ACTION ALERT: DON'T LET THE REPUBLICAN LEADERSHIP WEAKEN THE ATF! There are reports that the Republican leadership is trying to put language in the omnibus appropriations bill that would undermine the ATF's ability to enforce the nation's gun laws. The language is from the so-called Tiahrt amendment that NRA allies have been pushing. Please call the Republican leadership and tell them that you do not want the Tiahrt amendment in the omnibus appropriations bill. It is particularly important to call the Republicans with responsibility for the Commerce, Justice and State appropriations bill: Rep. Frank Wolf (VA) 202-225-5136 Senator Judd Gregg (NH) 202-224-3324 It is also important to call the Chairmen of the House and Senate Appropriations Committees: Rep. Bill Young (FL) 202-225-5961 Senator Ted Stevens (AK) 202-224-3004 And also the Republican leadership of the House and Senate: Speaker Dennis Hastert (IL) 202-225-2976 Majority Leader Bill Frist (TN) 202-224-3344

I'll be contacting the above legislators to let them know I SUPPORT the Tiahrt amendment (even though I don't know what it is).

Hey, the less the ATF fellas have to worry about enforcing bullshit gun laws against law abiding types like me, the more time they can spend razing terroristic churches in Texas.

It scres over the FBI and BATFE in regards to firearms.

IT IS GOOD!

Please tell your reps NOT to strip it out of the appropriations bill!

CRC

[url]www.galleryofguns.com/shootingtimes/Articles/DisplayArticles.asp?ID=5050 [/url]

Tiahrt Amendment Irks Anti-Gun Groups: Rep. Todd Tiahrt Says the Amendment, Which the NRA Helped Write, Deals with Infringements on the Right to Bear Arms  
by
The Wichita Eagle; Section B; Pg. 3
Category: News Center  
August 3, 2003

   WASHINGTON - A late-breaking amendment to a spending bill
has Rep. Todd Tiahrt under fire from anti-gun groups.
    As the clock ran down on the House of Representatives before
it adjourned for its August recess, Tiahrt, R-Goddard,
introduced an amendment to the 2004 funding bill for the
Commerce, Justice and State departments prohibiting funds for
certain activities of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms
and Explosives.
    Specifically, the Tiahrt amendment keeps the bureau from
requiring firearms dealers to conduct physical inventories of
weapons, from denying licenses to low-volume gun dealers, and
from demanding that some dealers document all used guns sold in
a specific period.
    The National Rifle Association helped write the amendment,
which Tiahrt says addresses long-running infringements on the
constitutional right to bear arms. Tiahrt also said he had
discussed its provisions several times with other members of the
House Appropriations Committee, which crafts spending bills.
    But some lawmakers, including the appropriations member in
charge of the bill Tiahrt wanted to amend, objected to its
introduction, saying they hadn't had time to review it. After
debate, the amendment passed 31-30, with the parties split on
whether to allow a potentially controversial measure into the
bill at a late hour.
    The amendment then went into the larger appropriations bill,
which overwhelmingly passed the House shortly before members
recessed for the summer.
    Gun control groups immediately flew into high-outrage mode.
Tiahrt's amendment, they say, will make it more difficult for
the federal firearms bureau to monitor small-time gun dealers
who funnel weapons to criminals. It will also force the
government to destroy information it has gathered that traces
gun information and helps catch criminals.
    Jonathan Cowan, head of Washington, D.C.-based Americans for
Guns Safety, said that if Tiahrt's amendment had been in effect
last fall, the search that tracked down the guns of the D.C.
snipers who allegedly killed at least 10 people in the D.C. area
would have failed.
    "This is a back-door attempt to eliminate the tracing of
crime guns," he said. The bill, he said, "helps only dishonest
firearms dealers who deserve vigorous prosecution... no
reputable firearm dealer would ever support this amendment."
    Tiahrt said his amendment protects law-abiding gun owners
and sellers by letting small-volume dealers continue to sell and
by cutting back on gun-purchase lists that, left unchecked, can
lead to what is practically a national gun registry.
    "I don't see a reason for the federal government to keep
your name on a list" just for owning a gun, he said.
    Tiahrt cited the NRA backing as a sign that legitimate gun
dealers are behind him. The NRA is a solid supporter of Tiahrt.
According to election records, it gave him $9,900 in the last
election cycle, tops among Kansas lawmakers.
    He also said that the close vote came about through
miscommunication between committee members who should have
realized the amendment was coming, but didn't.
    Opponents vow to fight the Tiahrt amendment in the Senate,
which also needs to pass the amendment for it to become law.