GOA And Activists Keeping The Pressure On. On November 9, Senator Bob Smith (R-NH) became the second senator to withdraw his name as a cosponsor of S. 10, the anti-gun crime bill introduced by Sen. Hatch (R-UT). [Senator Wayne Allard (R-CO) was the first senator to pull his name from the bill.] Both Senators Smith and Allard withdrew their names after being contacted by GOA staff and after receiving a significant amount of faxes and mail from GOA activists.

S. 10, as reported by the Senate Judiciary Committee, has undergone considerable changes from the form in which it was introduced. But it still remains a dangerous piece of anti-gun legislation.

Originally, S. 10 could have sent a gun dealer, manufacturer or owner to prison for up to 20 years for something as minor as two record-keeping errors. Also, the original bill would have punished average gun owners for very technical offenses, such as possessing two semi-automatics where the cosmetic features did not comply with the 1994 Clinton gun ban.

Sen. Hatch and the Judiciary Committee have modified the most onerous provision in the bill. But having said that, don’t think that S. 10 is now safe for gun owners. It certainly is not!

The bill still applies draconian penalties for the most innocuous offenses, such as increasing penalties for the parent who takes his son pistol shooting without a written note of permission which is required by federal law (section 207). Likewise, the bill could still apply a 25 year sentence on the father if he, under similar circumstances, brings his family of five pistol shooting (section 203).

Moreover, the bill would still encourage lawsuits against gun manufacturers, who could find themselves bombarded by the same sort of huge lawsuits which have been aimed at the tobacco industry — lawsuits generated by Handgun Control, Inc. devised to force the forfeiture of manufacturing businesses and to bring about an end to the firearms industry in America (section 206). (For a more detailed analysis, see: http://www.gunowners.org/anas10.htm and see how this bill threatens gun owners, as well as gun dealers and manufacturers.)

ACTION: Urge the following Senators to follow the lead of Senators Smith and Allard in removing their names from S. 10. All 26 Senators listed below are still cosponsors of Sen. Orrin Hatch’s anti-gun crime bill (S. 10). If your Senator is not listed below, thank him and urge him not to support S. 10. Call the Capitol at 1-800-522-6721, 1-888-723-5246, or 202-224-3121.

  Fax the message below to the following S. 10 cosponsors!

Dear Senator,

I am writing to urge you to withdraw your name as a cosponsor of the anti-gun “juvenile justice bill,” S. 10. This bill would apply the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) to gun owners, gun dealers, and gun manufacturers (section 206).

Thus, gun manufacturers could find themselves bombarded by the same sort of huge lawsuits which have been aimed at the tobacco industry — lawsuits generated by Handgun Control, Inc. devised to force the forfeiture of manufacturing businesses and to bring about an end to the firearms industry in America.

Likewise, the “criminal gang” provision in the bill could impose RICO-like penalties on unsuspecting gun owners (section 203). If a gun owner regularly took his family of five pistol shooting, and his kids failed to possess the written permission slip required by law, he could be subject to twenty-five years in prison. Clearly, this abomination cannot be allowed to pass into law.

Again, please withdraw your name as a cosponsor of S. 10 and do everything in your power to assure that the Senate does not approve any legislation to apply RICO to the Second Amendment.

The above message should be sent to Senators that have cosponsored S. 10. There is another action you can take to help defeat S. 10: the GOA Auto-mailer has been updated. At http://www.gunowners.org/mailerx.html you will find a pre-written e-mail message addressed to Senator Bob Smith. Now that he has withdrawn his support for the bill, we would like to see him take the extra step of placing a “hold” on S. 10. Please drop by and use the Auto-mailer program to contact Sen. Smith.

Clinton Import Ban. Earlier this month, GOA reported on President Clinton and his plans to ban the importation of semi-automatics that are supposedly not suitable for “sporting purposes.” [Currently, he has only “suspended” their importation; but he is using both the 1968 Gun Control Act and former President Bush’s import ban from 1989 as a precedent for considering a permanent ban.] GOA is still encouraging people to support H.R. 2734, a bill that will, in essence, nullify Clinton’s import ban. Also, Rep. Ron Paul has introduced H.R. 2721, which will repeal the “sporting purpose” test from federal law. [Paul’s bill would also repeal both the 1994 gun ban and Brady Law.] The best avenue for action that grassroots activists can now take is to ask their Representatives to cosponsor these bills. GOA will keep you up to date on any further developments.

Boycott Sara Lee Corporation! Women Against Gun Control urges gun rights supporters everywhere to participate in a world-wide boycott of Sara Lee products. The boycott is to protest Sara Lee’s presentation of its “Humanities” award to Sarah Brady, as well as its donation of $50,000 to the Center to Prevent Handgun Violence.

Stop buying products distributed by Sara Lee or its subsidiaries: Sara Lee, Ball Park, Hillshire Farm, Jimmy Dean, Aoste, Douwe Egberts, Hanes, Hanes Her Way, L’eggs, Bali, Playtex, Champion, Coach, Dim, Sanex and Kiwi. Let Sara Lee know that you disapprove of its efforts to undermine your Second Amendment rights. Call, write, fax, or email Sara Lee today!

Contact Info. for Sara Lee Corporation

For more information, http://www.wagc.com is the Women Against Gun Control website.