NHFC, Inc has been asking a lot of gun owners these past few months; but to be completely honest, we are in the fight of our lives right now.   We must stop any new Federal gun control from becoming law. To do that I need to mobilize an army of pro gun New Hampshire activists to convince Senators Ayotte and Shaheen to vote for freedom and ignore the anti gun cries coming from CNN, MSNBC and New York City.

Last week Senator Kelly Ayotte broke her promises to support gun owners and the Second Amendment when she voted for “cloture” or against the filibuster by Senator Paul of gun control.  Now, my sources on Capitol Hill have told me that the Toomey-Schumer-Manchin sellout on gun control could be voted on as early as Tuesday, April 16.

You may have heard it called things like: “SECOND AMENDMENT RIGHTS PROTECTION ACT” and that it includes sections that are called “SEC. 115. ADDITIONAL PROTECTIONS FOR OUR VETERANS.” and things like: Prohibition of National Gun Registry.  Even though there are some apparent pro gun terms sprinkled throughout the bill and repeated by the mainstream media, make no mistake, the Toomey-Schumer-Manchin sellout is bad for gun owners.

First, Sen. Chuck Schumer, from Brooklyn, New York, has been trying to disarm law abiding Americans for 30 years.  Any bill that has his name on it should automatically be viewed with suspicion.

If you have ever seen a psychiatrist, or plan to see a psychiatrist, under provisions of this bill you will lose your guns!   You see the Toomey sellout bill provides an EXEMPTION for the Attorney General and NICS to the medical privacy law known as HIPPA.   What this means is that if the psychiatrist thinks you are dangerous to yourself or others, even if you have NEVER committed a crime and have not acted in a threatening manner, the Dr. can directly submit your name to the NICS system and then you are a prohibited person.

The sellout also prohibits the private sale of a firearm.  “6)  SECTION 122, REVISED 18 U.S.C. 922(t)(1):  “…it shall be unlawful for a [non-licensee] to complete the transfer of a firearm to any other person … if the transfer occurs … pursuant to … [a] posting … on the Internet…”

COMMENT:  No one should assume this requirement applies only to Amazon-type sales on Armslist.  If you ever talked about the gun on the Internet, you have arguably lost your right to make a private firearm transfer.  You have certainly done so if you put an ad in the church bulletin and it were distributed to shut-in parishioners over the Internet.  The bottom line:  Unless the buyer approaches the seller face to face and conducts the sale in cash on the spot, you can assume it’s covered.”

But it gets even worse: ” (7) SECTION 122(a):  “(4)(A)  Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, … the Attorney General may implement this subsection with regulations.”

The “chapter” referred to is Chapter 44.  This means that any limitations on federal action built into federal gun law by McClure-Volkmer or any other pro-gun legislation automatically disappear as impediments to Eric Holder in implementing the massively expanded background checks. Incidentally, the provisions in “this chapter” he can ignore could include the prohibitions on demanding information from dealers and creating a national gun registry.”

For additional information on the Toomey-Schumer-Manchin sellout click here to read an excellent detailed analysis from Gun Owners of America.

Sometimes people need help but when word gets out about the Toomey-Schumer-Manchin sellout many people will avoid getting that help for fear of losing their legally owned firearms.

Remember, the anti gun Democrats can only pass gun control if the Republicans give in.  It is our job to make sure that that does not happen.

You need to contact the 2 U. S. Senators from New Hampshire and demand that they vote against the Toomey-Schumer-Manchin sellout.

Remind Senator Ayotte about the promises she made to gun owners as a candidate in 2010 and tell her that you expect her to keep those promises.  Click here to read the promises.

1.       Senator Kelly Ayotte
Washington, DC – 202-224-3324
Manchester, NH – 603-622-7979
Nashua, NH     – 603-880-3335
Portsmouth, NH – 603-436-7161
North Country Office – 603-752-7702

Click here to email Senator Ayotte

PRE WRITTEN MESSAGE TO SENATOR Kelly Ayotte:

Dear Senator Ayotte:

Shortly you will be asked to vote for cloture on a gun legislation substitute sponsored by Senator Toomey (R-PA).  PLEASE VOTE NO! You were not elected and sent to Washington to debate our rights; you were sent there to protect our rights. The best way to protect Second Amendment rights is to prevent anti gun bills from being considered.

