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McCain: Terrorists bypass laws by using gun shows
Josey1
Member Posts: 9,598 ✭✭
McCain: Terrorists bypass laws by using gun shows By Susan Page, USA TODAY WASHINGTON - Sen. John McCain says he will force Senate consideration of a controversial gun control measure early next year bolstered by a newly powerful argument: Foreign terrorists have exploited a loophole to buy weapons at gun shows while bypassing federal background checks. "Clearly, alleged members of terrorist organizations have been able to secure guns and weapons using the gun show loophole," McCain, R-Ariz., said in a telephone interview with USA TODAY. "I think that lends some urgency" to tightening the law. McCain and Sen. Mike DeWine, R-Ohio, notified GOP colleagues this week that they would attach the legislation to the first appropriate bill, probably a homeland security measure, after the Senate convenes in January. The parliamentary move is likely to force debate on one of the most divisive issues in American politics, one that has been largely sidelined for the past year. The proposal, also sponsored by Democratic senators Joe Lieberman of Connecticut and Charles Schumer of New York, would mandate checks on buyers at weekend gun shows similar to those now in effect for customers of federally licensed gun dealers. The National Rifle Association and other critics call the proposal unworkable and intrusive. Advocates say they'll cite evidence that suspected foreign terrorists are using the loophole: - In Michigan, Ali Boumelhem, linked to the anti-Israel Hezbollah, was convicted Sept. 10 of conspiring to smuggle guns and ammunition to Lebanon. Federal agents testified they saw him buying weapons at three gun shows. - In Texas, Muhammad Asrar was arrested in an investigation of the Sept. 11 attacks. He pleaded guilty to immigration violations and illegal possession of ammunition. The Pakistani store owner said he had bought handguns, rifles and a submachine gun at gun shows since 1994. - In Florida, Conor Claxton, accused of ties to the Irish Republican Army, testified last year that he and associates bought thousands of dollars worth of handguns, rifles and high-powered ammunition at gun shows to smuggle to Ireland. "In each of these cases, the suspected terrorists were able to acquire guns, hide their immigrant status, and shield their criminal records," McCain and DeWine say in a "Dear Republican Colleague" letter circulated in the Senate on Monday. "We cannot and should not keep rolling the dice with American security." But James Jay Baker, legislative director of the NRA, argues that the record of arrests and convictions shows that the current system works to enforce gun laws. He accuses McCain and others of "trying to bootstrap on the Sept. 11 tragedy." "None of the terrorism we saw visited on this country on Sept. 11 had anything to do with firearms," Baker says. Noting that the jet hijackers used box cutters and knives as weapons, he adds, "You don't see people running around talking about closing down cutlery manufacturers." If anything, he says, Americans since Sept. 11 are likely to be more protective of their ability to buy guns. There is some evidence that they are buying more guns: The FBI's National Instant Criminal Background Check System says requests for background checks on behalf of licensed dealers increased about 20% in the month after the attacks, compared with a year earlier. Federal law requires background checks to prevent felons and the mentally unstable from buying guns from licensed dealers. But private sellers at gun shows can complete purchases without conducting a background check or even getting identification from buyers. The political climate for tightening the law is uncertain. The House and Senate passed different bills to close the gun show loophole in 1999, but negotiations over how the checks would be conducted and how long they could take broke down. Since the 2000 elections, some Democrats have been wary of gun control proposals that they worry have hurt them among rural voters. But gun control advocates say concern about foreign terrorism and homegrown violence - underscored by the weekend arrest of three teens in New Bedford, Mass., accused of plotting to kill fellow students at their high school - should help build support. "There's a direct nexus to foreign terrorists operating in the United States," says Matt Bennett of Americans for Gun Safety. "It seems to us there will be tremendous pressure on Congress to take care of this problem." Gun control advocates say they hope they'll have a new White House ally in Homeland Security Director Tom Ridge. President Bush has been noncommittal about the proposed legislation. But as governor of Pennsylvania - second only to Texas in number of gun shows - Ridge signed a measure in 1998 to close the gun show loophole in the state. Congress
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I can't come to work today. The voices said, STAY HOME AND CLEAN THE GUNS![This message has been edited by mudge (edited 11-28-2001).][This message has been edited by mudge (edited 11-28-2001).]
It's the stuff dreams are made of AngelMember: NRA, RKBA, NJSPBA, NJ area rep for the 2AMPD and the AARP. njretcop@copmail.com
" Everyone is ignorant, only on different subjects" Will Rogers