Reply from Senator Blackburn

[bersaguy]

I wrote Senator Marsha Blackburn about me concerns regarding the Red Flag bills being considered and below was her reply.

April 1, 2019

Dear Mr. Richards,

 

Thank you for writing regarding proposed restrictions on gun rights.  I always appreciate hearing from Tennesseans.

The Second Amendment protects the right to keep and bear arms, and this cherished right stems from the rich history of our country's founding.  Law-abiding citizens who are gun owners should not be subjected to unconstitutional abridgements of their rights or targeted for persecution.  

Protection of our Second Amendment rights is dear to me.  I am opposed to restrictions on firearms that could unfairly target hunters, homeowners, and law-abiding citizens.  As a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, you be assured that I will keep your thoughts in mind should any legislation limiting our Constitutional right to bear arms come before the committee or the full Senate.
 

Again, thank you for taking the time to contact me. If you would like regular updates on my work for Tennessee, please sign up for my monthly newsletter or follow me on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. 

Sincerely,
 
 Marsha Blackburn
 United States Senator
 

[Whisper]

Looks like a generic "Letter for RKBA Supporters."  Doesn't address the red flag issue specifically, which doesn't surprise me.  The red flag issue is going to  show clearly who is on the side of the Constitution and who is not

[gregintenn]

I'd be very surprised if Blackburn voted in favor of such a bill.

[btq96r]

Blackburn is a hack, hence the template reply...but she's a Republican hack, so she's not going to take any position that's anti-gun unless the mood of the party is different from the norm, such as it was with the bump stock ban. 

[E4 No More]

7 minutes ago, btq96r said:

Blackburn is a hack, hence the template reply...but she's a Republican hack, so she's not going to take any position that's anti-gun unless the mood of the party is different from the norm, such as it was with the bump stock ban. 

All politicians are hacks for their respective parties.

[bersaguy]

Ok so by reading the replies to my post does that mean I should just quit writing to elected officials all together? Does it mean it's a waste of time writing them?

[mikegideon]

2 minutes ago, bersaguy said:

Ok so by reading the replies to my post does that mean I should just quit writing to elected officials all together? Does it mean it's a waste of time writing them?

No

[Worriedman]

16 minutes ago, bersaguy said:

Ok so by reading the replies to my post does that mean I should just quit writing to elected officials all together? Does it mean it's a waste of time writing them?

No, you should call them and write paper letters as well, if they have fax numbers do that.  You should start with HB 0409, which actually has a chance of passing this year f I could get some support from the folks...

[Whisper]

30 minutes ago, bersaguy said:

Ok so by reading the replies to my post does that mean I should just quit writing to elected officials all together? Does it mean it's a waste of time writing them?

It's certainly not a waste of time, and good on you for doing it.  You just need to be careful in reading politicians' replies.  Blackburn gave you some vague generalities about supporting the Second Amendment, but said nothing about the specific issue that was the topic of your letter.  Anyone can claim to be in favor of the Second Amendment -- heck, even Obama says he supports the Second Amendment -- but when faced with an actual vote on Second Amendment issues, most politicians will vote against freedom.

[bersaguy]

Ok so when I write one I need to ask for a specific topic I want a reply to and not just an open door topic. I did specify Red Flag Laws and I did notice that the reply did not answer the specific subject I wrote her about. And yes the reply was a vague response but to be honest I was surprised I even got a reply at all. I guess the reply is a good place to start at least.

[Whisper]

I didn't see your letter, but from your description, it was probably specific enough.  Blackburn just chose to respond with a generic "I support RKBA" letter instead of saying anything about red flag laws.  To me, that suggests she hasn't decided whether she will vote for or against the red flag bill, and she wants to preserve her options, but she also wants to mollify you with a vague statement that isn't really a commitment, but might be interpreted as one.

But perhaps I'm too skeptical about politicians and their motives....

[OLDNEWBIE]

It sure looks much better than all the canned anti gun letters I used to get from my representatives in Oregon when I used to live there.

Keep writing! I'm sure one of her interns has taken note, extracted your concerns from your correspondence and added that data to a graph or pie chart that she reads once a week or so.

As cold as that sounds, don't be discouraged. No matter how she digests the information the important thing is she actually hears and sees that we are paying attention.

You got me motivated anyway!

[DaveTN]

On 4/1/2019 at 3:29 PM, bersaguy said:

Ok so when I write one I need to ask for a specific topic I want a reply to and not just an open door topic. I did specify Red Flag Laws and I did notice that the reply did not answer the specific subject I wrote her about. And yes the reply was a vague response but to be honest I was surprised I even got a reply at all. I guess the reply is a good place to start at least.

She didn’t answer your question in detail because it wouldn’t be what you want to hear. I believe she supports the gun rights of law abiding gun owners. Red flag laws address people who make violent threats. She isn’t going to say she is against that. At most she would say there are already laws in place to address that. Which is true there are. And they have little or no due process; the cops will take your guns and you will have little chance of getting them back.

Fighting these changes that specify due process makes no sense to me. If you see this as anti-gun then vote against these changes and leave them the way they are. If you are caught up in this you will lose your guns.