The proposed legislation empowers psychiatrists to disarm otherwise law abiding people by placing their names in the NICS database as “prohibited persons”.  This is not only an affront to liberty, but it will also discourage those who really need help from getting it for fear of being left defenseless against violent criminals.  The proposal also waives longstanding health privacy information under HIPPA.

The New Hampshire Firearms Coalition told me that you voted for cloture on S. 649 on April 11; voting NO for cloture on the Toomey anti gun sellout will allow you to regain some respect among law abiding firearms owners. I will be monitoring your voting record and informing my friends, family and the New Hampshire Firearms Coalition of your actions.

Sincerely, [your name here]

Contact Senator Shaheen and remind her that there are many hundreds of thousands of law abiding firearms owners in New Hampshire who will be voting in 2014.

2.       Senator Jeanne Shaheen at

Washington, DC – 202-224-2841
Manchester, NH – (603) 647-7500
Claremont, NH – (603) 542-4872
Nashua, NH – (603) 883-0196
Dover, NH – (603) 750-3004
Berlin, NH – (603) 752-6300
Keene, NH – (603) 358-6604

Click here to email Senator Shaheen.

PRE WRITTEN MESSAGE TO SENATOR Jeanne Shaheen:

Dear Senator Shaheen:

Shortly you will be asked to vote for cloture on a gun legislation substitute sponsored by Senator Manchin (D-WV).  PLEASE VOTE NO! The proposed legislation empowers psychiatrists to disarm otherwise law abiding people by placing their names in the NICS database as “prohibited persons”.

This is not only an affront to liberty, but it will also discourage those who really need help from getting it for fear of being left defenseless against violent criminals.

The proposal also waives longstanding health privacy information under HIPPA.  The Manchin bill also allows the Attorney General to promulgate endless regulations that will further erode our second amendment rights.  PLEASE VOTE NO on the Manchin anti gun legislation. I will monitor your vote and inform my friends, family and the New Hampshire Firearms Coalition of your actions.

Sincerely, [your name here]

Thanks for your support.

In Liberty,

Jonathan R. Evans, Esq.
President – NHFC

Anti gun legislation is being considered today, April 11, in the U.S. Senate.  New Hampshire Senator Kelly Ayotte is weakening.   She is planning to side with anti gun Senator John McCain and the compromiser Senator Lindsey Graham and oppose today’s filibuster of gun control.

When she ran for the U.S. Senate in 2010, Senator Ayotte made very specific promises to support the Second Amendment.  There were promises to oppose gun bans and only support checks that hampered criminals not law abiding gun owners.   Senator Ayotte promised to fight attempts to reinstate the Clinton gun ban.  She also promised to work to repeal the Federal Gun Free School Zones law.  But now, it seems that she is about to break those promises.

NHFC, Inc. has posted her candidate survey and advertisements on our website so that you, the law abiding gun owners, can see the promises that were made and are now being broken.

Senator Ayotte claims she wants a debate on these issues.  The filibuster WILL BE THE DEBATE!  It is the debate that could kill the anti gun bill.  Call Senator Ayotte and ask, why won’t you help Senators Paul, Lee, Rubio and Cruz stop gun control?

Click here to read Senator Ayotte’s promises.  Then, after you see the promises, call her and ask why she won’t help to stop gun control in the United States Senate?

Here are all the office phone numbers for Senator Ayotte:

Washington, DC – 202-224-3324
Manchester, NH – 603-622-7979
Nashua, NH     – 603-880-3335
Portsmouth, NH – 603-436-7161
North Country Office – 603-752-7702

In an about-face, Senator Tom Coburn, who was previously said to be close to a “deal” with Sen. Charles Schumer and others on a “lite” version of registering private gun sales, now says: “I don’t think we’re that close to a deal…” That is according to “Roll Call” on Sunday, suggesting your input is having an impact.

But is Coburn just trying to deflect you? Bloomberg News sees it differently:

“New York Senator Chuck Schumer, a Democrat, and Republican Tom Coburn of Oklahoma have worked out 90 percent of their differences over a measure that would expand criminal background checks to most private sales of guns, according to two Senate aides who asked for anonymity to discuss the talks.”

So what this means is that The “Schumer / Coburn Sell-Out” would strip farmers and Americans in rural areas of their Second Amendment rights.  Sure, there is a possibility that Schumer will accept do-nothing language in the Brady Law protecting remote Alaskan villages.  But millions of Americans would still have to travel hundreds of miles (buyers and sellers would both need to go to the licensed dealer) in order to transfer a firearm to their next-door neighbor — hoping desperately that they’re not among the 6.2% of Americans who get a non-committal response from the FBI.

