Uh... the Holt Bill has been 'slipped in' to Stimulus bill?

[Humble]

WHAT???

On Glenn Beck just now:

Congresscritter (New Hampshire, didn't catch the name) just said that the Holt Bill had been 'slipped in' to the stimulus.

the BLAIR HOLT bill????!!!!!

A summary:

1/6/2009--Introduced.

Blair Holt's Firearm Licensing and Record of Sale Act of 2009 - Amends the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act to prohibit a person from possessing a firearm unless that person has been issued a firearm license under this Act or a state system certified under this Act and such license has not been invalidated or revoked. Prescribes license application, issuance, and renewal requirements.

Prohibits transferring or receiving a qualifying firearm unless the recipient presents a valid firearms license, the license is verified, and the dealer records a tracking authorization number. Prescribes firearms transfer reporting and record keeping requirements. Directs the Attorney General to establish and maintain a federal record of sale system.

...there is a lot more in there:

http://www.opencongress.org/bill/111-h45/show

...folks, this just might be it.

Somebody set me straight or tell me otherwise...

Oh, my beautiful Country... I weep for thee.

[Mike.357]

I dunno, if that was in there the gun grabbing Dem's would be crowing about it by now. I been watching the news and have not heard anything.

[Punisher84]

I'd be really shocked if that was actually in there.

[Falcon1]

http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin/getdoc.cgi?dbname=111_cong_bills&docid=f:h1pp.txt.pdf

I just searched the GPO pdf for the terms "ammunition" and "Blair Holt." The Adobe search tool did not find those terms in the over-1400-page document, for what that is worth.

[Garufa]

Maybe the NRA's statement will calm. I assume they keep on top of this stuff.

http://www.nraila.org/legislation/read.aspx?id=4430

But then again it is Friday the 13th.

[Humble]

Falcon,

I just did the same search... you are right. I found no reference.

So... a mis-informed congressman? I heard him clearly.

...good thing, I was warming up the boat.

[Reservoir Dog]

The guy was Daniel Itse from NH. He is a NH State legislator, and not a member of the US Congress. I am not sure what he would know of what was in the stimulus bill.

ETA: HR 45 (Blair Holt bill) still shows as being in committee:

H.R.45

Title: To provide for the implementation of a system of licensing for purchasers of certain firearms and for a record of sale system for those firearms, and for other purposes.

Sponsor: Rep Rush, Bobby L. [iL-1] (introduced 1/6/2009) Cosponsors (None)

Latest Major Action: 2/9/2009 Referred to House subcommittee. Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security.ALL ACTIONS:

1/6/2009:

Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.

2/9/2009:

Referred to the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security.

Edited February 14, 2009 by Reservoir Dog

[Falcon1]

I do understand that, the way the bill was created in pdf format, it may not be easily searched with search tools (imagine that!).

The Gun Owners of America site does express concerns over medical provisions of HR1, but does not have any references I found to ammunition concerns....

http://gunowners.org/

[TripleDigitRide]

Updated: February 11, 2009, 12:02 PM ET

By Wade Bourne

Special to ESPNOutdoors.com

To many gun owners, it's the tsunami of gun control legislation, the mother of all efforts to restrict private gun ownership and the guarantees of the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

To others, it's just the latest anti-gun agitation, a formerly defeated proposal dredged back up for another try in this time of shifting political winds.

"It" is H.R. 45: Blair Holt's Firearm Licensing and Record of Sale Act of 2009. This bill was introduced in the 111th Congress by U. S. Rep. Bobby Rush (D-IL) on Jan. 6, 2009. Failing to attract any co-sponsors, it was referred for consideration to the House Committee on the Judiciary, where it now rests awaiting further action.

This bill is sweeping in its gun control proposals. Its summary description reads, "To provide for the implementation of a system for licensing for purchasers of certain firearms and for a record of sale system for those firearms, and for other purposes."

If enacted, this bill would prohibit anyone from owning any type of handgun without obtaining a license for such ownership. The same would be true for any semiautomatic firearm that can accept any detachable ammunition-feeding device.

Further, all sales of these firearms would have to go through a licensed dealer. The bill also directs the Attorney General to establish and run a federal record-of-sale system. And it would make it a criminal act not to register as an owner of a firearm.

"This bill validates the concerns of sportsmen and gun owners about what the new congress and administration portend for Second Amendment rights," says Lawrence G. Keane, Senior Vice-President/General Counsel for the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF).

