Republican Culture War: We're Not Passing A Jobs Bill! But You Can At Least Carry Your Firearm! | HR 822 Concealed Carry Gun Bill Passes House Vote

WASHINGTON -- A state permit to carry a concealed firearm would be valid in almost every other state in the country under legislation the House passed Wednesday.

The first pro-gun bill the House has taken up this year and the first since Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, D-Ariz., was severely injured in a gun attack in January, it had the National Rifle Association's backing and passed by a comfortable margin. The vote was 272-154, with only seven Republicans voting against it and 43 Democrats supporting it.

The Democratic-controlled Senate has no parallel bill. But two years ago, GOP Sens. John Thune of South Dakota and David Vitter of Louisiana nearly succeeded in attaching a similar measure to a larger bill.

Under the House legislation, people with a concealed carry permit in one state could carry a concealed weapon in every other state that gives people the right to carry concealed weapons. While states have various standards for issuing such permits, currently only Illinois and the District of Columbia prohibit the concealed carrying of weapons.

"The Second Amendment is a fundamental right to bear arms that should not be constrained by state boundary lines," said GOP Rep. Lamar Smith of Texas, chairman of the House Judiciary Committee.

The bill's chief co-sponsor, Rep. Cliff Stearns, R-Fla., said states should consider concealed carry permits no differently from driver's licenses recognized by all states. He noted that many states already have reciprocity agreements with other states.

The legislation would "make it easier for law-abiding permit holders to know that they are simply in compliance with the law when they carry a firearm as they travel," he said.

Democratic opponents said the bill would constitute a "race to the bottom," with states that have strict requirements for issuing permits having to accept permits from states with far more lax standards.

"It's a situation where weaker state laws become the national law," said Rep. Bobby Scott, D-Va. He noted that some states require training for permit holders, or deny permits to those under 21 or who sell drugs to minors, commit sex offenses or are involved in domestic violence.

According to the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, the measure would allow states with tough requirements, such as New York and California, "to allow in concealed carry gun-toting people from states, such as Florida, which repeatedly have given dangerous people licenses to carry."

Rep. Carolyn McCarthy, D-N.Y., and Sen. Frank Lautenberg, D-N.J., wrote President Barack Obama last week urging him to issue a veto threat against the bill. Passing the bill "would jeopardize public safety and would be an insult to states like New Jersey and New York that purposefully have strong gun ownership laws," they wrote.

The administration has not yet taken an official position on the bill.

Democrats also chided Republicans for ignoring their dedication to states' rights. "For the Republican House majority that supposedly believes in states' rights, this bill is shocking," said Rep. Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y.

There hasn't been much legislative action on firearms issues this year. A spending bill that the House is expected to vote on this week would bar the Justice Department from consolidating firearms sales records or maintaining information on people who have passed firearms background checks.

The chief sponsors of the concealed weapon measure, Stearns and Rep. Heath Shuler, D-N.C., said their proposal would not create a federal licensing system but merely require states to honor one another's carry permits.

People who are unable to get a permit in their home state would not be able to carry a concealed weapon in their home state by getting a permit in another state. A state's ban on carrying concealed weapons in places such as bars, sporting events or state parks would apply to nonresidents as well as residents.

Thirty-five states have "shall issue" permit laws that usually require states to issue permits to those who meet legal requirements. Ten others have "may issue" or discretionary permit laws. Vermont, Arizona, Alaska and Wyoming do not require a permit to carry a concealed weapon.

Case tests Ohio's guns-in-bars law | The Republican Culture War

I own a conceal carry permit to own a firearm.

The Ohio Republican legislature passed a open firearm in bar bill in 2011. The governor John Kasich, first term has been marred in controversy. The SB 5 bill which strips public sector unions of collective bargaining, calling the Upper Arlington police officer who stopped him "an idiot", partisan redistricting to favor Republicans, and his golf outing with Ohio House Speaker John Boehner, Vice President Joe Biden and President Barack Obama has sunk job approval to low 40s.

Governor Kasich, the former host of Fox News program Heartland also has ties to NewsCorporation, Incorporated. The media network is involved in a major scandal over here and in the United Kingdom.

