GOA Encourages the Senate to Tell Obama: ‘Your Supreme Court Pick is D.O.A.’ 

Gun Owners of America today announced its opposition to the nomination of Judge Merrick Garland for the Supreme Court. 

“Choosing Merrick Garland for the Supreme Court is Obama’s last ditch effort to ‘fundamentally transform’ the United States for generations to come,” said GOA Executive Director Erich Pratt.  “The Senate should bury this nomination and write ‘Dead On Arrival’ as its epitaph.”

“Despite promises to nominate a consensus candidate, Obama has chosen a radical leftist in Judge Garland,” Pratt said.  “He supported the DC gun ban in 2007, voting to reconsider the Heller case after a three judge panel had ruled against the ban.  

“Hence, we don’t have to speculate as to how Garland would vote on Heller if confirmed to the Supreme Court,” Pratt said.  “He’s already voted against Heller once before, thereby showing he’d effectively rip the Second Amendment from the Constitution.

“In a 2000 case, Garland voted to maintain the registration of gun owners, supporting efforts by the Clinton administration to use the instant check to illegally retain gun owners’ names for six months.

“This shows that Garland is not only anti-gun, he supports the ability of a President to illegally use executive power to advance liberal causes.

“There is no freedom more fundamental than the right to defend one’s life and family,” Pratt said.  “The Heller and McDonald decisions are hanging by a thread, as both were decided by 5-4 majorities.  

“If Garland were confirmed, we can expect to see more gun registration, more gun bans, more limitations on ammunition — and all of it would be approved by the Supreme Court.  As a practical matter, good people will go to prison for exercising their constitutionally-protected rights. 

“For all these reasons, the Senate should refuse to even hold hearings on this nominee,” Pratt said.

— GOA —