As a result, the main purpose of the “Schumer / Coburn Sell-Out” remains, and has always been, to “break the back of the gun … lobby” and to serve as a platform for the next round of gun control.

Either way, it is time to turn up the political pressure with a new round of calls to Congress saying: “No deals on background checks.”

Barack Obama has brought his left-wing supporters to bear on gun control by turning his campaign organization into “Organizing for Action,” using $100,000 to target 13 pro-gun legislators, and mobilizing MoveOn.org for Friday’s “National Day of Action.” In New York, the left even threatened to throw the head-banging thugs of the SEIU into the fray by sending them to a gun rights rally.

Moreover, it seems that whatever Twitter input Obama turned out was largely faked. In an article in “The Hill,” Texas Rep. Steve Stockman described how low Obama supporters are willing to stoop to attack your rights:

“Obama’s anti-gun campaign is a fraud,” Stockman said. “Obama’s supporters are panicking and willing to do anything to create the appearance of popular support, even if it means trying to defraud Congress … I call upon the president to denounce this phony spam campaign.”

Gun banners on the run? Turn up the heat!

Maybe Obama’s left-wingers are desperate, maybe not. Maybe Coburn, having “felt the heat,” is now “seeing the light.” Maybe not. Whatever the case, having once again seen Obama’s deceit, you must redouble your efforts!

IMMEDIATE ACTION REQUIRED!
Even if you made your “5 Phone Calls for Freedom” on Monday, call them again PLUS Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and Sen. Tom Coburn, delivering the message below.
1.      Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid: 202-224-3542
2.      Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell: 202-224-2541
3.      House Speaker John Boehner: 202-225-0600
4.      Sen. Tom Coburn: 202-224-5754
5.      Senator Jeanne Shaheen at 202-224-2841;
6.      Senator Kelly Ayotte at 202-224-3324
7.      Your representative to the U.S. House. Click here to identify your US House representative, and then enter your zip code in the upper right corner of the page

DELIVER THIS MESSAGE
1.      Gun owners, not Twitter fakes, are the real grassroots: Whatever their pathetically inflated numbers, Obama’s radicals do not speak for you.
2.      No deals on background checks, gun owner registration: These measures need to die. No “compromise” is possible.

SPECIAL MESSAGE FOR SENATOR KELLY AYOTTE:

The Washington Post reported that Sen. Ayotte was named 1 of 2 “counsels” to Minority Leader Sen. Mitch McConnell.  You need to remind Sen. Ayotte that she is part of the Republican leadership and you are expecting her to make sure that NO REPUBLICANS support the Schumer / Coburn gun registration scheme.  Insist that she work hard to make sure that no Republicans support gun control. If Sen. Coburn wants to be an anti gun leader he should do it without the Republican support.

The New Hampshire Firearms Coalition is a founding member of the National Coalition to Stop the Gun Ban.  On Thursday, January 24, 2013 the Coalition responded to Sen. Dianne Feinstein’s new gun ban proposal.  I have attached their open letter below.

The proposed ban, which does not yet have a bill number will ban thousands of firearms and magazines from future sale.  It goes far beyond the much hated and now infamous Clinton gun ban of 1994.   The Feinstein gun ban is co-sponsored by the usual crowd of anti freedom, anti gun and anti self defense Democrats.  Democrat Representatives Carolyn McCarthy (NY) and Ed Perlmutter have sponsored similar legislation in the U.S. House of Representatives.

The guns being targeted by this ban are not “assault rifles” which are military machine guns, which have been heavilly taxed, regulated and virtually unavailable to the public since 1934. The firearms which are the subject of this legislation are semi automatic firearms that function the same way as any other semi automatic firearm, one trigger pull discharges one cartridge.  The firearms which will be banned by the Feinstein bill are firearms which are in “common use”; the very type of firearm protected by the Heller and McDonald Supreme Court rulings. 

Senator Charles Schumer and others have repeatedly called the guns “assault rifles” in order to confuse you and the public about the guns they want to ban which, in reality, differ from other firearms only by cosmetic features.   Senators Feinstein and Schumer seem to think that if they repeat the same lies they will be believed.