Keane continues, "The U.S. Supreme Court definitively said in District of Columbia vs. Heller (2008) that the Second Amendment provides individual civil rights to law-abiding Americans to keep and bear arms. (They don't have to be in a militia to own and keep guns.) This bill, however, would treat those citizens who exercise their civil liberties like criminals."

Thus, another gun control struggle may be looming. Pro-gun advocates see the Blair Holt bill as a direct assault on their constitutional rights and freedom. Anti-gun activists feel the time might be ripe for "change" promised by the Obama administration to include this comprehensive gun control legislation.

Blair Holt, the bill's namesake, was a 16-year old honor student in Chicago who was murdered in May, 2007 when another teenager began firing a handgun on a public bus in a gang-related attack. Acting heroically, Holt moved to shield a female rider from the bullets, and he was struck in the abdomen and died.

At his funeral, Rep. Bobby Rush pledged to introduce a strong new gun tracking bill in the 110th Congress in Holt's memory. Rush's Blair Holt Bill Licensing and Record of Sale Bill of 2007 failed to make it out of the House Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism and Homeland Security. Rush's new bill in the current 111th Congress is a rehash of this previous effort.

Toure Muhammad, communications director for Rep. Rush, says while the Blair Holt bill would set up a system for tracking guns, it would not an infringement of Second Amendment rights. He explains, "This is not an attempt to ban guns. It is not intended in any way to impede the constitutional right to own or carry a gun.

"Instead, it would simply set up a system for registration of the type guns specified in the bill," Muhammad continues. "It would provide a way for police to track a gun that is used illegally back to its owner. It would be similar to the system we have for registering and titling automobiles."

Muhammad says in 2008, an average of 45 people were killed each day in the U.S. with guns. He says, "The urban cultural dynamic can't be ignored here. In the cities, people are killed daily by other people with guns. Rep. Rush's bill is an effort to curb this violence."

The National Rifle Association (NRA) has another take on the Blair Holt bill. This pro-gun lobby feels it is flawed in that it focuses on the instruments of crime rather than on the criminals who use the instruments. And further, the NRA believes the Blair Hold bill would turn law-abiding citizens into violators of the law.

NRA spokesperson Rachel Parsons explains, "Several provisions in this bill would make compliance nearly impossible. For instance, the bill spells out that if a firearms license holder fails to notify the Attorney General of an address change within 60 days, that person would be subject to a 5 year prison term and a fine of up to $250,000."

Parsons continues, "This bill goes against the core of what the NRA works for. Any kind of bill that would require photographing and fingerprinting for simple possession of a firearm is fundamentally different in opinion from that which the NRA holds. Any law should target the criminal element, but this law would simply further burden law-abiding people."

So, how likely is the Blair Holt bill's chance for passage? Pro-gun activists are vigilant but don't seem overly worried about it. They point out that the bill's failure to attract co-sponsors is an indication of a lack of enthusiasm for it among other congressmen. They feel it is too far-reaching and repressive of gun owners' rights to merit serious consideration by a majority of Congress.

Lawrence Keane of the NSSF states, "If this bill passes, Democrats would likely lose (control of) their chamber in upcoming mid-term elections (2010). The leadership in the House knows that." Keane says some 80 million-plus U.S. citizens own firearms, representing nearly half the households in the nation. He believes that House Democrats will allow the Blair Holt bill to die in subcommittee rather than risk the ire of so many pro-gun voters.

Rachel Parsons of the NRA says, "I think our members and other gun owners need to be aware of what's going on, and they should contact their elected representatives about the Blair Holt bill and similar bills. We want to see to it that bills like this that trample on Second Amendment rights never reach the House (of Representatives) floor.

"This bill has gotten people pretty fired up," Parsons concludes. "They see it as a threat to their constitutional right to keep and bear arms."

[oldogy]

From what I can find out about that convoluted piece of garbage known as the stimulus package not too many folks, including those voting on it, actually know what it contains. What a sham.

oldogy

[Humble]

A little more info: A fellow poster on another forum just posted this:

I just spoke with Rep. Itse; and his source for his information is from CCRKBA, he can not confirm that the information is true; as he himself has not read it. We should all hope that it is not buried somewhere in, the now passed, Stimulus Resolution.

