Right To Defend Grows, Nationwide Review Shows

In many states, it's getting easier to carry a firearm, the result of a successful campaign by the National Rifle Association.

A nationwide review by The Associated Press found that over the last two years, 24 states, mostly in the South and West (and including Oklahoma), have passed 47 new laws loosening gun restrictions.

Among other things, legislatures have allowed firearms to be carried in cars, made it illegal to ask job candidates whether they own a gun, and expanded agreements that make permits to carry handguns in one state valid in another.

Some states, like Oklahoma, have broadened the protections afforded citizens who defend themselves. Oklahoma's "Make My Day" law is an example. Here, the Oklahoma Rifle Association, an NRA affiliate, has a constant Capitol presence and has been involved in every effort to protect law-abiding gun owners.

The trend is attributed in large part to the NRA push. The NRA, the leading gun-owners lobby in the U.S. which for years has blocked attempts in Washington to tighten firearms laws, has ramped up its efforts at the state level to chip away at gun restrictions.

"This is all a coordinated approach to respect that human, God-given right of self defense by law-abiding Americans," says Chris W. Cox, the NRA's chief lobbyist. "We'll rest when all 50 states allow and respect the right of law-abiding people to defend themselves from criminal attack."

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It's A Spoof, Of Course...

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Ammunition Demand Still Exceeds Supply

The Associated Press reports that some bullet-makers are working around the clock and still can't keep up with the nation's demand for ammunition.

Shooting ranges, gun dealers and bullet manufacturers say they have never seen such a demand.

Bullets for sportsmen have been scarce for months. Some gun store owners and gun rights advocates say the demand is due to a fear that President Barack Obama and the Democratic-controlled Congress will pass antigun legislation.

The Obama administration has not proposed anything specific and the president recently signed a law allowing people to carry loaded guns in national parks.

The National Rifle Association says Americans usually buy about 7 billion rounds of ammo a year. That figure has jumped to about 9 billion in the past year.

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Reid OKs Floor Vote On Gun Laws Measure

From Politico ~ Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) is supposed to be the protector of the Senate’s skittish Democratic flock — the guy who soothes intraparty spats and shields his 60-member majority from dangerous, career-threatening votes.

Yet Reid — whose low approval ratings in Nevada make him a tempting GOP target in next year’s midterms — put many of his members in a sticky situation when he OK’d a floor vote on a controversial GOP amendment that could significantly alter the nation’s gun control laws.

Reid says the bill deserves a hearing and reflects his commitment to supporting gun rights in a state that sanctifies the Second Amendment. Other Democrats say he approved the vote out of personal political necessity — to avoid the ire of the National Rifle Association during the 2010 elections.

“Nobody’s angry at Harry, but it’s created a problem for us,” says a Democratic aide, speaking on condition of anonymity. “There’s a huge level of sympathy for him, because we don’t want to have another Daschle situation.”

That was, of course, a reference to Tom Daschle, the last Democratic majority leader who was knocked off in 2004, by Republican John Thune.

By astounding coincidence (not), Thune, now the No. 4 man in the Senate, just happens to be the guy who authored the current amendment to allow licensed gun owners to transport their weapons across state lines.

“This has nothing to do with electoral politics,” said Reid spokesman Jim Manley, who emphasized that the amendment has the support of many other Democrats besides Reid.

Two previous NRA-backed measures, one loosening D.C. handgun restrictions and another allowing guns in national parks, passed by comfortable 60-plus vote margins in the Senate earlier this year.

“Harry Reid has always supported gun rights and intends to do so in the future,” Manley added.

Still, Reid’s decision prompted a mini-uprising among two top lieutenants — Sens. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) and Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) — who are considering a filibuster to kill the measure before it comes to a vote, as expected on Wednesday.

Read more: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0709/25193.html#ixzz0LuVGO5YN.

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Coburn Echoes NRA's Sotomayor Criticism

The National Rifle Association (NRA) has questioned Sonia Sotomayor’s fitness to serve on the Supreme Court, a troubling sign for the nominee in what has so far been a smooth confirmation hearing.

The NRA is considered one of the most powerful lobbies in Washington and holds sway with Democrats from conservative states, who could side with Republicans in opposing the nominee.

Wayne LaPierre, executive vice president of the NRA, blasted Sotomayor for ruling that the Second Amendment’s protection of gun rights does not apply to state and local governments and for being “evasive” when asked about whether gun ownership is a fundamental right.