Here's an example of putting water on a grease fire:

Chad O’Reilly / Provided

Written by

Dan Horn

Facts about Ohio’s new gun law

• The law allows people with concealed-carry permits to keep their guns with them when they enter one of the state’s 17,000 bars, restaurants or nightclubs where alcohol is served. The law also allows a permit holder to have a loaded handgun in a vehicle even if the gun is not secured in a holster or container.

• Businesses still can ban guns on their premises by posting a sign stating guns are not permitted.

• No one is allowed to drink alcohol while carrying a gun. Doing so is a third-degree felony punishable by up to five years in prison.

• Eight other states specifically allow people with proper permits to carry guns into bars. A dozen other states prohibit guns in bars.

More

A Deer Park man became the first in Greater Cincinnati to face charges under Ohio’s “guns in bars” law Wednesday when he was arrested for threatening to kill a fellow bar patron.

Chad O’Reilly’s arrest came two weeks after the law took effect and immediately reignited debate between gun-rights activists and those who wanted to continue a statewide ban on guns in bars.

“This law is so absurd,” said Toby Hoover, director of the Ohio Coalition Against Gun Violence. “Without this law, maybe some fists would have flied. Instead, he’s waving a gun around.”

Supporters of the new law say it worked as intended in this case. They say O’Reilly will lose his concealed-carry permit and could face up to five years in jail if he is convicted of violating the new gun law – stiffer penalties than he would have faced under the old law.

“This fellow made a serious mistake,” said state Sen. Bill Seitz, R-Green Township, who supported changing the law. “Nothing in the law allows you to do anything other than carry a gun into an establishment if you have a permit.

“It does not give you license to brandish a gun and wave it around.”

Police say the incident occurred around 2 a.m. Wednesday when O’Reilly, who has a permit to carry a concealed weapon, got into a heated argument with another man at the H&H Tavern on Ohio Avenue in Deer Park.

They say O’Reilly, 25, walked out of the bar and returned a short time later with a .40-caliber semiautomatic Glock pistol in his hand.

According to the arrest report, O’Reilly shouted a racial slur at the man, who is Hispanic, and said, “I’m going to kill you.”

Deer Park police say O’Reilly’s friends ushered him out of the bar and police arrested him at gunpoint a few minutes later. He did not resist and no one was hurt.

O’Reilly, who police said had been drinking, was charged with aggravated menacing, ethnic intimidation, possession of a controlled substance (injectable testosterone) and illegal possession of a firearm in a liquor establishment.

The latter charge is related to Ohio’s new law, which allows concealed-carry permit holders to bring weapons into bars, restaurants, nightclubs and other places that serve liquor as long as they do not drink alcohol.

Ohio law previously had forbidden guns in those businesses, with or without a concealed-carry permit.

Because O’Reilly had been drinking, police say, he violated the new gun law. The other charges relate to the threats he is accused of making while brandishing the gun.

Ohio is one of several states to adopt some version of the guns in bars law, with gun-rights advocates arguing it makes sense to allow law-abiding citizens to carry their weapons rather than keep them at home or locked in a car when they go out.

The law does not allow drinking while carrying a gun and gives bar owners the option of putting up a sign banning guns on their premises.

The H&H Tavern had no such sign, but owner Dave Anderson said it soon will. He said his bar never had a problem with gun-toting patrons before and blames the new law for the incident Wednesday morning.

“I believe in the right to bear arms, but I believe that law was made in bad judgment,” Anderson said. “It’s not good for any small business to have people carrying firearms in.”

Deer Park police Lt. Daniel McCormack said O’Reilly told police he tucked his gun into his waistband, without a holster, before entering the tavern. The bartender told police he served O’Reilly two beers before the incident.

“I’m a shooter and I believe in concealed carry,” McCormack said. “But any time you have alcohol and guns, it’s just not a good mix.”

The same argument was made often when legislators debated the new law earlier this year. The Ohio Restaurant Association, with more than 2,400 members, opposed the law on grounds that alcohol and guns are a bad combination.

Seitz and others, however, have said the nearly 250,000 Ohioans with concealed-carry permits are law-abiding citizens who should be allowed to keep their firearms with them.

