Fred Thompson Has Exclusive Access To Florida Gun Shows
Fred Thompson & Bill Bunting
Fred Thompson has gained the support of Pasco County Florida Republican County Chairman Bill Bunting. A definite advantage for the Florida primary.
From The Miami Herald :
Sphere: Related ContentFred Thompson’s presidential campaign has hit a conservative bull’s eye: The exclusive rights to advertise at some of Florida’s largest gun shows.
Pasco County Republican chairman Bill Bunting said he has engineered the deal for the former Tennessee senator and Law & Order star because he’s the best person to trust when it comes to the right to buy, sell and own guns.
In a state with 435,000 concealed-weapons permit holders, the arrangement all but guarantees that thousands of voters who care deeply about the issue could identify Thompson as their man heading into the Jan. 29 primary, in which the other Republican candidates’ gun-toting credentials are viewed as suspect by many.
”The other candidates just aren’t as clear in their support of the Second Amendment,” Bunting said. “There are good Democrats who own guns, but that party doesn’t put the right to bear arms in their political platform. The Republican Party does.”
Bunting plans to make his announcement this evening at his county GOP’s Reagan Day Dinner, where a Colt .45 will be raffled off.
GOP campaign guru David ”DJ” Johnson, who’s not connected to the Thompson campaign, said the deal is ”huge.” He should know. Bunting made the same arrangement for Charlie Crist’s successful governor’s race last year, flummoxing Johnson’s candidate, Tom Gallagher. Gallagher even tried to get some gun-show promoters to allow him to pass out fliers, but he was rejected.
”There are people who vote guns and only guns, and they’re Republicans,” Johnson said. “These are the people you see at the polls.”
The state’s biggest gun-show promoter, Victor Bean, of the Florida and the Southern Gun and Knife shows, said he has 11 shows left until the primaries and estimates that 11,000 people will see Thompson’s signs.
In addition, he said he has an e-mail list of 70,000 politically active gun owners he plans to contact on Thompson’s behalf.
”Going into this campaign, I was concerned,” Bean said. “We feel Fred is our best hope.”
Tags: 2008 Elections, War On Terrorism
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Fred Thompson’s Anti-Gun Senate Record
The Conservatives Against Fred Thompson volunteers have compiled a list of proposals supported by Fred Dalton Thompson in the senate that include Gun Bans, confiscations and limitations to the free speech of Gun Rights Advocates. Dates and bill numbers are provided so this information can be easily verified. Summary:
1. Anti-gun terror bill (S. 735 )
On June 7, 1995, the Senate passed an anti-gun terror bill (S. 735) by a vote of 91-8. This version of the terror bill included: a BATF pay increase of $100 million; a provision authorizing “roving wiretaps” allowing government officials to wiretap one’s home if a person under investigation visits the home — even if one had no knowledge the person was a suspect; a weakening of the Posse Commitatus law to give the military more authority to get involved in law enforcement in certain circumstances; a grant of power to the FBI to conduct “fishing expeditions” and secure one’s financial and travel records in certain circumstances without any evidence one has committed a crime; and finally, the “Randy Weaver entrapment provision” which extends the statute of limitations for violations under the National Firearms Act of 1934 from three to five years. Thompson voted in favor of the bill.
2. Anti-gun terror bill — final passage
On April 17, 1996, the Senate passed the conference version of the anti-terrorism bill by a vote of 91-8. The final version of the bill (S. 735) contained several problems, including ones that will: order an “anti-hunter” rifle and ammo study; authorize a $40 million pay increase for the BATF (through the Treasury Department); potentially punish gun dealers (and individuals) for selling ammunition to someone they should have known would commit a violent crime; federalize many state crimes, thus tremendously increasing the scope and jurisdiction of the BATF; restrict the right of habeas corpus in such a way as to severely damage the ability of the courts to rescue honest gun owners who are unjustly incarcerated; allow the government to use “secret evidence” against certain individuals; remove protections against wiretapping wireless data; and require banks to freeze the assets of domestic groups in certain situations. Thompson once again voted in favor of the bill.
3. Taggants in gunpowder
On September 12, 1996, the Senate voted (57-42) to keep an anti-gun amendment off of the Treasury-Postal appropriations bill (H.R. 3756). The Kerry amendment — which Thompson voted for– would have made funds available for a study of tagging explosive materials, including black and smokeless powders (thus setting the stage for registering ammunition). The amendment also sought to further demonize firearms by selectively examining the misuse of firearms by criminals. The study would not examine the number of times firearms are used to save the lives of decent citizens.
