By Kevin Starrett
When Gordon Smith ran for US Senate the first time we already had suspicions that he could not be trusted.
Working for Gun Owners of America at the time, (prior to the formation of OFF) I asked Smith to respond to a simple survey so gun owners could have an idea of what his views on gun ownership were.
Smith refused.
At the time, we warned gun owners to be wary of Smith, and quite frankly a lot of gun owners were angry at us, claiming that Smith was a friend to gun owners and we should not alienate him.
Smith lost his first race for US Senate, but won on his second attempt and we have been saddled with him ever since.
As it turns out, all our suspicions were correct. Smith has become something of a poster child for gun control in the Senate, in spite of large campaign utions from NRA.
Smith has been in favor of numerous anti-gun plans including the reauthorization of Bill Clinton’s illegal and unconstitutional ban on modern firearms and ammunition feeding devices. You can hear Smith explain his support for this attack in your rights here.
But Smith’s nothing if not the consummate politician. Which means he only rarely has a passing acquaintance with the truth.
When the Senate was debating S 397, Smith voted in favor of amendments that attacked gun owners’ rights.(Such as a requirement to purchase a trigger lock with every new handgun.) But when it came time to vote on the bill itself, which contained protections for gun makers and dealers, Smith was not available. Out to lunch. Moved, left no forwarding address.
So it was rather startling to receive this unsolicited letter from Smith taking credit for the passage of the bill and claiming he opposed the anti-gun amendments.
Note, he doesn’t actually say he “voted for” the bill, but the implication there is clear. However, he does say he “worked to defeat all anti-gun amendments.” We bumpkins have a word for that. We call it a lie.