To obtain a concealed-carry permit, a person must complete at least 12 hours of training, including two hours on a firing range, pass a criminal background check and pay various fees.

Seitz said the potential penalties O’Reilly faces for violating the law should discourage other permit holders from drinking while carrying a gun.

“The draconian sanctions on those who violate this law will act as a deterrent on those who would do something foolish in the future,” Seitz said.

Anderson, the bar owner, said he just doesn’t want a repeat of what happened Wednesday morning.

“We’ve been in business 21 years,” he said. “We’ve never had a thing like this happen before.”

How To Ruin An Already Lacklaster Campaign: Ron Paul Weighs In On President Obama Order To Kill Anwar Al-Awlaki

Presidenti­al candidate Ron Paul weighs in the killing of Anwar Al-Awlaki.

He's complainin­g that the U.S. born cleric who has ties to al-Qaeda wasn't given his due process. He slams President Barack Obama for advocating a "target kill" on the spiritual adviser who inspired a young man attempt to blow up a commercial airplane and then a military officer who attacked his own members in Fort Hood, Texas.

That's funny, Paul didn't complain about President George W. Bush's 2002 target killing of Kamal Derwish, an American who was killed in Yemen.

What Paul says will not to appeal to Republican­s! Especially the ones he wants to court for the Republican nomination­. This becomes an issue as well as a big setback to his stance on how to defend the United States from domestic and internatio­nal terrorism.

Sure his core base of fanatics will flock to comments pages like this one and say that's he's always right and every other comment is irrelevant­. Ron Paul can't do wrong, his followers say!

Anyways, Paul will not get the nomination­, and his core fanatics will troll the internet for comments attacking the congressman's stances.

They'll get into trivial debates over how the media never covers him, make claims that it's people like me that are uninformed or dependent on some perceived government handouts.

Ron Paul is an establishment candidate who's "KOOKY" ideas appeal to the broad coalition of drug users, disengaged conservatives and liberals, extremists (the ones who appear on anti-government and White Supremacists websites) and people who "read the Constitution all the ways!" They're chances of liberty, freedom, prosperity will result in another empty rhetoric candidate who appeals to one fringe base instead of working to appeal to the rest of the broad society.

People are awaken to the extremist rhetoric this man and his son Rand Paul say on television­, radio and the blogs.

Dog Whistle GOP Attorney General: Welfare Is Like Those Scavenging Raccoons!

Nebraska Attorney General Jon Bruning, a frontrunner to win the GOP nomination against Sen. Ben Nelson (D-NE), compared poor people to scavenging racoons in a speech this week.


In a video captured by the liberal group, American Bridge 21st Century, Bruning makes the comparison as part of an elaborate metaphor originally focused on environmental regulations. He describes a requirement that workers at a construction project gather up endangered beetles by luring them into a bucket with a dead rat in order to release them elsewhere. But the plan is thwarted when hungry raccoons then eat them straight out of the rat-infested bucket. Which, according to Bruning, is a perfect image to illustrate how welfare recipients receive their benefits.

"The raccoons figured out the beetles are in the bucket," Bruning said. "And its like grapes in a jar. The raccoons - they're not stupid, they're gonna do the easy way if we make it easy for them. Just like welfare recipients all across America. If we don't send them to work, they're gonna take the easy route."

Oh, Hell Nah - Rush Limbaugh says no to Mitch Daniels.

Conservative talker Rush Limbaugh is really not feeling the Washington Post article about Mitch Daniels, Republican governor of Indiana being a viable candidate against incumbent Democratic president Barack Obama. Limbaugh is even comparing Daniels to Senator John McCain, the Arizona Republican who was defeated in a landslide election in 2008.

 

 

Mitch Daniels: The man who could reshape the Republican field

By Chris Cillizza, Published: May 8

Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels continues to keep the political world waiting, saying recently that he will announce “within weeks” whether he will run for president in 2012.

The Republican’s decision — which could come as soon as Thursday at the Indiana Republican Party’s spring dinner, where his wife, Cheri, will be the keynote speaker — could have an impact well beyond just one man saying yes or no, however.

