Media Brady in the News
PolitiFact May 3, 2012
Frank Lautenberg claims a loophole allows individuals convicted of domestic violence to purchase guns
U.S. Sen. Frank Lautenberg pushed through a law 15 years ago that prohibits people convicted of domestic violence from acquiring a gun. But the Democrat said there's still avenues for those individuals to arm themselves. Lautenberg spoke April 26 on the Senate floor in favor of reauthorizing legislation that supports efforts to help victims of domestic violence and sexual abuse. During his speech, he said even more needs to be done in this area. "Let me be clear. It would be tragic to turn our backs on victims and the people who dedicate their lives to supporting them. While we can't stop ...read the full article
Lakeland Times May 3, 2012
Border Guard founder J.T. Ready blamed in Arizona murder-suicide
Jason Todd Ready never made a secret of his passion for right-wing politics and related causes, both of which got the bearded, barrel-chested former Marine branded a racist, an extremist and a bigot. In a lifetime of moving through mainstream politics in Arizona as well as within the semi-military world of less-established groups, Ready built a reputation for in-your-face confrontations, founding an armed volunteer group dedicated to patrolling the Mexico border and ending the smuggling of illegal immigrants and drugs. On Wednesday, Ready entered a Gilbert, Ariz., home and opened fire, killing four people, including a 15-month-old girl, said Gilbert Police ...read the full article
Los Angeles Times May 3, 2012
Leave your rifles at the door: California's needless gun-ban bill
The national obsession with guns, and the lunacy of American gun laws that set different rules for gun resellers than new-gun dealers or that allow people to possess military assault rifles intended to kill cops rather than hunt deer or protect one's home, are frequent fodder for Times editorials. But things are different in California; not only does this state have some of the toughest gun restrictions in the nation, its largely urban and liberal Legislature sometimes treads unacceptably on 2nd Amendment rights -- in a way that offends even some gun-control advocates. A case in point: Assemblyman Anthony Portantino's bill, ...read the full article
Media Matters May 2, 2012
Investigative Reporters Slam NRA-Backed Bill Targeting Illegal Gun Sale Stings
Model legislation supported by the National Rifle Association and the American Legislative Exchange Council that would make it illegal for private citizens to conduct stings exposing illegal gun sales is being criticized by veteran investigative reporters and media law experts who say it could negatively impact undercover journalists who report on such activities. "This law appears to create a shield for illegal conduct. We would be very concerned as investigative reporters with any attempt to criminalize legitimate reporting. Reporters don't go out and somehow force gun dealers to make these sales," said Stephen Engelberg, managing editor at ProPublica.org, the Pulitzer-Prize winning ...read the full article
USA Today May 2, 2012
Gov. Scott rejects ban on guns near GOP convention
Florida Gov. Rick Scott has turned down a request from the city of Tampa to ban concealed weapons outside the Republican National Convention this summer. The Tampa Bay Times reports Scott responded to a letter from Mayor Bob Buckhorn requesting him to temporarily ban concealed weapons from downtown Tampa while thousands of people are in town to formally nominate Mitt Romney for president. Florida, like North Carolina where the Democrats will gather to renominate President Obama, has a state law that allows concealed weapons. "An absolute ban on possession in an entire neighborhoods and regions would surely violate the 2nd Amendment," Scott wrote ...read the full article
Lori4congress.com May 1, 2012
Lori Earns Endorsement from Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence
The Brady Campaign and its network of California chapters have announced their endorsement of Lori Saldaña in the 52nd Congressional District race. While in the Assembly, Lori repeatedly proved her commitment to strong firearms laws and to keep guns out of the hands of dangerous people, earning a 100% voting record with the Brady Campaign. In 2010, she showed particular leadership on public safety issues by authoring legislation to ban the carrying of openly-displayed handguns in public. "Lori Saldaña saw the threat to law enforcement officers and to communities across California from people openly carrying their handguns in coffee shops, restaurants and other ...read the full article
McClatchy News Service May 1, 2012
Trayvon Martin case sparks investigations into other shootings around U.S.