Do not believe the lies  and rhetoric coming from politicians who will exploit tragedies, such as the murder of children to further their pre-ordained agenda to follow the disarmament path of Britain and Australia. Unlike other countries, the Framers designed our Republic to keep Americans free, and freedom means keeping arms in the hands of the people.

Here’s what you can do to help stop the Feinstein gun ban:  Call, email or fax both U.S. Senators from New Hampshire.  Tell them that you are opposed to any form of a gun ban; including taxes, registration, magazine restrictions or any other type of gun control.  Insist that there are no acceptable  provisions of this gun ban bill.

Make sure that you remind Democrat Senator Jeanne Shaheen (who is up for re-election in 2014) that it was a short 20 years ago, 1994 when her Democrat party lost control of both houses of Congress for passage of a similar gun ban.

Tell Republican Senator Kelly Ayotte that you expect her, as a Senator from New Hampshire and a member of Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell’s leadership team to be a leader in the fight to stop this legislation.

Contact Senator Shaheen by clicking here.  And contact Senator Ayotte by clicking here.

You also need to contact your Member of Congress and deliver the same message.  Since both House Members from New Hampshire are Democrats, remind them that this sort of legislation cost their party control of Congress in 1994.

Contact Congresswoman Carol Shea Porter (District 1) by clicking here and Contact Congresswoman Ann M. Kuster (District 2) by clicking here.

Remember to be polite and respectful when contacting your elected officials.  Please also share any written responses that you receive with the New Hampshire Firearms Coalition.

In Liberty,

Jonathan R. Evans, Esq.
President, NHFC

On Wednesday, January 16, 2013, the National Coalition to Stop the Gun Ban, of which NHFC is a founding member issued a response to President Obama’s gun ban scheme.  I have attached it for your review.

In Liberty,

To Congress and the American people:

The federal gun control measures President Barack Obama, Senator Dianne Feinstein and others now propose represents nothing less than an attack on American freedom. Included in that attack is a proposal to dramatically expand federal police powers by using the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (BATFE) to register millions of law-abiding gun owners. As history has repeatedly demonstrated, registration is the necessary prelude to confiscation.

Using the Sandy Hook tragedy as a pretext to advance a gun control agenda set in the 1980s, gun ban advocates now seek universal registration and licensing, bans on firearms only cosmetically different from common hunting guns, and limits on magazine capacities which will restrict self-defense handguns used by millions of Americans to protect themselves and their families.

‘National Coalition to Stop the Gun Ban’ opposes all measures

In response, the National Coalition to Stop the Gun Ban – comprising thirty-six (36) participating state and national organizations and still growing – has unified to defeat federal gun control legislation including, but not limited to, current proposals.

The Coalition is not “the gun lobby.” We do not represent gun manufacturers, nor are we controlled by the NRA. Most Coalition leaders don’t even earn incomes from the organizations they direct. Instead, the Coalition represents what politicians should fear most: An organized grass roots movement to defend the Second Amendment and unseat those who would undermine American freedom.

Presidential ‘usurpation of power’

“usurpation: …the unlawful or violent seizure of a throne, power, etc.”  – Webster’s Dictionary

Both Attorney General Eric Holder and Vice President Joe Biden have said the administration is weighing “executive action” to implement gun registration and licensing beyond even the ban on semi-automatic firearms proposed by Senator Dianne Feinstein and others. Today, Barack Obama issued twenty-three (23) executive orders, apparently to begin that process.

When the National Firearms Act passed in 1934, Congress still understood that it didn’t have the power under Article I, Section 8 of the Constitution to regulate Title II weapons, so it imposed a tax – an exorbitant tax, perhaps, but still a tax. Since then, however, overbroad interpretations of its power to regulate “interstate commerce” have become the norm, and Congress now feels free to legislate on firearms.

Apparently, however, even congressional usurpation of power is no longer sufficient: What Obama threatens clearly violates Article I, Section 1 of the Constitution, which says:

“All legislative powers herein granted shall be vested in a Congress of the United States, which shall consist of a Senate and a House of Representatives.”

If executive orders are used to circumvent Congress and force gun control on the American people, Coalition members will not only fight those unconstitutional laws in our courts, but will actively advocate the impeachment of any president who would so blatantly abuse his power.

Rather than issuing executive orders with which law-abiding Americans will refuse to comply, this President should acknowledge the thousands of people whose deaths resulted from implementation of the federal Gun  Free” School Zones Act of 1996 – after which school killings increased by fivefold.