“As the Senate considers the nomination of Judge Sonia Sotomayor, Americans are watching to see if this nominee would lend her support to those who’ve declared war on the rights of America’s 80 million gun owners,” LaPierra wrote in a statement posted on the group’s website Wednesday. “After the first day of confirmation hearings, gun owners have good reason to worry.”

Sen. Jeff Sessions (Ala.), the ranking Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee, referred to the NRA's statement during Wednesday's question-and-answer session.

Sotomayor ruled in Maloney v. Cuomo (aka Maloney v. Rice) that the Second Amendment only applies to federal law. In U.S. v. Sanchez-Villar, Sotomayor concluded that the right to possess a gun is not fundamental.

Oklahoma Sen. Tom Coburn (R) repeatedly asked Sotomayor whether she believed citizens have a right to defend themselves, a line of inquiry the nominee dodged.

“I don’t know if that legal question has ever been presented,” Sotomayor said.

Coburn kept pressing: “I wasn’t asking about the legal question, I’m asking about your personal opinion.”

Sotomayor: “That is sort of an abstract question with no particular meaning to me outside —"

Coburn grew impatient, cutting her off: “I think that’s what American people want to hear, Your Honor.”

Read more at http://thehill.com/leading-the-news/nra-growing-more-alarmed-over-sotomayor-2009-07-15.html.

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Gresham, McCarville Discuss Anti-Gun Bias

Nationally-syndicated radio talk show host Tom Gresham of Gun Talk discusses anti-gun bias with National Rifle Association commentator and blogger Mike McCarville on Sunday.

The discussion follows Gresham's appearance last week on the NRA's Cam & Company show with host Cam Edwards and McCarville; Edwards' show is broadcast at NRANews and on Sirius Satellite Radio Patriot Channel 144.

Gresham's show airs from 8 to 9 a.m. Sunday on NewsRadio 1000 KTOK. His complete show airs from 6-9 p.m. Sunday nights on Sirius Channel 108 and XM Channel 139.

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Gun Owners See Limbaugh 'Red Flag'

To the shock of gun owners, talk show host Rush Limbaugh has become a spokesman for the Humane Society of of the United States (HSUS). They accuse him of abandoning them for an organization focused on opposing hunting, fishing, and trapping.

Twenty-eight groups representing millions of hunters and sportsmen are demanding that the conservative radio commentator end his collaboration with the HSUS and stop "helping them to mainstream their image in the minds of reasonable people."

The HSUS is considered a foe of groups supportive of gun rights which is said to have a secret agenda to end all hunting in the U.S. Millions of hunters and sportsmen that are represented by organizations such as Ducks Unlimited and the U.S. Sports Alliance have prevailed up Limbaugh to end the public-service radio spots which include cracking down on dogfighting and other animal cruelty crimes.

Supporting an organization such as HSUS is out of character for Limbaugh, who usually concentrates on politics. Just the fact that he made the recording for the organization became a red flag for gun owner organizations. It is considered a part of an anti-sportsman agenda.

Read more at http://www.examiner.com/x-2547-Watchdog-Politics-Examiner~y2009m4d29-Gun-owners-being-deserted-by-Russ-Limbaugh.

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The Gadfly At The Bar (Of Justice)

Free Lt. Michael Behenna: The following commentary aired on NRA News and Sirius Satellite Radio Patriot Channel 144:

Ordinarily, I come before you in defense of the 2nd Amendment and the right to keep and bear arms.

Tonight, I come before you in defense of an Army 101st Airborne platoon leader who has been, in my opinion, wrongfully convicted of the murder of an Al Qaida operative in Iraq following the deaths of two members of the platoon in an Al Qaida attack.

Lt. Michael Behenna now sits in Fort Leavenworth facing an 18-year sentence. Military prosecutors claimed he executed Ali Mansur. Behenna says he shot Mansur in self defense.

The military prosecutors hired a forensics expert to bolster their case. Two problems: First, the expert agreed with Behenna's version of the shooting, saying the evidence supported Behenna. Second, the prosecutor did not call the expert to testify and worse, did not disclose his findings to Behenna's defense attorney during the trial. In other words, the prosecutor failed to disclose evidence favorable to the accused.

