GOA Supreme Court Brief Underscores TRUE Meaning Of The...

GOA Supreme Court Brief Underscores TRUE Meaning Of The Second Amendment

Gun Owners of America E-Mail Alert
8001 Forbes Place, Suite 102, Springfield, VA 22151
Phone: 703-321-8585 / FAX: 703-321-8408
http://www.gunowners.org

Tuesday, February 12, 2008


Gun Owners of America filed its brief yesterday before the U.S.
Supreme Court in defense of Dick Anthony Heller, who was denied the
right to own a gun in the nation's capital as a result of the
draconian gun ban which exists there.

In this hard-hitting brief, GOA takes aim at the weak arguments put
forth by both the DC government and the Bush Administration. But
more than that, GOA examines the favorable text and context of the
Second Amendment in great detail, while also documenting the pro-gun
history that formed the backdrop of its inclusion into the Bill of
Rights.

The GOA brief even presents the greatest reason for the right to keep
and bear arms, stating that "the Second Amendment right is to be
exercised as a last resort to guard against tyranny."

GOA's Executive Director, Larry Pratt, has hit the airwaves recently,
appearing on many talk shows and in newspapers to differentiate the
GOA approach from the sullied road the President has taken. Pratt,
along with other GOA spokesmen, has argued that the "bomb" which
Bush's Solicitor General dropped last month (when he submitted his
brief) would destroy the Second Amendment.

After all, the Bush administration's approach is that any and all
guns can be controlled or banned if a federal court finds that to be
"reasonable."

The GOA approach differs from many of the briefs that are being
submitted to the high Court. For example, one brief which is being
submitted by several legislators highlights Congress' position on the
Second Amendment over the years. This can be a useful approach, to
be sure.

But while the congressional brief concedes that the DC Council may
have gone too far, it also says it's appropriate for the legislative
branch to pass restrictions upon our Second Amendment rights -- a
stance which is, in principle, not too different from the one the
U.S. Solicitor General has filed.

That's where the GOA brief draws a "bright line" in the sand by
repeating the amendment's wording "shall not be infringed" over and
over again. For example, our brief states:

[T]he argument that "the right of the people" is subject to
reasonable regulation and restriction tramples on the very words of
the Second Amendment, reading the phrase -- "shall not be
infringed"
-- as if it read "shall be subject only to reasonable regulation to
achieve public safety."

The GOA brief can be read online at
http://www.gunowners.org/fs0802.pdf on the GOA website. Several
pro-gun groups joined GOA, including Gun Owners Foundation, Gun
Owners of California, Maryland Shall Issue, Inc., Virginia Citizens
Defense League, among others.

You will remember that last month, GOA alerted you to Rep. Virgil
Goode's efforts to get President Bush to pull his brief before the
Court. Thanks to your efforts, Rep. Goode has almost 50
congressional signatories on his letter. While the letter has
already been sent to the President, Goode continues to solicit even
more signatories and is sending those names to Bush as well. (GOA
will provide you further updates and a list of the congressman who
have cosigned the letter in an upcoming alert.)

Gun Owners of America is committing a significant portion of our
available resources as we are fighting this battle in the courts, in
the Congress and in the media.

If you would like to help do your part in covering the tremendous
costs associated with this effort, please go to
http://www.gunowners.com/heller.htm to make a tax-deductible
contribution. Thank you so much.
_________________
"The conversion of the entire population to Islam and the extinction of every form of dissent is the ideal of the Muslim State - This is Islamic Peace"

A moderate Moslem is one who sends others blow themselves up.