The Coalition will not ‘compromise’ on this issue

As gun ban advocates define it, “compromise” is a process in which the American people lose slightly less freedom than under their original proposal. Consequently, Coalition members will not accept “compromise,” and will not settle for “the best we can get.” Nothing less than the demise of current proposals will suffice.

Politicians will find no quarter

Any politician who supports such measures will be targeted for defeat via coordinated action by Coalition members. They will be subject to picketing, leaflet drops at events in their districts, phone and mail campaigns, and political action committee opposition. Neither party affiliation nor NRA ratings and endorsements will have any impact on Coalition actions.

Right now, Coalition leaders are contacting their members, directing emails and phone calls to Congressional delegations and galvanizing supporters. In this most egregious attack on American freedom, we will prevail.

Respectfully,
The National Coalition to Stop the Gun Ban

National Organizations:

The Firearms Coalition

Jeff Knox, Managing Director

Chris Knox, Director of Communications

Gun Owners of America

Larry D. Pratt, Executive Director

Jews for the Preservation of Firearms Ownership

Charles Heller, President

Rights Watch International

F. Paul Valone, Executive Director

Second Amendment Sisters

Marinelle Thompson, President

Lee Ann Tarducci, Director of Operations

USRKBA.org

Dave Yates, Co-founder

Dave Van, Co-Founder

State-level organizations:

Arizona Citizens Defense League

Dave Kopp, President

Arkansas Carry

Steve Jones, Chairman

BamaCarry

Eddie Fulmer, Spokesman

Connecticut Citizens Defense League, Inc

Scott Wilson, Sr., President

Damas de la Segunda Enmienda

(Ladies of the Second Amendment, Puerto Rico)

Sandra R Barreras, Executive Vice
President

Firearms Owners Against Crime

Kim Stolfer, Chairman

Florida Carry, Inc.

Sean Caranna, Executive Director

Richard Nascak, Executive Director

Grass Roots North Carolina

F. Paul Valone, President

Gun Owners Civil Rights Alliance, Minnesota

Joe Olson, President

Gun Owners of California

Sam Paredes, Executive Director

Gun Owners of Maine

Shane Belanger, Executive Director

Gun Owners of Utah

Charles Hardy, Public Policy Director

Gun Owners of Vermont

Gary Cutler, Legislative Director

ICarry.org

Shaun Kranish, Founder

Iowa Gun Owners

Aaron Dorr, Executive Director

Michigan Gun Owners

Jeff LaFave, President

Michigan Open Carry, Inc.

Phillip Hofmeister, President

Montana Shooting Sports Association

Gary Marbut, President

Nebraska Firearms Owners Association

Wesley Dickinson, President

New Hampshire Firearms Coalition

Jonathan R. Evans, Esq, President

New Jersey 2nd Amendment Society

Frank Flamingo, President

Oregon Firearms Federation

Kevin Starrett, Executive Director

Peaceable Texans for Firearms Rights

Paul Velte, President

Pennsylvania, ACSL

Kim Stolfer, Legislative Committee Chairman

Shooters Committee on Political Education, NY

Stephen Aldstadt, President

Utah Shooting Sports Council

Clark Aposhian, Chairman

Virginia Citizens Defense League

Philip Van Cleave, President

West Virginia Citizens Defense League

Keith Morgan, President

Western Missouri Shooters Alliance

Kevin Jamison, Press Officer

Wisconsin Carry, Inc.

Nik Clark, Chairman/President

 The Coalition:

• Over 30 national and state gun rights organizations have joined together (more groups are joining daily) to defeat looming gun control legislation advocated by President Barack Obama and Senator Dianne Feinstein;

• Representing hundreds of thousands of gun rights supporters, members of the “National Coalition to Stop the Gun Ban” have adopted a “no compromise” stance toward the proposals, promising to target any congressional representative who supports them, regardless of the position of the NRA;

• The Coalition today delivered the “Open Letter to Members of Congress” below to U.S. House and Senate delegations (scroll down to see letter) ;

• The Coalition continues to recruit new member organizations, with the intention of representing the interests of millions of Second Amendment supporters.

NHFC position:

Current proposals would ban semi-automatic firearms and magazines holding more than ten rounds, register existing firearms and their owners under the National Firearms Act, and register private gun transfers via the computerized National Instant Check System.

