AWB - Letter from the GOA

[Shaun]

GOA Members Shoot Down Latest Effort to Extend Semi-auto Ban
Gun Owners of America
8001 Forbes Place, Suite 102
Springfield, VA 22151
(703)321-8585
Monday, July 12, 2004

Congratulations!

Through your efforts, you have succeeded in killing the best opportunity that anti-gunners had to extend the ban on roughly two hundred semiautomatic firearms.

Liberals had intended to offer the semi-auto ban as a "killer amendment" to class action reform legislation which was considered by the Senate last week. At first, there was every indication that Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist was going to allow anti-gunners like Sen. Feinstein to offer the gun ban amendment.

But after you bombarded Frist's office with demands that he prevent the semi-auto amendment, Frist -- in a parliamentary move that we suggested -- took steps to procedurally block all "killer amendments," including the semi-auto ban.

Liberal anti-gunners whined and screamed on the Senate floor, and threatened to kill the class action bill in retaliation. But we appear to have won the battle for now, as the class action bill has been pulled from the floor.

This victory is huge. Compared to the ill-fated strategy used on the gun makers' protection act (S. 1805) earlier in the year, the outcome on the class action bill was as good as could be expected in the poisoned environment on the Hill. Consider the following:

* The best chance for reenacting the semi-auto ban prior to its September 13 expiration is now dead;
* Unlike the gun liability bill -- defeated 8-to-90 in March after it was loaded down with "killer amendments" -- pro-business Senators can still bring the class action bill back up at some later point during this session;
* Unlike with the gun liability bill, the class action bill did not offer anti-gun Democrats a week of Senate floor time to promote their agenda; and
* Those anti-gunners who cynically pretended to support the class action bill were forced to make a choice between politically powerful constituencies -- between the pro-business community and the trial lawyers.
ACTION: Write Senator Frist. Congratulate him on his use of the rules in connection with the class action bill, and thank him for preventing consideration of the semiautomatic ban.

You can call Senator Frist at 202-224-3344, or go to http://www.frist.senate.gov and select "Contact Senator Frist" under the "About Senator Frist" heading to send a message similar to the one below.

----- Pre-written message -----
Dear Senator Frist:

Congratulations!

Your use of the Senate rules in connection with the class action bill blocked the prime opportunity of anti-gun liberals to force consideration of the semi-automatic ban.

You also saved the class action bill from the same 8-to-90 defeat experienced by the gun liability bill, and kept it alive to fight another day.

Finally, you prevented the Senate floor from being used as a campaign platform for issues designed to defeat you and your party.

In the politically poisoned environment on the Hill, this is as good as was possible under the circumstances.

Sincerely,

****************************

[Mandy]

:assult: :assult: :assult: :assult: :assult:

Frist is the man of the Hour, there should be more like him in the hill .....

:uzi: :uzi: :uzi: :uzi: :uzi:

[Rufus Rhastus J]

Yippy! Never liked those dems anyway!