The GOP presidential race has been defined by relative chaos — and weakness — among the field.
That was reinforced at last week’s first presidential debate of the season, which, aside from former Minnesota governor Tim Pawlenty, featured a handful of long shots and no-shots debating such topics as the legalization of marijuana — and even heroin.

Daniels is regarded (and regards himself) as a candidate of considerable gravity, willing to focus on making tough choices about the nation’s financial future even if that conversation is politically unpopular. (At a February speech at the Conservative Political Action Conference in Washington, he said that “purity in martyrdom is for suicide bombers.”)

A Daniels candidacy probably would be taken as a sign that the games are over for the Republican Party, that it is time to buckle down and organize to beat President Obama.

“He will turn a race that is about less serious politics into a race about more serious policy,” argued Alex Castellanos, a Republican media consultant who is not aligned with any candidate heading into 2012. “Daniels is the adult in the room saying the party is over, it’s time to clean house. That contrast in maturity is how a Republican beats Obama.”

The president has acknowledged as much about Daniels, telling an Indiana television station that the governor is “a serious person” before adding: “I have some significant philosophical differences with him.”
Should Daniels opt not to run, on the other hand, the unpredictability that has ruled the race would almost certainly continue unabated.

A field without Daniels — as well as Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour, who in a major surprise last month decided against running — would mean a race that remained in considerable flux as candidates considered sideshows at best (Donald Trump, anyone?) dominated headlines and complicated GOP efforts to convince the public that the party can present a credible alternative to Obama.

“So far, the most recognizable Republican candidates are unable to seriously begin to define the Republican debate for president,” said former congressman Tom Reynolds (N.Y.). “That will keep the GOP presidential sweepstakes looking like it is still trying to find its way.”

To be sure, Daniels’ entrance into the contest shouldn’t be overstated. He would force a more sober tone but almost certainly wouldn’t end the circus-like atmosphere entirely either.

Obama is already moving to capi­tal­ize on the uncertainty of the Republican lineup.

Publicly, he is casting himself as the one person who, in matters of domestic and foreign policy, is willing to take on the major problems that face the country.

Behind closed doors, his fundraising operation is humming as the campaign seeks to meet — and probably beat — the $750 million that Obama raised as a candidate in 2008.

And next month will be a big one for the Republican presidential race. The next GOP debate is set for June 13 in New Hampshire, and just three days later the Republican Leadership Conference will open in New Orleans, a gathering that will feature virtually every candidate mentioned for national office.

Given all that, what Daniels decides may well serve as a telling signal of whether Republicans are ready to get serious about beating Obama.

Republicans, cherish the victory!

BROWN MEET RED

Republicans celebrate now, but the victory will be a reminder that you better get your act together. Democrats, now it's time to regroup. We can't allow the defeat down you! Best believe that the "tea party movement" is a thorn in the side. But it's best to line up a strategy.

Democrats lose the seat held by the late senator Ted Kennedy. The Democrats are now scrambling for a massive defensive. Republicans celebrate a strong victory. Scott Brown, now senator-elect, what's next?

President of The United States? Who knows, Drudge? Seriously, I think dude sees the same crystal ball I see!

Conservative activists are gloating now that Scott Brown may be the future of the once disgraced party. Republicans have channeled into the anger of the "angry white male". President Barack Obama ratings according to GALLUP is standing around 50% - 43%. The support among white voters is down significantly. Again, the conservative media, Fox News, Rush Limbaugh, Glenn Beck, Bill O'Reilly, Sean Hannity, Michelle Malkin and Matt Drudge want the president to fail!

They'll line up a moderate Republican to defeat President Obama! And once again, the partisan gap increases. Independents are the key to election victories.

Democrats, it's time to step your game up! What's the problem? If I voted for a decent health care reform, I wanted it with the public option! If one thing has taught me about politicians, they are destructive! And to make this clear, Republicans are no better. If they were better, then Senator John McCain and Sarah Palin would run this country.

I seriously believe the Republicans want to continue to push the "angry white male", "concern housewife", "the gun owner who is concerned that President Obama will take his gun", "angry banker who wants to rip me and millions of other off with high deductible loans and foreclose on my home" and follow the "angry guy on the radio who spouts off!"

2012, is coming sooner than we think?

