Date: Mon, 18 Nov 1996 23:38:04 -0500 (EST)
From: NRA Alerts <[a--er--s] at [nra.org]>
To: Multiple recipients of list <[r k ba alert] at [mainstream.net]>
Subject: FAXALERT: NRA Gains Recognition by United Nations
NRA-ILA FAX ALERT
11250 Waples Mill Road * Fairfax, VA 22030
Phone: 1-800-392-8683 * Fax: 703-267-3918 * [G--OO--S] at [NRA.org]
Vol. 3, No. 49 11/15/96
NRA GAINS RECOGNITION BY UNITED NATIONS
NRA's application for recognition by the United Nations as a
non-governmental organization (NGO) was approved this week, giving gun
owners a strong voice in the UN's debate over global "gun control."
As one of over 2,000 NGOs representing everyone from religious groups
to the banking industry, NRA will have access to UN meetings closed to
the general public, and we will be able to distribute informational
materials to participants in UN activities. What's more, NRA's status
as an NGO will allow us to monitor more closely the internal UN debate
over firearms issues and report back to our members. As is usually
the case, NRA's role as an NGO has been misrepresented in some
circles, including the media, which can't seem to grasp why our
Association would have any interest in UN efforts to regulate
firearms. The fact of the matter is that the role NRA will play
within the UN as an NGO will be almost identical to the role our
registered lobbyists play everyday on Capitol Hill and in state
capitols across the nation - educating and informing lawmakers of the
facts behind the debate and working to protect the interests of our
members. In the past, some members of the UN community have
demonstrated an overt bias against firearms and firearms owners. Now,
with the UN's doors open to the world's foremost defender of firearms
freedoms, we will get an early warning of anti-gun initiatives that
pose a threat to the Second Amendment. After all, if we don't monitor
what governments such as Japan and Canada are up to in the UN, we
won't be able to do our job -- to inform our members, our friends in
Congress and the American people.
WASHINGTON POST OR HCI PRESS RELEASE?: It's getting harder and harder
to distinguish The Washington Post from the press releases of Handgun
Control Inc. This week, the Post ran an editorial claiming NRA and
gun owners had suffered a major setback in the 1996 elections, and
cited a handful of races where pro-gunners were defeated by anti-gun
opponents. In addition to virtually ignoring our success in roughly
82% of the 10,000 races in which we were involved, the editors cited
two particular defeats as a sign of our weakening political power -
those of U.S. House candidate Vince Snowbarger (R) in Kansas and
U.S. Senate candidate Wayne Allard (R) in Colorado. The only problem
is that both Mr. Snowbarger and Mr. Allard defeated their anti-gun
opponents and will be members of the 105th Congress. In a strange
coincidence, HCI made the same mistake in its post- election press
release. While we weren't surprised to see HCI's fingerprints on a
Post editorial, we were surprised that the Post's editors would run
with their claims without first checking the facts.
BOXER READYING HER ANTI-GUN AGENDA: Unfortunately, gun owners can
expect to hear a lot from anti-gun Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.)
during the 105th Congress. Boxer, who is up for reelection in 1998,
has been targeted for defeat by the GOP, and is anticipating the 98
race to be the "toughest of [her] life." In preparation for what
promises to be a nationally-watched race, Sen. Boxer is reportedly
developing an extensive legislative agenda for the next Congress, with
her ban on so-called "junk guns" taking center stage.
LEAVING RENO?: Rumors continue to abound regarding the fate of
Attorney General Janet Reno. A story in Thursday's edition (11/14) of
The New York Times quotes an unnamed White House source as saying
Ms. Reno is "twisting in the wind," and that President Clinton and his
staff are unhappy with her leadership of the Department of Justice.
For his part, the president has been conspicuously silent on the
matter. Gun owners should not get their hopes up for a less anti-gun
replacement for Attorney General Reno, as the top candidates for the
job are all anti-gun, including the Republican governor of
Massachusetts, William Weld. Meanwhile, in other cabinet news, one of
the names being mentioned for another top post in the next Clinton
Administration is that of former New Jersey governor Jim Florio, who
helped push legislation through in his state that served as a model
for the Clinton gun ban.
ABSENTEE BALLOTS PUT METCALF AND SMITH BACK IN THE HOUSE: Two NRA-PVF
endorsed lawmakers from Washington state who were declared losers on
election night now look like they will be returning to Capitol Hill
after all. Freshmen Representatives Jack Metcalf (R) and Linda Smith
(R) have overtaken their opponents on the strength of their showings
among the state's absentee voters. Metcalf, who trailed his opponent
Kevin Quigley by 2,300 votes on Nov. 5, now leads in that race by
1,500 votes. Smith leads her opponent, Brian Baird, by 1,058 votes.
Both Metcalf and Smith earned "A" ratings from NRA-PVF and voted to
repeal the Clinton gun ban in March.
DORNAN CLINGS TO HOUSE SEAT: Although Election Day was over one week
ago, many races around the country are still up in the air at this
time. In California's 46th Congressional District, NRA-PVF endorsed
candidate Rep. Bob Dornan (R) is still alive despite earlier media
reports to the contrary. At last count, Dornan trailed his opponent
Loretta Sanchez (D) by only 765 votes, with 1,200 absentee ballots
still uncounted. In addition to the absentee ballots, between 1,500
and 3,000 "provisional" ballots - those cast by voters whose names did
not appear on registration lists - have not yet been tallied. All
absentee ballots should be counted by Nov. 15, while the provisional
ballots should be completed by Nov. 22. We'll keep you posted!
THE ALMOST FINAL TALLY: While several races remain unresolved, if the
current trend holds, Democrats will pick up 8 seats in the U.S. House
of Representatives, while Republicans will increase their majority in
the Senate by two votes.
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This information is provided as a service of the National Rifle
Association Institute for Legislative Action, Fairfax, VA.
This and other information on the Second Amendment and the NRA is
available at: http://WWW.NRA.Org