like GOA or NRA can convince the grass roots to ignore “Republican gun control” is sadly mistaken. Consider how Senator Marco Rubio was treated during the CNN town hall just a couple of weeks ago. Despite his support for myriads of gun control proposals, he was effectively booed off the stage for “not supporting enough” infringements.
You can also email your congressman here.
Thank you for your activism, and for standing with us!
In Liberty,
Don Spencer
President[/vc_column_text][/vc_column_inner][/vc_row_inner][/vc_column][/vc_row]