Jump to Content
Pennsylvania Firearm Owners Association

Articles tagged “John Murtha”

Pennsylvania’s Role in McDonald

Gun owners across the country will be watching the McDonald case closely on Tuesday. Though, admittedly, the pro-liberty folks in areas with heavy gun control will likely be paying more attention to the arguments. Because Pennsylvania doesn’t have the extreme gun control conditions of Chicago and we have protections under the state constitution, we’re unlikely to see a direct impact from the case in the Keystone State.

However, never let it be said that Pennsylvania doesn’t have a voice in the arguments before the Supreme Court on Tuesday. In fact, we’re lucky to have more than 30 pro-gun lawmakers standing up for our rights in this case.

At the federal level, 15 members of our Congressional delegation signed on to a brief in support of the law-abiding citizens who would like to own a handgun in Chicago. This total includes both Senators and every member of Congress except the Philadelphia-area representatives, and those representing Pittsburgh and Erie.

Coming down to the state level, the most high profile supporter of the McDonald case is Attorney General Tom Corbett who signed a brief with more than three dozen other Attorneys General. However, it’s easy to miss the state legislators who were pro-active in signing on to various briefs in favor of the plaintiffs.

Five female lawmakers joined a brief outlining the concerns of women who face state and local governments that seek to limit their right to self-protection. In addition, one Senator and 11 Representatives put their names on a general state legislator brief that points out a clear direction from the Supreme Court in favor of incorporation will better serve the states and help to secure the fundamental rights of their citizens.

So if you have time on Tuesday, take a few moments to thank the following lawmakers for standing up for our rights. I’ve included links to social media homes where you can publicly thank them if you have an account:

Federal
Senator Arlen Specter
*Twitter
*Facebook

Senator Bob Casey
*Facebook

Representative Jason Altmire
*Facebook

Representative Christopher Carney
*Facebook

Representative Charlie Dent
*Facebook

Representative Jim Gerlach
*Twitter
*Facebook

Representative Tim Holden

Representative Paul Kanjorski
*Twitter
*Facebook

Representative Patrick Murphy
*Facebook

Tim Murphy
*Twitter
*Facebook

Representative John Murtha

Representative Joe Pitts
*Twitter
*Facebook

Representative Todd Platts
*Facebook

Representative Bill Shuster
*Twitter

Representative Glenn Thompson
*Twitter
*Facebook

Posted by
Picture of Christie C.
Christie C.
Posted on
March 01 2010 12:17:16 PM
Categories
Topics

Nancy Pelosi Calls for “Compromise” on Guns

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi took to the airwaves to discuss gun control on Good Morning America this week, proposing new restrictions on gun owners in response to the Pittsburgh shootings.  Her proposal to the show’s host includes registration of guns and their owners, a step that has historically lead to confiscation.

In addition, Speaker Pelosi recommends we ban guns from crossing state lines.  She will put an end to competitions such as NRA’s Camp Perry, hurt hunters who prefer to take to the fields in a neighboring state, and potentially even restricting whether or not gun owners can take their firearms with them if they move.  These restrictions are absurd!

The only way to shut Nancy Pelosi’s gun control fantasies down is to take quick action to put pressure on “blue dog” Democrats, who come from more conservative districts, and are most vulnerable to calls for gun control.  We have a number of them in Pennsylvania.  They are:

If you live in any of these districts, please use the links above to contact your representative and tell them that you oppose the Speaker Pelosi’s gun control agenda.  Express skepticism about your trust in the Democratic Party to protect your Second Amendment rights.  Be aware that many of the representatives above are pro-gun, and will likely be on our side, but don’t let them take you for granted, and make sure they understand that you expect them to represent the interests of gun owners in your district, and not help Nancy Pelosi bring her San Francisco attitudes on guns to Pennsylvania.

Posted by
Picture of Keith M.
Keith M.
Posted on
April 10 2009 1:34:54 AM
Categories
Topics

Pro-Gun Democrats Stand Up to Holder

Following on the heels of getting the Department of Defense to reverse its policy on destroying one fired brass, once again allowing it to be sold to the public, we’re quite fortunate to have sixty five pro-gun Democrats stand up to the Obama Administration on the issue of re-instituting the expired ban on so-called “Assault Weapons.”

We Pennsylvanians are fortunate to have a number of our Congressional delegation among the signers, and they deserve our thanks and praise.  Those Representatives are:

  • Tim Holden (PA-17) Dauphin, Lebanon, Schuylkill, Parts of Berks and Perry.
  • Paul Kanjorski (PA-11) Carbon, Columbia, Monroe, Lackawanna, Luzerne
  • John Murtha (PA-12) Greene County, Parts of nearly half the southwest.
  • Christopher Carney (PA-10) Wayne, Pike, Susquehanna, Bradford, Sullivan, etc
  • Jason Altmire (PA-04) Allegheny County, Beaver, Butler, parts of others.

But in addition to those above who voted to protect our Second Amendment rights, we should also note those Democrats who chose not to take any preemptive action:

  • Robert Brady (PA-01) (Philadelphia)
  • Chaka Fattah (PA-02) (Philadelphia)
  • Joe Sestak (PA-07) Delaware Co. Chester County (Part)
  • Patrick Murphy (PA-08) Bucks County, Philadelphia (Part)
  • Allyson Schwartz (PA-13) Montgomery County, Philadelphia (Part)
  • Kathleen A. Dahlkemper (PA-3) Erie County, Parts of Surrounding counties
  • Michael F Doyle (PA-14) Allegeny County (Pittsburgh)

If your representative is on the first list, call them and thank them for their support.  If they are on the latter list, ask them why they were not among the signers.

This is a very important development in terms of the likelihood we’ll be looking at a new Assault Weapons Ban in the 111th Congress.  It takes 218 votes to pass a bill out of Congress, and with these 65 Democrats, we could lose 28 Republicans, and a renewal still would not have the votes to pass the House.  If Obama wishes to pass a renewal of the failed semi-auto ban of the Clinton years, it will be, at best, an uphill battle.

But this is not to say that gun owners are out of the woods.  We still have anti-gun leadership in key positions in Congress, and still have one of the most anti-gun Presidents in history occupying the Oval Office.  This pass over the mountains may be blocked for the time being, but we must think about where they will try to cross next.

Posted by
Picture of Keith M.
Keith M.
Posted on
March 19 2009 2:23:25 PM
Categories
Topics