Previous

Contents

Next

An Open Letter to NRA and GOA
by James Woosley
[email protected]

Special to L. Neil Smith's The Libertarian Enterprise

I have submitted this text to these two organization via their web forms and intend to submit to my Congressman, Senators, the White House web site, and my State government as well.

An Open Letter to the National Rifle Association and Gun Owners of Americam

Gentlemen:

I am the recipient of a (forwarded) e-mail from Gun Owners of America requesting support for a bill introduced by Senator Rand Paul to require a 2/3 Senate vote to pass any gun control legislation in the aftermath of the Newtown and other recent mass shootings, including preventing an effort by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, supported by Senator John McCain, to eliminate the filibuster to make such legislation easier.
(http://gunowners.org/a01042013.htm)

While I applaud Senator Paul's support of the individual right to own firearms, I have reminded him, and I will remind you, that the 2nd Amendment is an individual right protected by the Constitution; overturning or seriously injuring that right will require a Constitutional Amendment, which must be passed by a two-thirds majority of both houses of Congress, and then ratified by the legislatures of 3/4 of the States.

I urge you to:

(a) Work with your supporters in both Houses of Congress to remind them of this fact and ensure that a proper legislative process to amend the Constitution is required to pass such legislation -- and also that any effort to impose such restrictions by executive fiat is Unconstitutional, and that any attempt to ratify such restrictions by Treaty should and will also be challenged as Unconstitutional without proceeding through an Amendment process.

(b) Work with your supporters in the legislatures (and governorships) of all Fifty States, also to remind the Congressional delegations and Senators of these points; to insist that such legislation must be implemented through proper Amendment process, and to remind them of the illegality of attempting such changes by executive fiat or ratification of a treaty..

(c) Work with your members to implore them and their non-member fellow gun rights supporters to contract their Congressmen and Senators in this regard.

(d) I also agree with the effort to prevent the overturn of the Senate filibuster.

Sincerely,

James Woosley

Was that worth reading?
Then why not: