Gun owners in West Virginia will no longer need to get a permit to have a concealed weapon, putting it among the most far-reaching states for gun rights. The House voted on the measure Friday and officially overrode a gubernatorial veto on Saturday.
CNN’s debate moderators did not ask candidates about the shooting in Hesston, Kansas, which left at least three people dead and up to 20 wounded. The incident was a workplace shooting, and the shooter — who was reported to be carrying an AK-47 — reportedly opened fire as he was driving his car... http://thinkprogress.org/politics/2016/02/25/3754076/debate-ignores-kansas-mass-shooting/
Sanders said that he will co-sponsor legislation to repeal the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act (PLCAA), a law passed by Congress in 2005 that shields gun manufacturers from liability in lawsuits over gun violence. Dan Gross, president of the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, praised Sanders’ decision, calling it a clear victory for gun control advocates which would have been “unthinkable a month ago.” http://thinkprogress.org/politics/2016/01/28/3743802/bernie-sanders-plcaa/
While New Yorkers, like all Americans, are free to own guns and buy them, the Empire State requires that all those purchasing guns and ammunition — even through “private sales” and at gun shows — pass a background check. The state also prohibits most assault weapons and large capacity magazines, like those used in mass shootings in Sandy Hook and Tucson... http://thinkprogress.org/politics/2016/01/24/3742258/marco-rubio-more-new-york-guns/
Although the full text of the bill is not yet available, Pitts described his bill to the Post and Courier as a deliberate effort to troll supporters of gun safety regulation. Pitts says his bill is modeled after a “concealed weapons permitting law.” He added that it “strikes me as ironic” that reporters questioned the constitutionality of the press registry bill when members of the press have “no problem demonizing firearms.” http://thinkprogress.org/justice/2016/01/19/3740845/lawmaker-introduces-bill-that-would-force-journalists-to-register-with-the-state/
“In this particular case, the FBI made a mistake,” Bush responded. “The law itself requires a background check, but they didn’t fulfill their part of the bargain within the time that they were supposed to do. We don’t need to add new rules, we need to make sure the FBI does its job. That person should not have gotten a gun, would not have passed a background check.”... http://thinkprogress.org/politics/2016/01/14/3739921/jeb-guns-debate/
This is a popular claim with the gun lobby, as they reason that people looking to commit a mass shooting want to find unarmed victims. But there’s no evidence gun-free zones are targeted more than other places. Furthermore, a “good guy with a gun” has never stopped a mass shooting. Very few people use guns in self-defense. In fact, the presence of a gun in a home makes it much more likely someone will be shot... http://thinkprogress.org/politics/2016/01/14/3739904/huckabee-gun-free-zones/
The armed occupation of a federally owned wildlife outpost in remote Oregon has entered its second week. A self-styled right-wing antigovernment militia calling itself the Citizens for Constitutional Freedom took over the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in support of two ranchers sentenced to prison for setting fires that burned federal land. Leaders of the occupation include Ammon and Ryan Bundy, the sons of Nevada rancher Cliven Bundy, who refused to pay decades’ worth of cattle grazing fees, prompting a standoff with federal rangers in 2014 in Nevada, during which an armed militia rallied to his support. A recent piece by the website Waging Nonviolence compares the federal government’s handling of the Bundy case and that of Tim DeChristopher, a climate activist who spent 21 months in federal custody for posing as a bidder in 2008 to prevent oil and gas drilling on thousands of acres of land controlled by the Bureau of Land Management in his home state of Utah. DeChristopher joins us to discuss.
Interview: https://youtu.be/kO2SN5WddYk
Cox defended the NRA’s refusal to join the president for CNN’s forum, calling it “an attempt to distract the American people away from his failed policies.” Noting that his organization was only offered the chance to ask Obama one thing, he told The Kelly File host Megyn Kelly that he would rather appear on her show “than sit through a lecture and get one opportunity to ask a pre-screened question.”... http://thinkprogress.org/justice/2016/01/08/3737309/nra-lobbyist-fox-news/
