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Anti-Gun Groups Cite Terror War in Quest for Clampdown on Gun Sales
Josey1
Member Posts: 9,598 ✭✭
Anti-Gun Groups Cite Terror War in Quest for Clampdown on Gun SalesThursday, December 20, 2001 Respond to Editor Email this Article WASHINGTON - Anti-gun groups are seizing the war on terror as a rationale for tightening gun control laws in America, citing the effort in their demands for more stringent background checks on gun sales at shows and over the Internet.In a report released Wednesday, the Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence said potential terrorists are taking advantage of provisions in existing laws to purchase guns. The center claims terrorists from around the world come to the United States to amass firearms."For terrorists around the world, the United States is the great gun bazaar," the report said.But gun rights activists called the connection between gun laws and the 9/11 attacks hogwash. Andrew Arulanandam, a spokesman for the National Rifle Association, said the Brady Center was trying to exploit the attacks in order to further its political agenda of getting more gun control laws passed at a time when firearm sales are up. "The events of Sept. 11 had nothing to do with guns," he said. "Plausibly, had the cockpit crew of the four fateful jetliners been able to arm themselves, we might have saved 4,000 innocent lives," he said.A number of congressional representatives have joined the Brady Center in its crusade, promising to introduce legislation that would, among other things, require background checks for all gun purchases, even those between private individuals.Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., promised to introduce such legislation early next year. Similar measures have already been introduced by Sens. Jack Reed, D-R.I., John McCain, R-Ariz., and Joseph Lieberman, D-Conn., and by Rep. Mike Castle, R-Del.Previous efforts to get such a measure passed by Congress have failed.To make its case that gun shows are a "breeding ground for gun sales to terrorists," the Brady Center report cited the example of a Lebanese man convicted of conspiring to ship weapons acquired at Michigan gun shows to the Hezbollah terror organization.The man was prohibited from buying guns because of a conviction for grand theft, but his brother - whose record was clean -- was not. Michigan state law does not require background checks for sales between private or unlicensed gun sellers and buyers. The scheme was revealed by a police informant.The NRA's Arulanandam said it was absurd to blame U.S. gun shows for state-sponsored terrorism that is bankrolled by foreign governments. Existing laws are more than adequate to bring the perpetrators to justice, he said.The Brady Center wants to outlaw mail purchases of parts necessary to make assault weapons; strengthening federal enforcement authority over gun dealers; making permanent the federal ban on assault weapons; placing limits on large-volume gun purchases; giving the FBI access to background check records of gun purchasers in the government's database; and retaining the records for at least six months.Attorney General John Ashcroft told a Senate panel earlier this month that the Justice Department cannot by law make available the lists of gun purchasers, whose names are kept on background check files for 90 days. http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,41195,00.html