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HB 512 Opponents

Dear David ,

Last night, after the committee hearing on HB 512, one Republican legislator was asked by a GGO representative why he refused to speak up in support of either of Representative Gregory’s amendments to the bill.

His answer: “I felt pressure not to. No one else said anything.”

These were the amendments you asked for and Representative Gregory proposed to protect gun owners . . .

To allow law-abiding individuals to carry for protection in their residence on a college campus and to strike the provision from the bill that one gun rights group admitted “would make the mental health check mandatory.”

And despite your calls to exclude any new additions to the “exempt from off-limits locations” list, the Republicans did it anyway.

In other words - one group gets special firearms carrying privileges and you do not.

As the example above of a legislator refusing to speak up in committee - but willing to do so afterwards - illustrates, legislators and others at the Capitol “talk.”

In fact, another so-called “insider” out of Governor Deal’s office claims the Governor is flat-out refusing to sign any firearms legislation without “mental health” language in it.

His excuse: “Republicans will lose seats in the next election if it isn’t in there.”

Of course his “lose seats” bargaining chip isn’t based in any reality.

The fact is, as a creature of Washington, D.C., Governor Deal knows the national gun control agenda is rooted in expanded background checks on as many individuals as possible.

“Mental health” legislation is the most likely gun control legislation to pass in Washington because they know Republicans will tacitly go along, afraid of “what might happen after Sandy Hook.”

Even potential Georgia U.S. Senate nominee, Republican Phil Gingrey, has called for expanded background checks.

Some of you may remember in the mid-1990s when the Brady instant gun owner registration scheme passed in Congress, the NRA went state-by-state (even making an attempt here in Georgia) to pass “Baby Brady Bills,” - state gun owner databases.

Gun owners have reason to worry about new “mental health mandates” and why the Governor is INSISTING it MUST be in any bill he signs.

Republicans playing politics with your gun rights shouldn’t be a surprise to you.

For a grassroots activist, this might be demoralizing for, but the reality is, the General Assembly has told the grassroots (you) what you MUST accept for decades.

But it’s not something you should accept. Your focus should be on connecting your legislator’s actions at the Capitol with his/her election (in this case, 2014).

When it comes to advancing your gun rights, as many can attest, it’s like pulling teeth to get the Republican-dominated General Assembly to do anything.

You would think in a state where the Republicans dominate the House 118-60 and the Senate 38-18, it would be easy to get a clean advancement of your gun rights through for the Governor’s signature, right?

That they would be pushing and shoving seeking to restore your rights fully instead waiting until less than a few days left in session to do anything (like they do most years) . . .

You would be wrong.

Why is this?

Every two years, legislators who pledge their full support of your gun rights in writing usually refuse to do what they said they would once elected.

But why should they act any differently?

Here’s why: despite not doing what you want (full restoration of your gun rights), they receive gun rights endorsements nearly every single election cycle.

In short, they know they’ll get your vote no matter what.

There are those in the gun rights movement who would much rather ACCEPT what they are offering rather than keep pushing further and further to do what is right . . .

. . . and then hold those accountable at the polls for not doing what they have pledged to do.

The good news for you is that in the one full election cycle where Georgia Gun Owners has been active in surveying candidates for political office, we’ve managed to collect quite a notebook of “Candidate Surveys” from legislators.

And as you can imagine, many of those who have pledged to fully restore your gun rights have already broken their pledge.

When election season rolls around, Georgia Gun Owners will be sure to update you on those broken pledges, and your responsibility is to hold them accountable.

Some in the gun rights movement would rather you be quiet and “not cause any problems” when they tell you not to.

Some would tell you “Georgia isn’t ready for constitutional carry yet – be quiet,” all the while ignoring that state-wide hearings are occurring one state over in South Carolina right now.

The charge there is being led by GGO ally, Palmetto Gun Rights.

But if you know anything about Georgia Gun Owners, it’s that we will alert you to every potential negative impact on your gun rights - we’ll question it and mobilize you.

Thousands of new members have joined GGO in recent months because they like our message: “Make sure the legislature does what is right . . . and hold them accountable at the polls if they do not.”

You are becoming a large, active grassroots force.

But there is much work to be done.

You can be identifying, activating and mobilizing friends and family members in your town. Get them involved in the fight.

It’s also vital you make it known to your elected officials via email, phones, personal visits and at town hall meetings that you will hold them accountable for their votes and broken pledges in the next election.

As HB 512 advances, we’ll be sure to continue to warn you of potential “poison pills” like “mandatory training," expansion of “mental health legislation,” and special privileges for certain classes . . . and ask you to take action when needed.

We’ll also continue to work with legislative allies to push for the full restoration of your gun rights.

Thanks for your activism. Keep it up!

For freedom,



D.R. Leonard
Political Director

P.S. If you've been thinking about joining Georgia Gun Owners, we'd love to have you on our team RIGHT NOW!

^^^^email from GGO^^^^^^^
 
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