Kenneth Chamberlain Jr.'s foray into activism started with a Facebook post. Someone placed a petition demanding the arrest of Trayvon Martin's killer on Chamberlain's Facebook wall, and that got the New York behavior counselor thinking: What about his own dad's unprosecuted killing? "I signed Trayvon's petition, sat back, and thought, 'Well, maybe I should do a petition,'" he said. "I did and got 1,000 signatures. I was happy with 1,000." Then came more: Five months after Chamberlain's father was killed in his home by a White Plains, N.Y., police officer, Chamberlain has not only 208,000 online signatures -- he got a grand jury ...read the full article
National Public Radio May 1, 2012
Daniel Vice, the Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence
The number of weapons background checks carried out by the F.B.I. has been on the increase in recent months. That's according to a new report compiled by the Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence in Washington D.C. Increases in background checks were seen in the first three months of this year, compared to the same period last year in New York, Massachusetts, Vermont and Connecticut. In fact in the first quarter, the background checks were up by more than 15,800 in New York State compared to the same three months last year. For more on the numbers, WAMC's Brian ...read the full article
San Diego Reader May 1, 2012
Dueling Endorsements in the CA-52 Race
Scott Peters is trumpeting the endorsement of another sitting Democratic politician in the race for the newly-drawn 52nd congressional district: mayoral hopeful Bob Filner. "Congressman Filner's endorsement was a great surprise, and a tremendous honor," said Peters in a release Monday afternoon. "Bob has been a forceful advocate for our region, for our veterans, for civil rights and for Democratic causes throughout his esteemed career in public service." MaryAnne Pintar, Peters' communications director, says a trend is evident. "Every current and former local Democratic legislator who has endorsed in this race at both the state and federal level, has endorsed Scott," Pintar ...read the full article
Media Matters Apr 30, 2012
NRA's "Massive Obama Conspiracy": Rahm Emanuel Edition
In an April 25 op-ed for the Daily Caller, National Rifle Association CEO and Executive Vice President Wayne LaPierre took to the opinion pages to once again deploy faulty logic to claim that the reelection of President Barack Obama will precipitate an "all-out war on the Second Amendment." LaPierre's primary piece of evidence concerning what he calls "the web of lies spun about the president's phony, claimed support of the Second Amendment," is that current Chicago mayor and former White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel has been "tapped as the star co-chair for Obama's re-election effort." LaPierre claims that ...read the full article
Frank Lautenberg claims a loophole allows individuals convicted of domestic violence to purchase guns
U.S. Sen. Frank Lautenberg pushed through a law 15 years ago that prohibits people convicted of domestic violence from acquiring a gun. But the Democrat said there's still avenues for those individuals to arm themselves. Lautenberg spoke April 26 on the Senate floor in favor of reauthorizing legislation that supports efforts to help victims of domestic violence and sexual abuse. During his speech, he said even more needs to be done in this area. "Let me be clear. It would be tragic to turn our backs on victims and the people who dedicate their lives to supporting them. While we can't stop ...read the full article
Lakeland Times May 3, 2012
Border Guard founder J.T. Ready blamed in Arizona murder-suicide
Jason Todd Ready never made a secret of his passion for right-wing politics and related causes, both of which got the bearded, barrel-chested former Marine branded a racist, an extremist and a bigot. In a lifetime of moving through mainstream politics in Arizona as well as within the semi-military world of less-established groups, Ready built a reputation for in-your-face confrontations, founding an armed volunteer group dedicated to patrolling the Mexico border and ending the smuggling of illegal immigrants and drugs. On Wednesday, Ready entered a Gilbert, Ariz., home and opened fire, killing four people, including a 15-month-old girl, said Gilbert Police ...read the full article
Los Angeles Times May 3, 2012
Leave your rifles at the door: California's needless gun-ban bill
The national obsession with guns, and the lunacy of American gun laws that set different rules for gun resellers than new-gun dealers or that allow people to possess military assault rifles intended to kill cops rather than hunt deer or protect one's home, are frequent fodder for Times editorials. But things are different in California; not only does this state have some of the toughest gun restrictions in the nation, its largely urban and liberal Legislature sometimes treads unacceptably on 2nd Amendment rights -- in a way that offends even some gun-control advocates. A case in point: Assemblyman Anthony Portantino's bill, ...read the full article
Media Matters May 2, 2012
Investigative Reporters Slam NRA-Backed Bill Targeting Illegal Gun Sale Stings