That's a violation of the judical code of ethics, the Uniform Code of Military Justice, and fairness. Most times, that violation by the prosecution would result in a conviction thrown out, the charge dismissed, or a new trial. In this case, the military tribunal reduced Behenna's sentence but refused a new trial.

Behenna's conviction is being appealed to the Army Court of Appeals in Washington. Let us all hope, for justice's sake, that this wrongful conviction is reversed and Lt. Behenna is given a fair trial, one in which all the evidence is presented. ~ Mike McCarville

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Congressional Democrats Oppose Obama Gun Ban

Sixty-five House Democrats said Wednesday that they would oppose any attempt by the Obama administration to revive a ban on military-style weapons that President Bill Clinton signed into law in 1994 and President George W. Bush let expire.

The pro-gun Democrats, led by Congressman Mike Ross, D-Arkansas, wrote Attorney General Eric Holder that they would "actively oppose any effort to reinstate the 1994 ban, or to pass any similar law."

They urged the administration to avoid a "long and divisive fight over a gun control issue" at a time when Washington needs to concentrate on the economic crisis.

The House letter came a day after Montana's two Democratic senators, Max Baucus and Jon Tester, wrote a similar letter to Holder saying the Justice Department should enforce existing laws before considering new gun ownership restrictions.

"We will strongly oppose any legislation that will infringe upon the rights of individual gun owners," they said.

The letters came after Holder, during a news conference to announce the arrest of Mexican drug dealers, said the drug cartels were obtaining high-powered weapons like the AK-47 from U.S. gun stores and said the Obama administration supported reinstituting the ban on the sale of assault-style weapons.

Senator Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., has said she plans to introduce legislation to bring back the weapons ban. Feinstein was an author of the 1994 bill, which banned 19 types of semiautomatic, military-style guns. The law expired under the Bush administration in 2004. Another long-term goal is requiring that all gun shows conduct background checks before selling firearms.

The National Rifle Association has said it is mobilizing to stop any assault weapons ban, and the opposition of 65 House Democrats, many from rural or conservative districts with strong pro-gun sentiments, probably would doom any legislative drive to restrict gun ownership.

Already this year, Republicans have stalled legislation that would give the District of Columbia a voting representative in the House by linking the bill to a measure significantly weakening D.C.'s gun laws.

House Democratic leaders have put off a vote on the voting rights bill out of concern that pro-gun Democrats would oppose it if it is separated from the gun measure.

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Boren Named Sportsmen's Caucus Co-Chairman

Congressman Dan Boren has been named co-chairman of the Congressional Sportsmen's Caucus.

The group works to pass legislation that protects hunters, anglers and wildlife habitat.

Boren also is a member of the board of directors of the National Rifle Association.

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New NY Senator's NRA Support Criticized

From The Hill ~ A new poll suggests Republicans in New York are happier than Democrats with the selection of Rep. Kirsten Gillibrand (D) as the state’s next senator -- a fact that could forestall primary peril for the centrist lawmaker.

More than half – 56 percent – of Republicans approved of the appointment, while just 27 percent disapproved. Meanwhile, slightly more Democrats approved than disapproved, by a 41-to-35 margin. Rep. Carolyn McCarthy (D) is reportedly gearing up for a primary challenge to Gillibrand in 2010, citing Gillibrand’s support from the National Rifle Association (NRA).

The party establishment is behind Gillibrand, but McCarthy is a popular congresswoman from Long Island, while Gillibrand is from upstate. The New York City area generally determines statewide races in the Democratic primary.

Upstaters approved of the appointment 55 percent-to-25 percent, while New Yorkers approved 41-34.

Gillibrand remains very unknown, though, with just 35 percent of voters forming an opinion of her. One-quarter of voters thought favorably of her, while 10 percent viewed her negatively.

Gillibrand's voting record has earned her a 100 percent rating with the National Rifle Association, and her pro-gun stance is at odds with the views of many politicians in New York City and other downstate areas.

Gillibrand said she was grew up a family of hunters, and that she had "always believed in protecting hunters' rights. ... It's a core value for our region and for our state."

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Will NRA-Backed Congresswoman Be New York State's Next U. S. Senator?

New York's governor appears ready to stun the liberal Democrat world by naming a a congresswoman supported the National Rifle Association to the U. S. Senate seat vacated by Hillary Clinton.

The New York Post reports Governor David Paterson will name Congresswoman Kirsten Gillibrand to the seat.