4. Lautenberg Domestic Confiscation gun ban
On September 12, 1996, the Senate passed the Lautenberg gun ban as an amendment to the Treasury-Postal appropriations bill (H.R. 3756). The Lautenberg Domestic Confiscation Gun Ban disarms gun owners for small (misdemeanor) offenses in the home — “offenses” as slight as spanking a child or grabbing a spouse. This lifetime ban, in certain cases, can even be imposed without a trial by jury. It is also retroactive, so it does not matter if the offense occurred 20 years ago. Thompson voted in favor of the amendment.
5. Free Speech restrictions
On October 7, 1997, the Senate defeated an “Incumbent Protection Bill” (S. 25) which would have resulted in the government regulation of GOA’s newsletters and other communications with its members, while expanding the relative political power of the liberal media and other anti-gun forces. Senators failed in their effort, 53 to 47, to shut down a filibuster of the bill that was ostensibly aimed at reforming campaign finance laws.
6. Smith “Anti-Brady” Amendment
On July 21, 1998, pro-gun Senator Bob Smith (R-NH) introduced an “Anti-Brady” amendment that passed by a vote of 69-31. The Smith amendment would prohibit the FBI from using Brady background checks to tax or register gun owners. Further, the amendment requires the “immediate destruction of all [gun buyer] information, in any form whatsoever.” Finally, if the FBI disregards this latter provision, the Smith language will allow private citizens to sue the agency and collect monetary damages, including attorney’s fees. Thompson, in keeping with his tendency to usually vote for expanded federal police power, voted against this limitation of FBI registration of gun owners.
7. Anti-gun Clinton judge appointment
On February 11, 1998, the Senate voted 67-28 to confirm Margaret Morrow to the Federal bench. GOA vigorously opposed this Clinton-appointed judge, as she has not only taken strident anti-gun positions, she has showed herself to be a gun control activist.
8. Anti-gun Surgeon General
Having nominated anti-gun David Satcher for Surgeon General, President Bill Clinton was forced to wait several months as debate raged over his controversial pick. But on February 10, 1998, the President finally realized victory. By a vote of 75-23, anti-gun Republicans teamed up with the Democrats to kill the filibuster over the Satcher nomination. Mr. Satcher was later confirmed by a vote of 63-35. Since the key vote was to end the filibuster, that is the one that was rated by GOA.
9. Ending the filibuster of a major anti-gun crime bill
On July 28, 1999, the Senate ended a filibuster led by Senator Bob Smith (I-NH) — a filibuster intended to keep anti-gun crime legislation from progressing any further. After the 77-22 vote, the Senate moved to send the language of the anti-gun Senate crime bill (S. 254) to a House-Senate conference committee. Thompson voted to break the pro-gun filibuster.
10. Young adult gun ban
The young adult gun ban could severely punish parents who allow their kids to even touch a so-called semi-automatic “assault weapon.” While the amendment allows for certain exemptions, there are some imponderable questions which NO senator could answer, but which a parent would have to answer in order to avoid incarceration. For example: What is a “semiautomatic assault weapon”? The definition, plus exemptions, takes up six pages of fine print in the U.S. Code. Second, a child can handle a banned semi-auto if he is in the “immediate and supervisory presence” of a parent or if he possess a written permission slip from the parent. But what happens when, during a target practice session, the parent walks to the car to retrieve his lunch and the juvenile is no longer in the parents “immediate” presence and does not have a permission slip? A parent can receive jail time for this infraction. The provision passed the Senate on May 13, 1999, with Thompson voting in the majority.
11. Adopting the “Gun Control Lite” strategy
On May 13, 1999, a majority of Senators — including Thompson — defeated a motion to table (or kill) an anti-gun amendment introduced by Senators Orrin Hatch (R-UT) and Larry Craig (R-WY). This amendment was offered as an alternative to gun control proposals being pushed by Sen. Frank Lautenberg.
12. McCain’s Incumbent Protection (2000 version)
By 59 to 41, the Senate passed S. 27, to amend the Federal Election Campaign Act to include Incumbent Protection provisions. The bill severely curtails the ability of outside groups such as GOA to communicate the actions of incumbent politicians to members and supporters prior to an election.
13. Incumbent Protection (2002 failed filibuster)
This was the key vote in the Senate regarding the odious Incumbent Protection bill in 2002 (H.R. 2356). The legislation finally became law that year. As he had on previous occasions, Thompson voted in favor of the bill.