Model legislation supported by the National Rifle Association and the American Legislative Exchange Council that would make it illegal for private citizens to conduct stings exposing illegal gun sales is being criticized by veteran investigative reporters and media law experts who say it could negatively impact undercover journalists who report on such activities. "This law appears to create a shield for illegal conduct. We would be very concerned as investigative reporters with any attempt to criminalize legitimate reporting. Reporters don't go out and somehow force gun dealers to make these sales," said Stephen Engelberg, managing editor at ProPublica.org, the Pulitzer-Prize winning ...read the full article
USA Today May 2, 2012
Gov. Scott rejects ban on guns near GOP convention
Florida Gov. Rick Scott has turned down a request from the city of Tampa to ban concealed weapons outside the Republican National Convention this summer. The Tampa Bay Times reports Scott responded to a letter from Mayor Bob Buckhorn requesting him to temporarily ban concealed weapons from downtown Tampa while thousands of people are in town to formally nominate Mitt Romney for president. Florida, like North Carolina where the Democrats will gather to renominate President Obama, has a state law that allows concealed weapons. "An absolute ban on possession in an entire neighborhoods and regions would surely violate the 2nd Amendment," Scott wrote ...read the full article
Lori4congress.com May 1, 2012
Lori Earns Endorsement from Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence
The Brady Campaign and its network of California chapters have announced their endorsement of Lori Saldaña in the 52nd Congressional District race. While in the Assembly, Lori repeatedly proved her commitment to strong firearms laws and to keep guns out of the hands of dangerous people, earning a 100% voting record with the Brady Campaign. In 2010, she showed particular leadership on public safety issues by authoring legislation to ban the carrying of openly-displayed handguns in public. "Lori Saldaña saw the threat to law enforcement officers and to communities across California from people openly carrying their handguns in coffee shops, restaurants and other ...read the full article
McClatchy News Service May 1, 2012
Trayvon Martin case sparks investigations into other shootings around U.S.
Kenneth Chamberlain Jr.'s foray into activism started with a Facebook post. Someone placed a petition demanding the arrest of Trayvon Martin's killer on Chamberlain's Facebook wall, and that got the New York behavior counselor thinking: What about his own dad's unprosecuted killing? "I signed Trayvon's petition, sat back, and thought, 'Well, maybe I should do a petition,'" he said. "I did and got 1,000 signatures. I was happy with 1,000." Then came more: Five months after Chamberlain's father was killed in his home by a White Plains, N.Y., police officer, Chamberlain has not only 208,000 online signatures -- he got a grand jury ...read the full article
National Public Radio May 1, 2012
Daniel Vice, the Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence
The number of weapons background checks carried out by the F.B.I. has been on the increase in recent months. That's according to a new report compiled by the Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence in Washington D.C. Increases in background checks were seen in the first three months of this year, compared to the same period last year in New York, Massachusetts, Vermont and Connecticut. In fact in the first quarter, the background checks were up by more than 15,800 in New York State compared to the same three months last year. For more on the numbers, WAMC's Brian ...read the full article
San Diego Reader May 1, 2012
Dueling Endorsements in the CA-52 Race
Scott Peters is trumpeting the endorsement of another sitting Democratic politician in the race for the newly-drawn 52nd congressional district: mayoral hopeful Bob Filner. "Congressman Filner's endorsement was a great surprise, and a tremendous honor," said Peters in a release Monday afternoon. "Bob has been a forceful advocate for our region, for our veterans, for civil rights and for Democratic causes throughout his esteemed career in public service." MaryAnne Pintar, Peters' communications director, says a trend is evident. "Every current and former local Democratic legislator who has endorsed in this race at both the state and federal level, has endorsed Scott," Pintar ...read the full article
Media Matters Apr 30, 2012
NRA's "Massive Obama Conspiracy": Rahm Emanuel Edition
In an April 25 op-ed for the Daily Caller, National Rifle Association CEO and Executive Vice President Wayne LaPierre took to the opinion pages to once again deploy faulty logic to claim that the reelection of President Barack Obama will precipitate an "all-out war on the Second Amendment." LaPierre's primary piece of evidence concerning what he calls "the web of lies spun about the president's phony, claimed support of the Second Amendment," is that current Chicago mayor and former White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel has been "tapped as the star co-chair for Obama's re-election effort." LaPierre claims that ...read the full article