I was lucky enough to speak with him right as he was walking in the door, but I would suggest to anyone who is interested, contact him themselves; he was most accessible and more than happy to speak with me. He can also be contacted by email at: ItseNH@comcast.net

[Guest bang-flash]

not too many folks, including those voting on it, actually know what it contains. What a sham.

oldogy

I imagine digesting 1k plus pages is too much to ask before deciding yes or no these days.

[Falcon1]

From what I can find out about that convoluted piece of garbage known as the stimulus package not too many folks, including those voting on it, actually know what it contains. What a sham.

oldogy

I imagine digesting 1k plus pages is too much to ask before deciding yes or no these days.

Too true, I fear. One would think, however, that that is what Congressional staffers are for....

[Mike.357]

I imagine digesting 1k plus pages is too much to ask before deciding yes or no these days.

I really do not know but I am guessing legislators have people on staff to outline bills like this. No way anyone has read it word for word. That does not really even bother me.

The sell outs know what they are sending to Obama.

[Mark@Sea]

If it has been attached (and it might not be attached by name, but by bill number - or even, apparently, scribbled in the margin) then the stimulus bill just became the causus belli of the 2nd American revolution.

I'm beginning to think that russian guy that said the US would break up in the next ten years may have been on to something.

I'm beginning to think it might be a good idea.

[Humble]

If it has been attached (and it might not be attached by name, but by bill number - or even, apparently, scribbled in the margin) then the stimulus bill just became the causus belli of the 2nd American revolution.

I'm beginning to think that russian guy that said the US would break up in the next ten years may have been on to something.

I'm beginning to think it might be a good idea.

...now my radar just went up... scribbled in the margin?

[Guest justme]

this "stimulus" bill just makes me sick...they are rushing this thing through just like they did the "patriot act"...what a convoluted piece of garbage...and really it wouldn't surprise me if they had gun control legislation buried in that disaster...considering no one has actually read the entire thing to actually know what is in it...they are destroying this nation and everything we stand for.

makes you proud to see your "tax dollars at work" does it not....

[Reservoir Dog]

Well, the stimulus bill has just passed by Congress and will go to the Pres for his signature. I doubt any provision of HR45 was in there, but I guess we will find out for certain in the next few days.

[Mark@Sea]

I watch AFN news, just watched a segment of Hannity in which it was mentioned that one provision was crossed out, and a replacement figure handwritten in the margin.

There really is no way to tell what is in this bill.

[Westwindmike]

According to the NRA, it was not in the bill.

http://www.nraila.org/legislation/read.aspx?id=4430

Friday, February 13, 2009 We have been hearing many rumors, and receiving many inquiries, about "buried" provisions in the federal economic stimulus bill that would negatively affect our Second Amendment rights. People have claimed the bill would designate interstate highways as national parks, or impose ammunition encoding and new ammunition taxes. Fortunately, and contrary to what you may have heard, there are no provisions in this bill prohibiting firearms or ammunition anywhere, or for anyone.

The only reference in the bill to firearms is a provision authorizing funds for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives' (BATFE) "Project Gunrunner," which is a program that enforces existing laws to reduce smuggling of firearms from the United States to Mexico. This program imposes no new restrictions on gun owners, and if it did, we can assure you we would take swift action.

Needless to say, NRA, as a single-issue organization, takes no position on the economic stimulus legislation as a whole.

For more information and to view the legislation yourself, you can visit http://www.readthestimulus.org/. The site features a convenient search function and covers every version of the legislation.

[Wingshooter]

This thing is such a joke. No way anyone even had time to read the whole bill even if they wanted to. I believe that anyone in the house or senate that voted on this without knowing exactly what was in it has violated an oath to the people!

On the plus side, crap like this might ensure only a one-term presidency for B.O.

[Guest Rick O'Shay]

From what I can find out about that convoluted piece of garbage known as the stimulus package not too many folks, including those voting on it, actually know what it contains. What a sham.

oldogy

Not a sham. An agenda.

[towerclimber37]

it PASSED? wow...just wow

I scanned through it.

Harry Reid got 8 BILLION dollars for a high speed railroad between LA and Las vegas..

that was just ONE of the appropriations.

[Guest jackdog]

I like the bill for the the following reasons.

1.no pork or bacon bits

2. No pet projects ( See speaker of the house 30 million for a mouse)

3.fully transparent as promised by the great O or is that A or L

4. Plus everyone had at least 48 minutes to read 1500 pages. ( 48 hrs ???)

The president the house and the senate are totally bull****.