The report has stirred howls of protests from liberal Democrats; many of them had pushed for the selection of Caroline Kennedy, who abruptly withdrew from consideration on Wednesday.

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NRA Sponsors Palin Home Watch Party

WASILLA, Alaska (From Politico) ~ The town of Wasilla, which bristled under the glare of intense media scrutiny in the weeks after John McCain tapped Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin as his running mate, seems to be buzzing in anticipation of Election Day.

The National Rifle Association is sponsoring a results watching party here in Palin’s hometown featuring refreshments, booze, gun-safety classes and a rock band called Sarah and the Pit Bulls.

And the front page of the local paper, the Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman, on Sunday featured a five-column package on Palin resulting from its splurging to send a reporter on the campaign trail with her last week.

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NRA Cites Obama's Gun Control Record

The National Rifle Association is firing with both barrels at Barack Obama and running mate Joe Biden, devoting a large part of its official journal to attacks on the two Democrats over their stances on gun control and the Second Amendment.

In the November issue of America’s 1st Freedom magazine, NRA Executive Vice President Wayne LaPierre tells readers: “The next president, by filling inevitable vacancies on the U.S. Supreme Court, will determine the continued existence of our right to keep and bear arms…

“Get your friends, family and co-workers to vote. And vote for the only ticket that will uphold our Freedom. Vote for the Second Amendment. Vote for the McCain-Palin ticket!”

And NRA President John C. Sigler writes: “Taken together, Sens. Barack Obama and Joe Biden constitute the most anti-gun ticket ever to run for the White House…

“Barack Obama has proposed or supported anti-gun policies so radical and so far beyond the fringe that few politicians have dared to even mention them publicly.”

According to the magazine, Obama has: Supported banning hundreds of rifles and shotguns commonly used for hunting and sport shooting; Voted to allow “reckless” lawsuits designed to put the firearms industry out of business; Voted to allow the prosecution of citizens who use a firearm for self-defense in the home; Supported increasing taxes on firearms and ammunition by 500 percent; Voted to ban virtually all rifle ammunition commonly used for hunting and sport shooting; Became a member of the board of directors of the radically anti-gun Joyce Foundation; Said in 1996 that he supported a complete handgun ban in a questionnaire from the Independent Voters of Illinois; Proposed a ban on gun stores within five miles of any school or park; Stated his support for gun owner licensing and firearm registration; Voted for one-gun-a-month handgun purchase limits; Voted against confirming pro-Second Amendment justices to the U.S. Supreme Court.

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Rice's Left To Right Zig-Zag On Gun Control

Democrat Andrew Rice claims in a new television commercial for his U. S. Senate campaign that he's been given an "A" rating by the National Rifle Association, an evident attempt to cozy up to Oklahoma gun owners and 2nd Amendment advocates.

Problem is, Rice was not given an "A" by the NRA; he was given an "A-" (there's a huge difference in the two grades) and the NRA gave Republican incumbent Senator Jim Inhofe an "A+" and endorsed Inhofe, as did the Oklahoma Rifle Association.

In 2006, Rice drew an "F" rating from the Oklahoma Rifle Association in his State Senate campaign.

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Cleta Mitchell Battles Obama Over NRA Ads

Former Oklahoma House member Cleta (Deatherage) Mitchell is in the middle of a battle between Barack Obama and radio and television stations airing anti-Obama commercials placed by the National Rifle Association.

Mitchell, who as a Norman Democrat in the State House once chaired the powerful appropriations committee, moved to Washington to practice law years ago. She now represents the NRA and is on the organization's board of directors.

The Obama campaign has written radio and television stations in Pennsylvania and Ohio, pressing them to refuse to air the NRA commercial.

"This advertisement knowingly misleads your viewing audience about Senator Obama's position on the Second Amendment," says the letter from Obama general counsel Bob Bauer. "For the sake of both FCC licensing requirements and the public interest, your station should refuse to continue to air this advertisement."

The ad, "Hunter," compares Obama's anti-gun stances of the 1990s with his current, more pro-gun, stand, and was chided for inaccuracy in The Washington Post (which has long criticized and belittled the NRA), an item to which Bauer's letter refers.

NRA spokesman Andrew Arulanandam, who provided the letter, said it shows clear evidence that the ads are "hurting him," and stood by their substance. He also provided a copy of the NRA's own letter to the stations from Mitchell and a memo disputing The Post story. He also said the radio ad is running only in Pennsylvania at the moment.