In a letter to members, NHFC  president Jonathan Evans said:

“The National Coalition to Stop the Gun Ban will work to defeat all proposed federal gun control and to punish any congressional representative who supports it. We find absolutely nothing about Senator Feinstein’s proposal to be acceptable: Not banning guns, not registering guns and gun owners via the National Firearms Act, not registering private gun sales via the National Instant Check System, and most certainly not expanding BATFE police powers which are already being abused.

 “’Compromise,’ as our opposition defines it, is a process in which freedom-loving Americans lose slightly less than under the original proposal. Consequently, in the most egregious attack on Second Amendment freedom in our history, we will not ‘compromise.’”

 Sincerely,

Jonathan R. Evans, Esq.

President, New Hampshire Firearms Coalition, Inc.

Open Letter to Members of Congress:

In coming weeks, you will face pressure from the Obama administration and others to implement a ban on semi-automatic firearms and certain ammunition feeding devices, and to pass laws requiring private gun transfers to be processed via the National Instant Check System.

Yet the “assault weapon” misnomer is a myth perpetuated by gun control advocates who seek to confuse the public about the difference between millions of semi-automatic firearms, which are functionally identical to hunting rifles, and military “assault rifles,” which are machine guns virtually unavailable to the public since implementation of the National Firearms Act of 1934.

The truth about modern rifles

The modern rifles Senator Dianne Feinstein has, by her own admission, waited decades to ban differ from others primarily by cosmetic features such as barrel shrouds, threaded barrels, flash suppressors, pistol grips and adjustable stocks – things which do not affect function. The notion being promulgated by gun control advocates that such features increase lethality by allowing guns to be “fired from the hip” is absurd: Any firearms expert will attest that rifles can only be effectively utilized from the shoulder.

Although you are being told that ammunition used by modern rifles is excessively destructive, in truth it is ballistically inferior to common .30-06 hunting ammunition and was selected by the military not for its lethality, but instead for light weight and low recoil.

And when you hear how “high capacity” magazines increase mortality in mass shootings, understand that Seung-Hui Cho carried no fewer than nineteen magazines for the Virginia Tech rampage, and that nearly all mass murderers who use guns carry multiple firearms, rendering magazine capacity moot. Like the misnomer “assault weapon,” the “high capacity” designation of more than ten rounds for magazines represents nothing more than an arbitrary limit set on devices which have been in common possession since the early Twentieth Century.

Moreover, attempts to process private gun sales through the National Instant Check System represent nothing less than a stepping stone to national gun registration; under the Clinton administration, the FBI retained NICS transaction records in violation of the Brady Act, creating a defacto national registration system.

Most outrageous, however, is Sen. Feinstein’s proposal to regulate “grandfathered” modern rifles under the National Firearms Act. Doing so would not only entail registering millions of existing firearms, but would represent unprecedented expansion of police powers through the BATFE by requiring millions of gun owners to be fingerprinted and photographed like common criminals. Because a large percentage will refuse to comply, the scheme, if implemented, will make felons of otherwise law-abiding citizens.

Semi-auto ban: No impact on violence

Neither have such laws been effective. From 1994 to 2004, the previous ban on semi-automatic firearms and magazines had no impact on school shootings, which actually increased during that period. Indeed, some of the worst school shootings, including Columbine High School, took place during the ban.

Despite predictions from gun control advocates that violent crime would increase after the ban expired, it has actually dropped: According to FBI Uniform Crime Reports, between expiration of the ban in 2004 and the most recent for which data is available (2011), violent crime dropped by 17% and homicide, by 15%.

Meanwhile, weapons use in homicide has remained unchanged and, significantly, use of rifles (including those targeted for bans) declined slightly from 2.7% of homicides in 2004 to 2.5% of homicides in 2011. Clearly, rifles of any type, including those with features targeted by semi-auto bans, are rarely used in crimes.

‘Gun Free School Zones Act’ increased killings

What does appear to have impacted school shootings was implementation of the latest version of the “Gun Free School Zones Act” (GFSZA), which is associated with a dramatic increase in school murders.

Between the first significant school shooting, in 1966, and enactment of the 1996 GFSZA, media summaries reveal 8 shootings with 134 victims killed or wounded – a rate of 4.3 victims per year. Between 1996 and 2012, the review finds 62 shootings and 367 victims – a fivefold increase to 23 victims per year. Yet, during the same period, FBI Uniform Crime Reports indicate homicide nationwide dropped by 14%.

