Posted: 5/1/2013 5:24:50 PM EDT
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Here is the reply I got from the POS Udall, we really need to get him out of office, he explains his votes concerning the past bill that was in the Senate
Dear Mr. CJ7365 Thank you for contacting me regarding legislative efforts to reduce gun violence. I appreciate hearing from you, and your views are important to me. Incomprehensible acts of gun violence are taking place with increasing frequency in our country. Horrific events like the movie theater massacre in Aurora, the attack on my friend Gabby Giffords, her staff and constituents at a grocery store in Tucson, and the murder of twenty young children and six educators at Sandy Hook Elementary school have left our nation with a profound sense of sorrow. I believe Congress can - and should - take reasonable steps to help prevent these senseless tragedies from occurring without infringing on the Second Amendment rights of law abiding citizens. The U.S. Constitution, and New Mexico's Constitution, secure the rights of law-abiding citizens to keep and bear arms. In 2008, the Supreme Court affirmed that the Second Amendment protects an individual citizen's right to own a firearm, but said this right is subject to reasonable restrictions. For generations, many New Mexicans have exercised this right in a responsible way, and I defend their ability to do so. At the same time, our communities have an obligation to combat crime, maintain public safety, and protect citizens. On April 11, 2013, I voted with a bipartisan majority in the Senate to debate S. 649, the Safe Communities, Safe Schools Act of 2013, a bill introduced by Sen. Harry Reid (NV) to expand criminal background checks, increase school safety, and strengthen laws against gun trafficking and illegal gun purchases. During this debate, the Senate considered several amendments that required 60 votes to be adopted as part of the bill. Before casting my votes, I carefully weighed each of these proposals to determine if they would be effective in reducing gun violence without infringing on the Second Amendment rights of our citizens. I concluded that an amendment introduced by Sens. Joseph Manchin (WV) and Patrick Toomey (PA), would help us address this problem by expanding timely background checks to keep guns from criminals and seriously mentally ill individuals. The Manchin-Toomey amendment applied criminal background checks to private-party gun sales in commercial settings, including at gun shows, on the Internet, and through classified or other advertisements in publications. It did not, however, require them for transfers between family members or friends. This amendment also sought to improve state reporting systems to ensure that more people who are prohibited from having guns are included in the background check system. Finally, it reaffirmed the existing prohibition on creating a national gun registry in current law. Unfortunately, even with my vote in favor, this amendment was not agreed to by a vote of 54-46. We also considered an amendment offered by Sen. Dianne Feinstein (CA), to reinstate the ban on certain semi-automatic firearms. This amendment failed by a vote of 40-60. I carefully considered the merits of this legislation, listened to debate, and studied the history of the previous assault weapons ban. Ultimately, I determined that this amendment would not effectively reduce gun violence. Millions of these firearms are currently owned by law-abiding citizens, but they are used in less than ten percent of all gun-related homicides. This amendment would have attempted to ban new semi-automatics from being sold, but kept millions on the streets. And the only difference between a firearm that would be allowed under this amendment and one that would be banned is often cosmetic, and not related to the power or dangerousness. Most importantly, the firearms banned in Sen. Feinstein's amendment become weapons of mass murder when they are paired with high capacity magazines used to fire a significant number of rounds without reloading. To that end, I did support an amendment offered by Sen. Frank Lautenberg (NJ) to reinstate an expired restriction on large capacity magazines or other feeding devices that hold more than 10 rounds of ammunition. Since that earlier ban expired, high capacity magazines have been used in many tragic mass shootings including Virginia Tech, Tucson, AZ, Aurora, CO, Oak Creek, WI, and Newtown, CT. Imposing a limit on magazine size can save lives in these tragic events by reducing the number of bullets an assailant can fire, giving law enforcement and heroes like those who responded in Tucson valuable time and more opportunity to stop the gunman. This amendment was not agreed to, however, by a vote of 46-54. While the Senate could not agree on these amendments or another bipartisan amendment to strengthen laws against illegal firearms purchases and firearms trafficking, which I also supported, it did agree to a bipartisan amendment to address deficiencies in our mental health system. An amendment introduced by Sens. Tom Harkin (IA) and Lamar Alexander (TN), would increase the availability of early identification and intervention programs for mental health conditions in youth. I am a cosponsor of similar legislation and was pleased it was agreed to by a vote of 95-2. With the failure of key amendments such as Manchin-Toomey, Majority Leader Reid decided to stop further consideration of the S. 649 because it lacked sufficient support to overcome a threatened filibuster. He has stated that attempts will continue to reach agreement on these issues and the Senate may reconsider legislation to reduce gun violence at another time. I continue to believe that Congress can take commonsense steps to prevent gun violence by expanding background checks, strengthening laws against firearms trafficking and illegal purchases, and securing our schools without infringing on the Second Amendment rights of responsible gun owners, like sportsmen. Please be assured that I will keep your thoughts in mind if the Senate continues to consider S. 649 or any related legislation. Thank you again for sharing your thoughts with me. Please feel free to contact me with your concerns regarding any federal issue by visiting my website at www.tomudall.senate.gov. For more information, you may also visit my Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Senator-Tom-Udall/106433512869 and receive up to the minute updates through my Twitter page at http://twitter.com/senatortomudall. |