Source: http://conservativesagainstfred.wordpress.com/2007/06/11/fred-thompsons-anti-gun-senate-record/
17 Sep 07 at 9:16 pm
Fred Thompson = fake conservative, globalist sellout.
17 Sep 07 at 9:22 pm
he is a nazi not a conservative free people have guns slaves dont
17 Sep 07 at 9:44 pm
the ony choice is ron paul or none ha ha ha
17 Sep 07 at 9:49 pm
http://www.usatoday.com/news/politics/2007-09-15-670469271_x.htm
These are the issues being referred to in the article:
Fred Thompson’s Anti-Gun Senate Record
The Conservatives Against Fred Thompson volunteers have compiled a list of proposals supported by Fred Dalton Thompson in the senate that include Gun Bans, confiscations and limitations to the free speech of Gun Rights Advocates. Dates and bill numbers are provided so this information can be easily verified. Summary:
1. Anti-gun terror bill (S. 735 )
On June 7, 1995, the Senate passed an anti-gun terror bill (S. 735) by a vote of 91-8. This version of the terror bill included: a BATF pay increase of $100 million; a provision authorizing “roving wiretaps” allowing government officials to wiretap one’s home if a person under investigation visits the home — even if one had no knowledge the person was a suspect; a weakening of the Posse Commitatus law to give the military more authority to get involved in law enforcement in certain circumstances; a grant of power to the FBI to conduct “fishing expeditions” and secure one’s financial and travel records in certain circumstances without any evidence one has committed a crime; and finally, the “Randy Weaver entrapment provision” which extends the statute of limitations for violations under the National Firearms Act of 1934 from three to five years. Thompson voted in favor of the bill.
2. Anti-gun terror bill — final passage
On April 17, 1996, the Senate passed the conference version of the anti-terrorism bill by a vote of 91-8. The final version of the bill (S. 735) contained several problems, including ones that will: order an “anti-hunter” rifle and ammo study; authorize a $40 million pay increase for the BATF (through the Treasury Department); potentially punish gun dealers (and individuals) for selling ammunition to someone they should have known would commit a violent crime; federalize many state crimes, thus tremendously increasing the scope and jurisdiction of the BATF; restrict the right of habeas corpus in such a way as to severely damage the ability of the courts to rescue honest gun owners who are unjustly incarcerated; allow the government to use “secret evidence” against certain individuals; remove protections against wiretapping wireless data; and require banks to freeze the assets of domestic groups in certain situations. Thompson once again voted in favor of the bill.
3. Taggants in gunpowder
On September 12, 1996, the Senate voted (57-42) to keep an anti-gun amendment off of the Treasury-Postal appropriations bill (H.R. 3756). The Kerry amendment — which Thompson voted for– would have made funds available for a study of tagging explosive materials, including black and smokeless powders (thus setting the stage for registering ammunition). The amendment also sought to further demonize firearms by selectively examining the misuse of firearms by criminals. The study would not examine the number of times firearms are used to save the lives of decent citizens.
4. Lautenberg Domestic Confiscation gun ban
On September 12, 1996, the Senate passed the Lautenberg gun ban as an amendment to the Treasury-Postal appropriations bill (H.R. 3756). The Lautenberg Domestic Confiscation Gun Ban disarms gun owners for small (misdemeanor) offenses in the home — “offenses” as slight as spanking a child or grabbing a spouse. This lifetime ban, in certain cases, can even be imposed without a trial by jury. It is also retroactive, so it does not matter if the offense occurred 20 years ago. Thompson voted in favor of the amendment.
5. Free Speech restrictions
On October 7, 1997, the Senate defeated an “Incumbent Protection Bill” (S. 25) which would have resulted in the government regulation of GOA’s newsletters and other communications with its members, while expanding the relative political power of the liberal media and other anti-gun forces. Senators failed in their effort, 53 to 47, to shut down a filibuster of the bill that was ostensibly aimed at reforming campaign finance laws.
6. Smith “Anti-Brady” Amendment
On July 21, 1998, pro-gun Senator Bob Smith (R-NH) introduced an “Anti-Brady” amendment that passed by a vote of 69-31. The Smith amendment would prohibit the FBI from using Brady background checks to tax or register gun owners. Further, the amendment requires the “immediate destruction of all [gun buyer] information, in any form whatsoever.” Finally, if the FBI disregards this latter provision, the Smith language will allow private citizens to sue the agency and collect monetary damages, including attorney’s fees. Thompson, in keeping with his tendency to usually vote for expanded federal police power, voted against this limitation of FBI registration of gun owners.
