“As for gun control advocates, I have no hope whatever that any facts whatever will make the slightest dent in their thinking – or lack of thinking.” —Thomas Sowell
Gun Control. Few of the GOP Presidential Candidates are meaningfully addressing the forward push by progressives to implement gun control. We hear snippets that might cause us to think they are headed in the right direction, but is it enough? I say no. This is Chris Christie’s Gun Control Challenge.
Americans elected a Republican controlled Senate and House, a clear message that the direction of things has run amok. And…they do nothing. No wonder those candidates leading in current polls are of the non-political establishment. This also, is Chris Christie’s Gun Control Challenge.
I received an invite to meet Governor Chris Christie in New Boston two weeks ago. I went. And, I was impressed with the Governor…I was impressed with him as a person. I found him thoughtful, engaging and decent. And, I agreed with him on a whole host of issues. He is, indeed, an honorable man.
Chris Christie’s record on Guns and the Second Amendment has been characterized twelve ways to Sunday, depending on who you ask. For many of us in New Hampshire, Chris Christie has been often characterized as a gun control advocate, hostile to the second amendment. Yet, on August 19, 2015 the Courier Post, in an editorial, said this:
“Gov. Chris Christie has drifted so far right on gun control that he couldn’t even manage to support such an obvious initiative. Instead he countered with a bogus conditional veto designed to scuttle the entire effort. He proposed — again — a comprehensive package of mental health treatment measures that he insists will better address gun violence than a patchwork of gun restrictions. He did the same thing in effectively blocking a move to reduce the allowable size of ammunition magazines.”
So according to New Jerseyans, Christie is a, “Right Wing Gun Nut”. And the people from New Jersey are angry that Christie won’t toe the line and implement more gun control in a state already known for the second most strict gun control laws in the nation.
Yet, in April of 2013, Governor Christie proposed a ban on future purchases of the Barrett .50 Caliber rifle, bolstering the already difficult state’s background check requirements, and buyers presenting a government photo ID, along with the state-mandated Firearms Purchaser Identification Card. He later vetoed that legislation.
Moreover, Governor Christie sought to strengthen criminal penalties for selling firearms to convicted criminals, possessing a firearm with the intent to transfer said firearm unlawfully, i.e. hiring a “straw purchaser,” and, unlawfully possessing ammunition and engaging in firearms trafficking. The problem with these measures is that, they are already illegal!
The, “Sixty Four-Thousand Dollar Question” for Pro-Second Amendment voters with an eye on the Governor as a viable candidate is this:
IF ELECTED PRESIDENT, WILL CHRIS CHRISTIE SIGN INTO LAW, A SO-CALLED, “ASSAULT WEAPONS BAN?”
“The issue which has energized me to get into this race is the recent attempt by certain Republican legislators to repeal New Jersey’s ban on assault weapons…In today’s society, no one needs a semi-automatic assault weapon.”
Quoted in the Newark Star-Ledger, April, 1993 When Chris Christie made his bid for the New Jersey Senate. Here we see where Governor Christie advocated for keeping the AWB…(Do take notice, It is still black letter law in New Jersey as I write this.)
Charles W. Cooke over at National Review said this two years ago in August…
Charles C.W. Cooke, Staff Writer, National Review
“(Christie) has consistently opposed concealed-carry laws that are now the norm in all 50 states, writing in 2009 that he “opposes attempts to permit conceal and carry laws in New Jersey,” and he recently expressed unqualified support for New Jersey’s one-gun-per-month law and called for all pending lawsuits against the rule to be “dismissed.” Until now, Christie has made no bones about his anti-gun positions. In an interview on Sean Hannity’s show in 2009, the governor was asked, “Should every citizen in your state be allowed to get a licensed weapon if they want one?” “In New Jersey, that’s not going to happen, Sean,” Christie replied. This, remember, was after the D.C. vs. Heller decision that recognized the obvious truth that the right to bear arms was an individual right.”
Cooke, in the National Review Piece concludes with this analysis…
Whatever intentions to “mature” in office Christie might now be entertaining are hard-limited by time. He now has just three years to undo the work of almost 20 years ;in a matter of months in which to contrive a new epiphany to obscure the old record. Meanwhile, his potential rivals have big computers and long memories. Too little, too late? It certainly seems that way.
The questions I will put to Governor Christie are as follows:
If a so-called, “Assault Weapons Ban,” bill manifests, As President will you veto it? Why? or Why not?
If the Governor’s position is that you would veto an AWB, what factors and circumstances shaped you current position when juxtaposed with previous positions on AWB?
What is your current overarching view on gun ownership and the Second Amendment, measured against todays (2015) standards?
