- What part of "Constitution" don't they understand?
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- In a frightening move, House Republicans -- members of
the party that supposedly favors "limited government" -- are
pushing an Orwellian nightmare in Congress in the name of "national
security."
-
- In the wake of the 9/11 Commission's recommendations,
the Senate -- unlike the House -- has prepared legislation which would
closely track that Commission's findings by reorganizing the intelligence
services in the federal government. The Senate bill is relatively innocuous
compared to the House version, HR 10.
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- Unfortunately, many of the so-called Republicans in the
House are pushing this nightmarish legislation which would:
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- * Create a massive government database containing personal
information on every American man, woman and child;
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- * Standardize (i.e., nationalize) the process of issuing
driver's licenses -- thereby taking the final step toward creating a national
ID card; and
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- * Set up a system whereby any employer or industry identified
by the Attorney General would have to submit employment applicants to the
government for approval -- complete with fingerprints or other "biometric
identifiers."
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- Now, let's look at how each of these problems could affect
your rights -- gun rights in particular:
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- (1) The government database is created by section 2173
of HR 10, a bill introduced by House Speaker Dennis Hastert. It would
allow airline passengers to be screened against lists containing "all
appropriate records." What would be "appropriate" would
be within the exclusive discretion of the bureaucrats, but could include
medical records, confidential financial records, library records, and gun
records.
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- (2) The driver's license standards are in section 3052.
They would allow the federal government to set standards as high as desired
to determine who may or may not obtain a driver's license. Please note
that you need a driver's license (or similarly regulated state-issued photo
ID) to purchase a gun from a dealer. But, increasingly, you also need
it to travel on any form of transportation (airplane, bus, train, car),
to get a job, to open a checking account, to cash a check, to check into
a hotel, to rent a car, or to purchase cigarettes or alcohol. If the federal
government can set standards so high as to deny you a driver's license
or photo ID, it has effectively turned you into a non-person.
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- (3) Section 2142 would allow the U.S. attorney general
to promulgate any regulations he desires concerning (a) what employers
must submit the names and fingerprints of all employment applicants to
the FBI, (b) what standards the government will use in approving or disapproving
the employment applicants, and (c) whether or not the government's "disapproval"
will prevent the applicant from being hired.
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- There is nothing in section 2142 which would prohibit
an anti-gun attorney general from (a) requiring the resumes and fingerprints
of every employment applicant in the country, (b) disapproving them on
the basis of gun ownership or, for that matter, any factor he viewed as
not being politically correct, and (c) prohibiting any employer from hiring
an applicant thus blacklisted.
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- ACTION: Write your representative. Ask him, in the
strongest terms, to vote against any "9/11 legislation" that
(1) creates a government database of personal information on law-abiding
Americans, (2) moves toward the use of a driver's license as a National
ID Card, or (3) sets up a system for fingerprinting and approving job applicants
in the private sector.
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- You can use the pre-written message below and send it
as an e-mail by visiting the GOA Legislative Action Center at http://www.gunowners.org/activism.htm
(where phone and fax numbers are also available).
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- ----- Pre-written message -----
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- Dear Representative:
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- Movement toward an oppressive government does not make
me feel more "secure."
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- Therefore, I would urge you, in the strongest terms,
to please vote against HR 10, The 9/11 Recommendations Implementation Act,
if it:
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- * Creates a massive government database containing personal
information on every American man, woman and child [section 2173];
-
- * Standardizes (i.e., nationalizes) the process of issuing
driver's licenses -- thereby taking the final step toward creating a national
ID card [section 3052];
-
- * Sets up a system whereby any employer or industry identified
by the Attorney General would have to submit employment applicants to the
government for approval -- complete with fingerprints or other "biometric
identifiers" [section 2142].
-
- Frankly, the ideas which are being floated with respect
to this legislation are simply horrible, and are surely unworthy of those
who have sworn to protect the Constitution.
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- Sincerely,
-
-
- ***************************
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- GOA Candidate Ratings Now Online
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- The 2004 version of GOA's famous Candidate Ratings Guide
has now been posted at http://www.gunowners.org/votetb04.htm on the web.
-
- A survey was mailed to every identifiable candidate nationwide
for this year's Congressional elections. And every incumbent was rated
based on his or her gun rights voting record while in office. The result
is a truly comprehensive voter's guide that will prove invaluable to gun
owners this November. Be sure to take note of where your candidates stand
on the Second Amendment!
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- Gun Owners of America 8001 Forbes Place, Suite 102, Springfield,
VA 22151
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- Phone: 703-321-8585 FAX: 703-321-8408 http://www.gunowners.org
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