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NRA: Obama Most Anti-Gun Candidate Ever

From NRA-ILA ~ In an appearance in Nevada, anti-gun presidential candidate Barack Obama told his followers: "I need you to go out and talk to your friends and talk to your neighbors. I want you to talk to them whether they are independent or whether they are Republican. I want you to argue with them and get in their face," he said.

"And if they tell you that, 'Well, we're not sure where he stands on guns.' I want you to say, 'He believes in the Second Amendment.'" (http://www.lasvegasnow.com/Global/story.asp?S=8999386&nav=168XYT17).

Barack Obama has gone beyond lying about his long anti-gun record. Now he is inciting his followers to lie for him and to be aggressive and confrontational with anyone who will not buy his lies.

The truth must scare Obama, and the truth is, Barack Obama is the most anti-gun candidate who has ever run on a major party ticket in American history. Don't buy Obama's lies. Or the lies repeated by his misguided followers.

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Palin Is Right On Second Amendment Issues

Second Amendment supporters are out quickly today in support of John McCain's selection of Alaska Governor Sarah Palin as his vice presidential running mate.

Palin, who grew up hunting moose with her father, is a lifetime member of the National Rifle Association and outspoken defender of the Second Amendment.

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NRA Goes After Obama, But Withholds Possible McCain Endorsement

The National Rifle Association announced plans today for a $40 million campaign to paint Barack Obama as an opponent to Second Amendment rights. But the effort, first reported by Politico, doesn't include -- at least as far as the NRA is specifiying publicly -- a firm pitch for the presumptive GOP nominee, John McCain.

The group is still withholding its endorsement, a vital seal of approval for the party's conservative base and a nod that matters to voters in rural swing states, such as New Hampshire and Virginia.

Andrew Arulanandam, the NRA's director of public affairs, said the organization will make an endorsement decision after the GOP convention.

"We’ll let you know when the time comes what we decide to do," he told On Call.

Arulanandam noted that in recent history the NRA has twice decided not to endorse the Republican nominee for president: George H.W. Bush in 1992 and Bob Dole in 1996.

McCain, who received a C+ rating from the NRA in 2004 (the group's most recent scorecard), has voted for legislation to close the gun show loophole, and his support for campaign finance reform also goes against the NRA's platform.

"If you look at his record he’s had a good record with us," Arulanandam said. "He’s voted against gun bans. He’s voted against ammunition bans. He’s voted against waiting periods."

Arulanandam said Obama's comment tentatively praising the Supreme Court's decision last week to strike down the District of Columbia's handgun ban belies his record of support for gun control measures.

"If you look at his voting record, he has spent a lifetime of voting against gun owners and hunters whether in the Illinois legislature or in the United States Senate," he said. "I don’t think there’s a dime’s worth of difference between Al Gore, John Kerry and Barack Obama when it comes to the gun issue. All have strong records of voting for gun control."

Arulanandam said that about half of the $40M will be used for literature, calls and advertising targeting the presumptive Democratic nominee.

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Chicago Gun Ban Challenged

From CBS, In Part ~ Chicago has a ban on handguns (similar to DC) and within minutes of today's U. S. Supreme Court ruling, the Illinois State Rifle Association began the court fight to get Chicago's ban overturned as well.

In Chicago, unless your gun was purchased before the ban went into effect in 1982, it is illegal to possess a handgun within city limits.

Only police officers, aldermen and a handful of others are exempt from the ban. While other firearms can be registered, under current law, handguns cannot be registered and are considered illegal.

But gun rights advocates hope to change that. The Illinois State Rifle Association filed a lawsuit with just that purpose in mind at 9:15 a.m.

"We want to overturn this ban. It's pretty onerous. It takes the right of self-defense away from every Chicago citizen," said Richard Pearson, director of the Illinois State Rifle Association.

The National Rifle Association also plans to file lawsuits in Chicago and several suburbs, as well as San Francisco, challenging handgun restrictions there based on Thursday's outcome.

Illinois State Sen. Kirk Dillard said at least one-third of the households in his hometown, Hinsdale, have guns, one of the highest percentages in the state. He hailed the Supreme Court decision, saying, "I think the ruling today is good news. The criminals have guns, but law-abiding citizens should not have their rights jeopardized."