Personally, as a voter and an ardent second amendment supporter, I would have to agree with the sentiments of Charles Cooke. Governor Christie has a very short period of time to undo the work of 20 years of gun-ban advocacy; A matter of months in which to contrive a new epiphany to obscure his record. Miracles can happen, but call me the doubting Thomas. At this point I have not declared my support for any of these candidates. And we do indeed have some good ones, (except Lindsey Graham, Jeb Bush and George Pataki).
Chris Christie is a good guy. I like him personally. He has the gall to say the current Administration is, “lawless,” and I agree with him on that. But being a good guy and, “telling it like it is,” Isn’t enough to get my vote. Christie is probably about as conservative a leader as we could expect New Jersey to elect, and we should appreciate him for his combative fiscal conservatism even if he’s been poor on guns. There is always value in what he brings to the debate because all of the candidates will address things topical and of concern to the electorate.
To readers of Granite Grok, I would caution you to remember that the Second Amendment, while a single issue in the fold of other pressing issues in the nation, it is in fact, “The Second Amendment.” You know, the one right after the first? It was no accident that the founding fathers wrote our beloved constitution as a check on government, not on the citizens. And the two opening amendments deals with Religion, speech, press, assembly and a redress of grievances, followed by the right to keep and bear arms. We are the only nation on this entire crumbling rock who has such a concept and we would do well to remember that and remember that in this context.
Chris Christie, in his tenure as Governor has done little to loosen the yoke of draconian gun control that plagues New Jersey. Many will want to hold him accountable for that. But to be fair, The people of New Jersey love their gun control and only want more. Like a Heroin addict after the next fix.
Governor Christie has done an about face on some of his gun control positions, such as vetoing the ban on Barrett rifles. But political observers may chalk this up to shaping positions and record in order to seek higher office. Others have done it, so whether that may or may not be the case, that is what appears. But unlike Mitt Romney, Christie never backs away from his record, nor does he tell fish tales about his personal experiences with guns.
The Governor needs to look voters in the eye and convince them that he supports their right to keep and bear arms, That we need no more gun laws and that he will veto the legislation. Then he needs to get them to believe him. No small order, as I will not support anybody without a righteous Second Amendment position. This is not the year of the “Squish.”
The GOP Establishment needs to get the message that steering a squish to nomination will make people stay home in the general election. You’d think they got that message with the demise of Mittens, and here in New Hampshire with Scott Brown. In this large field of 17 candidates, how will you decide who is best to lead the country?
Rick Olson is a veteran of the United States Marine Corps, and a graduate of Southern New Hampshire University with a BA in Social Science. Rick subsequently attended Massachusetts School of Law in Andover MA. Rick takes up second amendment issues on Granite Grok, as well as issues surrounding hunting, fishing, trapping and wildlife issues. Rick Olson is a former Police Officer and Deputy Sheriff.
He is Past President of the New Hampshire Wildlife Federation, President of the Londonderry Fish & Game Club Rick is a nationally certified firearms instructor and a Hunter Education Instructor. He can frequently be found teaching Urban Rifle and Defensive Pistol classes as an Instructor with Defensive Strategies in Goffstown, NH. Rick resides in Manchester with his wife Lisa. He has four children and ten Grandchildren.
Gun Control. Few of the GOP Presidential Candidates are meaningfully addressing the forward push by progressives to implement gun control. We hear snippets that might cause us to think they are headed in the right direction, but is it enough? I say no. This is Chris Christie’s Gun Control Challenge.
I received an invite to meet Governor Chris Christie in New Boston two weeks ago. I went. And, I was impressed with the Governor…I was impressed with him as a person. I found him thoughtful, engaging and decent. And, I agreed with him on a whole host of issues. He is, indeed, an honorable man.even manage to support such an obvious initiative. Instead he countered with a bogus conditional veto designed to scuttle the entire effort. He proposed — again — a comprehensive package of mental health treatment measures that he insists will better address gun violence than a patchwork of gun restrictions. He did the same thing in effectively blocking a move to reduce the allowable size of ammunition magazines.”
Yet, in April of 2013, Governor Christie proposed a ban on future purchases of the Barrett .50 Caliber rifle, bolstering the already difficult state’s background check requirements, and buyers presenting a government photo ID, along with the state-mandated Firearms Purchaser Identification Card. He later vetoed that legislation.
To readers of Granite Grok, I would caution you to remember that the Second Amendment, while a single issue in the fold of other pressing issues in the nation, it is in fact, “The Second Amendment.” You know, the one right after the first? It was no accident that the founding fathers wrote our beloved constitution as a check on government, not on the citizens. And the two opening amendments deals with Religion, speech, press, assembly and a redress of grievances, followed by the right to keep and bear arms. We are the only nation on this entire crumbling rock who has such a concept and we would do well to remember that and remember that in this context.