7. Anti-gun Clinton judge appointment
On February 11, 1998, the Senate voted 67-28 to confirm Margaret Morrow to the Federal bench. GOA vigorously opposed this Clinton-appointed judge, as she has not only taken strident anti-gun positions, she has showed herself to be a gun control activist.
8. Anti-gun Surgeon General
Having nominated anti-gun David Satcher for Surgeon General, President Bill Clinton was forced to wait several months as debate raged over his controversial pick. But on February 10, 1998, the President finally realized victory. By a vote of 75-23, anti-gun Republicans teamed up with the Democrats to kill the filibuster over the Satcher nomination. Mr. Satcher was later confirmed by a vote of 63-35. Since the key vote was to end the filibuster, that is the one that was rated by GOA.
9. Ending the filibuster of a major anti-gun crime bill
On July 28, 1999, the Senate ended a filibuster led by Senator Bob Smith (I-NH) — a filibuster intended to keep anti-gun crime legislation from progressing any further. After the 77-22 vote, the Senate moved to send the language of the anti-gun Senate crime bill (S. 254) to a House-Senate conference committee. Thompson voted to break the pro-gun filibuster.
10. Young adult gun ban
The young adult gun ban could severely punish parents who allow their kids to even touch a so-called semi-automatic “assault weapon.” While the amendment allows for certain exemptions, there are some imponderable questions which NO senator could answer, but which a parent would have to answer in order to avoid incarceration. For example: What is a “semiautomatic assault weapon”? The definition, plus exemptions, takes up six pages of fine print in the U.S. Code. Second, a child can handle a banned semi-auto if he is in the “immediate and supervisory presence” of a parent or if he possess a written permission slip from the parent. But what happens when, during a target practice session, the parent walks to the car to retrieve his lunch and the juvenile is no longer in the parents “immediate” presence and does not have a permission slip? A parent can receive jail time for this infraction. The provision passed the Senate on May 13, 1999, with Thompson voting in the majority.
11. Adopting the “Gun Control Lite” strategy
On May 13, 1999, a majority of Senators — including Thompson — defeated a motion to table (or kill) an anti-gun amendment introduced by Senators Orrin Hatch (R-UT) and Larry Craig (R-WY). This amendment was offered as an alternative to gun control proposals being pushed by Sen. Frank Lautenberg.
12. McCain’s Incumbent Protection (2000 version)
By 59 to 41, the Senate passed S. 27, to amend the Federal Election Campaign Act to include Incumbent Protection provisions. The bill severely curtails the ability of outside groups such as GOA to communicate the actions of incumbent politicians to members and supporters prior to an election.
13. Incumbent Protection (2002 failed filibuster)
This was the key vote in the Senate regarding the odious Incumbent Protection bill in 2002 (H.R. 2356). The legislation finally became law that year. As he had on previous occasions, Thompson voted in favor of the bill.
Source: http://conservativesagainstfred.wordpress.com/2007/06/11/fred-thompsons-anti-gun-senate-record/
###
17 Sep 07 at 9:53 pm
It’s no joke: Ron Paul the real deal
by Bassey Etim
The Badger Herald
In a campaign where a frontrunner without experience tricks the media into reporting otherwise and a guy who reflexively wants to “double Guantanamo” wins the Iowa straw poll, a little common sense can be refreshing. But in today’s political climate, there’s no sense more uncommon than the Constitution. That’s why voters from all across the political spectrum should seriously consider voting for Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul.
Liberals squirm at the thought of a strict constitutionalist government, given its association with anti-Roe Supreme Court justices and gun rights. But if Americans are serious about ending an era marred by outrageous political antagonism, we may find that the best compromise for our modern political dilemmas is the one the founders reached more than 200 years go. Unlike the other Republican candidates, who only embrace states’ rights to explain away their logical fallacies (see: Rudy Giuliani), Ron Paul has been a true small-government conservative throughout his political career.
If pandering to religion-inspired special interests hadn’t become GOP dogma in recent years, Rep. Paul, R-Texas, would be swimming in the mainstream. Instead he treads water in national polls, which only gauge name recognition, but drive mainstream media coverage. After all, a spot in their narrative must be won through careful manipulation of conventional wisdom and fact. While the founders thought two large parties would encourage compromise, I can’t imagine they would approve of the scope and functions of our government and its military-industrial complex.