As pleased as Dillard and other suburban Republicans in DuPage County were with the Supreme Court ruling, in Chicago it was a very different story among top democrats.

Mayor Daley, a proponent of strict gun control laws, wasn't happy about the Supreme Court ruling, calling it "a very frightening decision."

"If they think that's the answer ... they're greatly mistaken. Then why don't we do away with the court system and go back to the Old West, you have a gun and I have a gun, and we'll settle it in the streets if that's they're thinking.

"It is frightening that America loves guns," the mayor said, "and to me, I think this decision really places those who are rich and those are in power, they'll always feel safe. Those who do not have the power do not feel safe, and that's what they're saying. If you're elected officials, you feel safe. You cannot carry a gun into a federal building. You cannot carry a gun into a federal court. So they're setting themselves aside, and really, they're saying to the rest of America that the answer to all the constitutional issues is that we can carry guns. And I just don't understand how they came to this thinking."

Gov. Rod Blagojevich said, "the decision of Supreme Court today is very scary and it's a big blow to those of us who believe in common sense gun laws … so they ain't always right and on this case, they're wrong again."

Some experts said the Supreme Court left room for local handgun controls in Chicago and suburbs such as Morton Grove and Oak Park, to survive, but only after a significant rewrite.

Alan Gottlieb, of the Second Amendment Foundation in the state of Washington, told reporters that Chicago's handgun ban has failed to stop violent crime. That has been one of the mantras of the gun lobby.

But a supporter of Chicago's law responded that facts are stubborn things, noting that murder and other gun violence here are far lower than a decade ago, claiming Mayor Daley's stringent gun enforcement deserves much credit.

Maria Ramirez couldn't agree more. She wears her son's picture close to her heart. It's all she has of him; 16-year old Matthew Michael Ramirez died in 2006 after someone pulled a trigger. "I don't want another mother to wake up like I do...look in son's bed, praying it's a bad dream," Ramirez said. "These guns that are gotten legally in the first place end up becoming illegal on the streets."

Pearson said he believes crime only rises with gun laws like Chicago's "because (the) criminal element knows people don't have a firearm for self defense."

That's one reason he was prepared to fight for an individual's Second Amendment rights. "Sure, I think it's an uphill battle … freedom always is." Pearson predicted that the fight that began with the filing of a lawsuit against Mayor Daley and the city at 9:15 a.m. Thursday would take between 18 months and two years to resolve. He said that if the Illinois State Rifle Association loses its lawsuit, it would appeal all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court.

But Chicago's Corporation Counsel Mara Georges said the city shouldn't have to defend its gun law, because the Supreme Court's ruling doesn't apply here. "Our ordinance continues to be valid law. The Supreme Court did not say that the Second Amendment right to bear arms extends to state and local governments and in fact, there's Supreme Court precedent that it does not."

The basic issue for the justices was whether the amendment protects an individual's right to own guns no matter what, or whether that right is somehow tied to service in a state militia.

Justice Antonin Scalia, writing for four colleagues, said the Constitution does not permit "the absolute prohibition of handguns held and used for self-defense in the home."

In dissent, Justice John Paul Stevens wrote that the majority "would have us believe that over 200 years ago, the Framers made a choice to limit the tools available to elected officials wishing to regulate civilian uses of weapons." He said such evidence "is nowhere to be found."

Gun rights supporters hailed the decision. "I consider this the opening salvo in a step-by-step process of providing relief for law-abiding Americans everywhere that have been deprived of this freedom," said Wayne LaPierre, executive vice president of the National Rifle Association.

Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., a leading gun control advocate in Congress, criticized the ruling. "I believe the people of this great country will be less safe because of it," she said.

With an epidemic of gun violence in Chicago this year, Daley and other officials and activists have been lobbying for stricter state gun laws. But some defenders of gun rights say just the opposite of Mayor Daley, arguing instead in favor of the theories of economist John Lott, now of the University of Maryland. The onetime University of Chicago professor argued in his 1998 volume, More Guns, Less Crime, for a statistical correlation between laws allowing people to carry concealed handguns and a drop in crime rates.

Lott theorized the crime rate dropped because criminals were deterred by the possibility of confronting an armed victim. Lott also claimed the Chicago gun ban was to blame for an increase in crime.

Critics of Chicago's gun ordinance also say the law already aims to keep guns out of the hands of criminals, and that law-abiding citizens should be allowed to possess any firearm they desire.

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