While media summaries may not be comprehensive, the GFSZA has clearly been an abject failure. Worse, evidence suggests it may actually create “kill zones” which attract violent predators.

Researchers John Lott and William Landes, then at Yale and the University of Chicago, respectively, studied multiple victim public shootings. Said Lott, “Gun prohibitionists concede that banning guns around schools has not quite worked as intended—but their response has been to call for more regulation of guns. Yet what might appear to be the most obvious policy may actually cost lives. When gun-control laws are passed, it is law-abiding citizens, not would-be criminals, who adhere to them.”

Examining data from 1976 to 1995, they discovered that mass homicides in states adopting concealed handgun laws declined by 84%, deaths plummeted by 90% and injuries by 82.5%. Crediting the reductions to deterrence (even suicidal maniacs avoid armed victims), Lott and Landes called their findings “dramatic,” concluding: “[T]he only policy factor to have a consistently significant influence on multiple victim public shootings is the passage of concealed handgun laws.”

Coalition position

Members of the National Coalition to Stop the Gun Ban demand that Congress refuse to use lawful gun owners as political scapegoats and instead reduce school violence by:

• ·         Defeating any attempt to pass gun control including, but not limited to, banning semi-automatic firearms or magazines, or requiring private gun transfers to be registered through the National Instant Check System; and

• ·         Repealing the Gun Free School Zones Act of 1996.

No ‘compromises’

Some will urge you to “compromise,” perhaps even the National Rifle Association. The many thousands of gun rights supporters represented by the Coalition, however, regard “compromise,” as our opposition defines it, to be a process in which we lose slightly fewer of our rights than under the original proposal. Consequently, any legislation which registers or bans firearms; limits magazine capacity; registers private transactions through NICS; or restricts time, place or manner of self-defense is unacceptable.

Members of Congress who support gun owners by opposing all gun control will, in turn, benefit from support by Coalition organizations. Members of Congress who support gun control by any means, procedural or substantive, will be targeted for defeat by Coalition members. They will be subject to picketing, leaflet drops at events in their districts, phone and mail campaigns, and political action committee opposition. NRA ratings and endorsements will have no impact on Coalition actions.

In coming weeks, we look forward to working with you to reduce school violence by allowing lawful citizens in schools and elsewhere to defend themselves against violent predators.

Respectfully,
The National Coalition to Stop the Gun Ban

Signatories

National Organizations:

The Firearms Coalition
Jeff Knox, Managing Director
Chris Knox, Director of Communications

Gun Owners of America
Larry D. Pratt, Executive Director

Rights Watch International
F. Paul Valone, Executive Director

Second Amendment Sisters
Marinelle Thompson, President
Lee Ann Tarducci, Director of Operations

USRKBA.org
Dave Yates, Co-founder
Dave Van, Co-Founder

State-level organizations:

Allegheny County Sportsmen’s League
Kim Stolfer, Legislative Committee, Chairman

Arizona Citizens Defense League
Dave Kopp, President

Arkansas Carry
Steve Jones, Chairman

Firearms Owners Against Crime
Kim Stolfer, Chairman and Founder

Florida Carry, Inc.
Sean Caranna, Executive Director
Richard Nascak, Executive Director

Grass Roots North Carolina
F. Paul Valone, President

Gun Owners Civil Rights Alliance, Minnesota
Joe Olson, President

Gun Owners of California
Sam Paredes, Executive Director

Gun Owners of Maine
Shane Belanger, Executive Director

Gun Owners of Utah
Charles Hardy, Public Policy Director

Gun Owners of Vermont
Gary Cutler, Legislative Director

Michigan Gun Owners
Jeff LaFave, President

Michigan Open Carry, Inc.
Phillip Hofmeister, President

Montana Shooting Sports Association
Gary Marbut, President

New Hampshire Firearms Coalition
Jonathan R. Evans, Esq, President

New Jersey 2nd Amendment Society
Frank Flamingo, President

Nebraska Firearms Owners Association
Wesley Dickinson, President

Oregon Firearms Federation
Kevin Starrett, Executive Director

Peaceable Texans for Firearms Rights
Paul Velte, President

Virginia Citizens Defense League
Philip Van Cleave, President

West Virginia Citizens Defense League
Keith Morgan, President

Western Missouri Shooters Alliance
Kevin Jamison, Press Officer

Wisconsin Carry, Inc
Nik Clark, Chairman/President

Governor

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