 

[btq96r]

On 4/1/2019 at 3:29 PM, bersaguy said:

Ok so when I write one I need to ask for a specific topic I want a reply to and not just an open door topic. I did specify Red Flag Laws and I did notice that the reply did not answer the specific subject I wrote her about. And yes the reply was a vague response but to be honest I was surprised I even got a reply at all. I guess the reply is a good place to start at least.

The replies are pro forma, and each Congressman or Senator uses part of their office budget to reply to inquiries.  They're handled by low level staffers, or even interns, even if it gets an autopen signature.  You could have asked anything about the 2nd Amendment, and you would have gotten the same reply. 

[m16ty]

I met Blackburn way back when she was in the State Legislature. She is a really nice lady to talk to, but at the end of the day, she's a politician through and through. 

About all I can say about her is she's better than the one she replaced. Might want to give her a little time though, the US Senate has a way of turning otherwise decent people into the scum of the earth. I mean, I can pretty much name on one hand who I'd consider decent senators, I wouldn't classify  hardly any of them good or great.

[Sunfish]

When you live in a sewer your likely to become crappy

[Guest BCR#1]

On 4/9/2019 at 12:18 AM, m16ty said:

About all I can say about her is she's better than the one she replaced.

You must be referring to the tie flipping runt who I didn't think was worthy of being mayor, much less a US senator. He sure doesn't like being flashed by a welding arc.

Bill

[A.J. Holst]

Having interacted with some state legislators, they claim to like non form letter / multi signature inquiries from citizens.

They do pay attention, though the return answer in template form seems like a blow off.

[owejia]

For every letter or communication a politician gets they believe there are 10 more back home that feel the same way, but just have not communicated about it. Do you guys really think your senator or rep. has enough time in the day to sit down and personally answer every communication they receive? If you have their personal phone # they will answer the call, and talk to you. Never stop communicating with them, because that is how they judge how the constituents back home feel about how they are suppose to represent them. Everyone has an agenda no matter what they tell you. 

[TripleGGG]

On 4/1/2019 at 3:12 PM, bersaguy said:

Ok so by reading the replies to my post does that mean I should just quit writing to elected officials all together? Does it mean it's a waste of time writing them?

Absolutely not. I write and email a lot. Sometimes I get canned replies, sometimes the concern is addressed specifically, sometimes no response. Doesn't matter. I look at voting records to get my answer. Actions ALWAYS speak louder than words.

Most people think it's a waste of time but look at all the things that have been changed (good and bad) due to popular demand. 

[bersaguy]

4 hours ago, TripleGGG said:

Absolutely not. I write and email a lot. Sometimes I get canned replies, sometimes the concern is addressed specifically, sometimes no response. Doesn't matter. I look at voting records to get my answer. Actions ALWAYS speak louder than words.

Most people think it's a waste of time but look at all the things that have been changed (good and bad) due to popular demand. 

I plan to keep writing them. Those emails they send back that you know came from an intern with an auto signature can be useful when writing back to them again and pinning them down to get a more direct answer to my questions. They can't just resend the same form letter so eventually maybe the actual question asked will get a more direct reply.........JMHO 

[DaveTN]

4 hours ago, bersaguy said:

I plan to keep writing them. Those emails they send back that you know came from an intern with an auto signature can be useful when writing back to them again and pinning them down to get a more direct answer to my questions. They can't just resend the same form letter so eventually maybe the actual question asked will get a more direct reply.........JMHO 

No politician will survive that rejects Red Flag bills that contain due process.

I’d be curious as what you (or anyone) wants her to say? Do you want to leave things the way they are now? If not; what do you want?

These are quotes from Blackburn: They pretty much answer the question you are asking her. 

 

Quote

 

Do you support strengthening federal background checks for gun buyers? Why or why not?

Blackburn: "Keeping our schools and public spaces safe, while safeguarding our Second Amendment rights, is a top priority for me. We need to ensure our background check system works properly and that appropriate red flags are recorded and are shared."

 

Quote

 

Blackburn on gun control and mental health

When asked about recent school shootings and the debate on gun control, Blackburn said she has heard from parents and law enforcement.

"I was one of the 17 legislators that the President invited to the White House to discuss what was happening when you look at the shootings," Blackburn said.

She said that Tennesseans have raised two points to her: protect the second amendment as well as protect citizens in public places and children in public schools.

"Mental health and having appropriate notations in someone's records and certainly in background checks if they have a severe mental illness," she said."And there should be a red flag system that would bring some awareness to that."

She said when it comes to mental health, once a child turns 18 parents and caregivers no longer have access to their healthcare records.

"What I hear from so many Tennesseans that they want to see the mental health issues addressed," said Blackburn. "They want us to put some attention on violence in our culture, what is happening with movies and TV shows and video games, and the effect that this has on young people.

 

 

[DUKETN]

On 4/1/2019 at 3:12 PM, bersaguy said:

Ok so by reading the replies to my post does that mean I should just quit writing to elected officials all together? Does it mean it's a waste of time writing them?

Keep writing!!!!! One reason the anti-Gun Crowd has success is simple..The squeaky wheel gets all the grease....Write The NRA also they need to hear you , NRA supports this crap thus giving the politicians the OK to vote Red Flag.....NRA tells them what the public tone is.....So please keep making lawful noise...