Sarah Palin, Going Rouge? Steve Schmidt: Not Even Close!

CBS interviews former campaign adviser to John McCain's failed presidential bid, Steve Schmidt. He's airs out the best-selling author and former Vice Presidential candidate, Sarah Palin. The former Alaskan governor who's been in the media lately became the darling of "Tea Party Movement", and a possible bid to run in 2012. Schmidt sets the record straight.


Watch CBS News Videos Online

Subliminal Messages - The Drudge Way!

MATT DRUDGE WILL DO HIS BEST TO PUT REPUBLICANS BACK IN POWER!

WILL THERE BE ANOTHER ASHLEY TODD STORY IN THE WORKS?

CREDIBILITY MATTERS AND BELIEVE ME IN A MIDTERM ELECTION, DRUDGE IS EVEN MORE SLIMIER!

Drudge uses the screen cap to promote the notion Republicans will take back Congress, again. Will it happen? Who knows?

People in the 21st Century are still living on 20th Century ideals!

As the new year continues, the first year of President Barack Obama has been somewhat disappointing. The support for Barack Obama is declining, and I getting the feeling that hoping for "Change We Can Believe In" will be delayed by the opposition of people who continue to live their lives like it's still the 20th Century. The Democrats and the Republicans are the main distraction to the agenda that President Obama wants to accomplish.

The first African American to be elected president was the biggest achievement in American race relations. However, being the first, all the scrutiny and the blame seems to rest on his feet. I have seen some of the worst from critics who simply oppose Obama. His policies are no different than any other president, however me thinks that once again the ugly "elephant in the room" will continue to haunt the very reason why our country is divided. And it reminds me of the continuation of the lack of intelligence from conservatives and even liberals, a political base that drove in numbers to put Barack Obama in the White House.

I must admit that we still have a long way to go before anyone can say "race isn't an issue anymore!"

Channeling my inner soul, I reflect on the 1990s when then former governor from the state of Arkansas, William Jefferson Clinton, wanted to have the same progressive agenda as his predecessor. The Republicans allied with its conservative activists and lobbyists continued to stand in the way, turn the debates into "trivial issues". Forgotten the days that President George Herbert Walker Bush created a economic recession, was slow on the draw when it came to a disastrous and costly hurricane, a race riot in one of the busiest cities in America, a war in the Middle East and government spending.

When President Clinton started, Republicans voided Bush and pressed Reagan. This same strategy continues today. Republicans and its allies stress that President Ronald Reagan handled solutions better than some "hippy loving, gun taking, tax increasing liberal elitist!" If you elect us, we promise to "take the government out of your life, bring cuts to government programs, keep your guns, religion and hold government responsible!" It worked, and the Republicans won control of Congress.

Now the same 20th Century Republicans are trying to use the same ideas to distract the public into thinking that President Obama failed and their leadership is the only way to save America.

Of course, they'll be driven on the momentum that Americans are so sick of government.

The Republicans are trying their hardest to win support of the "angry white male", "the frighten housewife", "the gun owners who fear their guns will be confiscated", "the business community who fears that environmentalists agenda" and "the Christian activists who opposes homosexuality!"

Democrats who lean conservative fear losing their seats, will either retire or switch parties.

I believe that if Republicans should gain control of Congress, they pat each other on the back and thank Rush Limbaugh and Glenn Beck for helping them control the media and debate.

Republicans are opposed to just about half of the policies the president pressed. And this will continue into the elections. Prominent Democrats are trying to get as much done, before the tidal wave of opposition sweeps them out the Congress. The biggest fear Democrats have is the lack of interest. With unemployment at an all time high, the public sours on President Obama. The war in Afghanistan is becoming a growing opposition. A failed terrorist attack, drove the domestic agenda back to international terrorism. As the health care debate is wrapping up, the most important pieces to pass reform were stripped by the party in power. Progressives and independents who lean Democratic are fumed over policies not met by the president and Congress.

Republicans will likely win seats. However they will not capture Congress! Or could I be wrong?

President Obama - We Screwed Up!

The intelligence community got a serious scolding from President Barack Obama. Republicans seize the opportunity to knock the White House over "terrorism".

