Tuesday, November 1, 2005

NEW SUPREME COURT PICK A REAL WINNER

GOA wants to thank all of you who contacted the President recently and suggested that he appoint a strong constitutionalist like Samuel Alito, Jr., to the Supreme Court.

As you know, Judge Alito (from the Third Circuit) has a strong record in support of the Constitution. Gun Owners Foundation was involved in the Rybar machine gun case which we ultimately lost in the courts. But Judge Alito offered a strong dissenting opinion to the majority report and argued that Congress has no right to regulate the private possession of machine guns.

The nomination of Alito is going to drive the other side crazy. Good. Judge Alito is a tremendous choice, and GOA will be asking you in the future to lobby your two U.S. Senators in favor of this pick.

In the meantime, thank the President for making such a good choice. And thank him for bypassing, once again, Attorney General Alberto Gonzales as a pick for the Supreme Court.

GOA has asked you several times to contact the President and oppose a Gonzales nomination, because as one of the President's good friends, Gonzales has long been reputed to be on Bush's "short list."

But that seems to have changed. The Associated Press recently reported that Gonzales is no longer on that "short list" because Bush is "trying to dampen [opposition] on the Republican right, which doesn't think Gonzales is a reliable conservative vote."

Thank goodness. Bush didn't use to think that way. But you can pat yourself on the back for helping impress this new way of thinking into Bush's head.

FOLLOW UP TO NEW ORLEANS

You, no doubt, remember the shocking video -- law-abiding citizens having their guns stolen... not by looters or hoodlums, but by officials acting under color of law.

Many of you saw it here first. GOA posted several videos at http://www.gunowners.org/notb.htm to document the gun confiscation that was taking place in New Orleans in September.

It was hard to believe that this was happening in our own country. American troops were going house-to-house, smashing through doors and taking firearms. One would have thought it was video tape from Cuba or Cambodia, not from the state of Louisiana.

But what has happened since then?

Well, the U.S. District Court of the Eastern District in Louisiana issued a restraining order to stop authorities from confiscating firearms on September 23.

So what happens now to those corrupt officials who were stealing firearms? Will they be held accountable? Or, will every guilty official simply receive the equivalent of a hand slap, like a child caught sneaking a cookie?

To this end, GOA sent a letter to U.S. Inspector General Glenn Fine last month to request action. The letter cites newspaper articles and TV news broadcasts to demonstrate that National Guard troops, police and U.S. marshals were confiscating firearms in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.

The letter also reminds General Fine that the U.S. District Court in Louisiana put a stop to this illegal taking on September 23.

In light of this overwhelming evidence, GOA urged General Fine to "investigate who are the guilty parties who need to be held accountable for perpetrating these harmful acts against innocent Americans."

General Fine has the authority to investigate the criminal acts of federal officials and to refer them for prosecution.

(GOA sent a similar letter to the Attorney General of Louisiana, requesting that he bring charges against state-level officials who were stealing the firearms of citizens in the Big Easy. These letters can be viewed at http://www.gunowners.org/notb.htm on the GOA website.)

So far, it appears that General Fine has been dragging his feet on this request -- which is why he may need to hear from folks all around the country.

ACTION: Please contact U.S. Inspector General Glenn Fine and urge him to conduct his own investigation into the gun confiscation scandal and to refer guilty parties over for prosecution.

You can use the pre-written letter below to direct your comments to General Fine. Or, you can visit the Gun Owners Legislative Action Center at http://www.gunowners.org/activism.htm to send General Fine the pre-written letter as an e-mail message.

--- Pre-written letter ---

Glenn Fine
U. S. Department of Justice
Office of the Inspector General
950 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Suite 4706
Washington, DC 20530-0001

Dear General Fine:

I'm sure you are aware of the fact that government officials were confiscating the firearms of law-abiding citizens in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, in violation of state and federal law.

On September 23, the U.S. District Court of the Eastern District in Louisiana issued a restraining order to stop these authorities from confiscating firearms in New Orleans.

However, I am dismayed there have been no reports that Attorney General Alberto Gonzalez is pursuing legal action against officials who stole firearms from the citizens of Louisiana.

What these officials did was criminal, and the federal government needs to send a clear and convincing message to all who work under its auspices. They need to learn that the civil rights of Americans cannot be violated without there being a price to pay.

The Rule of Law demands that the guilty parties be forced to account for their actions. And for this reason, I hope you will seriously investigate this matter.

Please let me know what you intend to do. Thank you.

Sincerely,

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