Indeed, American foreign policy from the Cold War era on would be a comic farce if so many innocent lives weren’t lost. From Saddam to bin Laden, our greatest enemies were armed, funded and lifted to prominence with our own tax dollars. The short-sightedness of our elected officials has been galling — all the while, politicians pander to us with the bread of outlandish earmarks and the circus of Terri Schiavo and the moral crusaders. It’s hard to argue that we would be fighting a war against the nebulous philosophy of terrorism if we had resisted the urge to micromanage Middle Eastern governance to counteract the Soviets.
Of course, the biggest draw of a constitutionalist philosophy to liberals is a non-interventionist foreign policy. That’s a scary prospect to experts because conventional wisdom has strayed so far from the Constitution. Logic would dictate that we stop taking sides in far-off wars, even if a favorable outcome appears to be good for our short-term security.
Although I don’t doubt a Paul presidency would be, on the balance, good for the nation, his libertarian philosophy isn’t perfect. It would give states the right to craft their own abortion laws, which would result in a massive and entirely unregulated underground abortion industry. Nothing is black and white in this world, and some of our government’s reaches into state sovereignty have been for the greater good. Despite this, liberals and conservatives must remember that concession is the meat of compromise.
Oddly enough, the twisting of the U.S. Constitution to respond to modern sensibilities is precipitating the fall of humankind. If we truly respected property rights like the Constitution demands, industries wouldn’t be allowed to pollute our air and water without fair compensation. Nothing would clean up negligent polluters faster than collective fees for new cases of asthma.
Dr. Paul is a more attractive and realistic candidate than the usual libertarian fringe offering because he’s not a zealous extremist. He isn’t touring the country wailing about welfare abusers and imploring the poor to stop being lazy. Instead, he speaks of a slow transition from government support and correctly asserts that without the income tax, our government wouldn’t be able to fund its foreign adventures.
Although he has gained a large following on the Internet, the media seems content to dismiss him like they did Giuliani when he first entered the race. Thus far, most journalists covering the race have done so as lousy authors, they see a predictable storyline and run with it. We can see it when they cast Hillary Clinton as the most prepared candidate when she has held public office for a shorter time than Barack Obama, let alone Joe Biden and Chris Dodd. Then they help us pretend that Mitt Romney’s purchase of the Iowa Republican fundraiser er… straw poll was significant to anyone who wasn’t there.
Dr. Paul might not be the perfect candidate for most Americans, but if we want a president with a fair mind and consistent principles, the Texas congressman merits a second glance. Hopefully his hypothesis, “freedom is popular,” will prove correct.
Bassey Etim (betim@badgerherald.com) is a senior majoring in political science and journalism.
Source: http://badgerherald.com/oped/2007/08/31/its_no_joke_ron_paul.php
17 Sep 07 at 9:57 pm
What a joke. Put Ron Paul on your poll, or be just another bunch of people trying to keep Americans from getting their freedoms back. Do it or you are all hypocrites that would fit perfectly into the fascist / socialist system we are steadily building.
18 Sep 07 at 10:46 am
I called Victor Bean the other day. Most of you know him as the gun show owner that turned Ron Paul supporters away. I left a message telling him that I was writing an online article about the situation, and I had about 5 missed calls from him before I was actually around to answer. While I know that many of us have already made up our minds about Mr. Bean, (I know I had) he actually had some important things to say.
1. He used to live in Dr. Paul’s congressional district and says that he is actually a fan of Ron Paul’s.
2. He says that he only asked the Paulites to leave because of the constant chanting and large groups blocking pathways.
3. He said that he has had this problem since October, and he has tried to be civil about it (you must remember that he is not making any money on political tables, and that he is a businessman.)
In light of this, I asked him if he would allow Paul supporters back and at first he said no. But then I pursuaded him to allow Paul supporters again as long as the supporters are not constantly chanting, and as long as we operate the table and tell some of our more fervent supporters to not yell and carry-on. I would like to believe that us Paul supporters were the most well behaved group in the world. Truth is that while we are very civil and polite for the most part, we are also some of the roudiest political junkies one could meet. The Talahasee meet-up group needs to be contacted, and so if anyone has contact info, please pass this on.
Kyle Coplen
Rochester, Indiana
P.S No more threatening or intimidating phone calls to Mr. Bean. This only hurts our future of attending and working at his gun shows.
16 Dec 07 at 3:03 pm
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28 Dec 07 at 7:32 am