Obama Security Review: No Finger Pointing, But Jobs At Stake - courtesy of Huffington Post.

Ben Feller - Associated Press

WASHINGTON — As the White House portrays the dramatic scene, President Barack Obama summoned his national security team to the Situation Room for a lecture about accountability after the failed terrorist attack on a Detroit-bound airliner.

"This was a screw-up that could have been disastrous," the commander in chief said.

The White House took the uncommon step of releasing that this-will-not-stand quote from a room where the secrecy usually is fiercely protected. Obama went on to say, according to the distributed account: "We dodged a bullet, but just barely. ... While there will be a tendency for finger-pointing, I will not tolerate it."

Tough language, but where will it lead?

Words are not enough. What people want is action.

Five times now since a man linked to al-Qaida allegedly tried to blow up the Northwest Airlines flight on Christmas Day, Obama has updated the nation. His message is one of a president determined for people to see he is in charge, demanding results and willing to call out his own government's flaws.

All this comes after some grumbles about a slow initial response on the part of Obama, who was in Hawaii on vacation and first spoke about the incident three days after it happened.

As the days pass, Obama's window for unilateral action narrows. At least three Senate committees plan hearings on the security scare later this month.

Read more from the Huffington Post.

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Obama Security Review: No Finger Pointing, But Jobs At Stake

THE DEMOCRATIC FRONTRUNNERS TURN CHICKEN!

Democrats: Time To Panic!

What could be worse for the party in power? The president's polls, the Democrats trying to gather support for health care reform, or the fact that members of their party are retiring!

With prominent Democrat retirings, the Republicans want to seize opportunity to retake the Congress.

Senators Chris Dodd (D-Connecticut), Bryon Dorgan (D-North Dakota), Governor Bill Ritter (D-Colorado), Congressman Bart Gordon (D-Tennessee), Congressman Neil Abercrombie (D-Hawaii), Congressman Brian Baird (D-Washington), Congressman John Tanner (D-Tennessee), Congressman Dennis Moore (D-Kansas), and Robert Wexler (D-Florida) are leaving the political spotlight.

Congressman Parker Griffith of Alabama, is now a Republican. The congressman switched parties after criticizing the Democratic agenda in December 2009. More misfortunes trouble Democrats. The ailing Senator Robert Byrd (D-West Virginia) is not appearing for role call, and Senator Joe Lieberman (I-Connecticut) is a thorn in the Democratic agenda.

The Democratic Party is fearing the political tidal wave of anger from supporters and critics. Right now, Republicans feel the momentum of the tea party protests, the resentment of government spending and the economic woes as a ticket to victory.

Although, most of the problems solely rest on the former President George W. Bush's doorstep, a slew of conservative activists (ranging from Rush Limbaugh, Glenn Beck, Sean Hannity, Bill O'Reilly, Matt Drudge, Michelle Malkin, RedState, Fox News, WorldNetDaily, Newsmax, etc.) will continue to press their agenda to the Republicans and then to the masses.

President Obama's job approvals are in the low 50s and some are in the high 40s. That's not good. Some of the problems do reside with reasonable concerns (federal spending, the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, high unemployment, economic woes, and lack of interest), the sole reasons for Republican rage is basically racism. And it's so blatant, I even went as far to make a video criticizing the conservatives running around with this "Socialist" crap.

What's your take on the issues?

Michael Steele - 2010 Spells Disaster For GOP

NRCC Pushes Back Against Steele Over 2010 Pessimism, GOP Operatives Furious

Sam Stein, Huffington Post contributes to the story.

Republican operatives are privately furious with RNC Chairman Michael Steele for predicting on Monday night that the GOP will not take over the House of Representatives in 2010.

One strategist called the comment "stupid," arguing that it will put the party in a bind when it comes to candidate recruitment and generally lower expectations and excitement over the 2010 elections. Others, who refused to go on the record, lamented the inevitable follow-up questions that would be asked to Republicans, such as: do you agree with the sentiments of the RNC Chairman?

And, sure enough, on Tuesday, the National Congressional Campaign Committee released a statement in which it basically slapped down Steele for his electoral prognostication.

See more on this story by visiting the Huffington Post. Click here for the rest of the story.