We have seen the first anti-gun bills of the 2018 legislative session. You can see them here.
As always we will continue to update this list as more gun control bills are added.
The first is a “Senate Joint Memorial” by Peter Courtney calling on the US Congress to ban or regulate modern firearms as well as “devices” that allow firearms to shoot more rapidly. As you know, these devices include shoe laces which the ATF as determined are actually machine guns. (No, this is not a joke.)
The second, HB 4145, requested by Kate Brown, vastly expands the category of people who will be prohibited from owning firearms. We will monitor these and any new bills and keep you informed of their progress.
The Oregon Firearms Federation urges a “no” vote on Measure 101.
You might be wondering why OFF would take a position on a tax measure. Bear with us and we’ll explain.
No matter what your personal feelings are about a liberal policy that fines you if you don’t have health insurance and taxes you if you do, no matter if you can afford to add an “assessment ” to your already staggering health insurance premiums, no matter if you are willing to overlook a misleading ballot title and an election date that was engineered by liberals in Salem to undermine the voting process, this measure will have a profound effect on your gun rights in 2018 and beyond.
Here is why.
While the “short” session held in even numbered years was sold to us as simply a way to deal with urgent budget issues, it is anything but. There are no limits to the issues, no matter how complex, that can be voted on in short sessions.
We have seen over and over how votes are taken on issues that have not been adequately studied and examined. Measures are rushed through the legislature with little opportunity for public input and little time for legislators to fully understand the ramification of their votes.
The anti-gun majority in Salem has made no secret of their intention to continue their assaults on your gun rights, and thanks to out of state billionaires, they have the votes to do it.
Pro liberty forces are outspent 10-1 by money coming from New York anti-gun extremist, Mike Bloomberg. That kind of money buys a lot of incompetence, and a lot of anti-gun votes. (It’s interesting to note that local anti-gun groups contribute only tiny amounts of money to local candidates demonstrating how weak their grass roots actually are.)
So what does all this have to do with a tax on health insurance? Simple. The same anti-gun leftists who rammed through bills to make it a crime to safeguard a firearm for a friend (SB 941) and to allow confiscations of firearms with no accusation of a crime and no due process (SB 719) are the ones who are pushing for taxes on one of your most expensive needs, health insurance.
They want this money to fund their pet projects, even though over and over we have seen them squander millions through ineptitude and cronyism and a clear inability to deal with any matter concerning health care. If they are able to keep this windfall they will have very little to occupy their time except more gun control.
“If voters affirm the funding plan, though, Williamson has other priorities that she may have time to press, including making another push for increased restrictions on gun ownership.
Oregon Gov. Kate Brown, a fellow Democrat, renewed her support for further restricting gun ownership in the wake of the October shooting at a country music festival in Las Vegas.” Portland Tribune Oct 31 2017
As you know, they are both recipients of massive donations from Mike Bloomberg and are committed to doing his bidding. So you can see, if the Democrats get to keep this money, they will have little to keep them busy except to work on additional attacks on your rights.
We strongly urge you to keep them busy with other things and vote “no” on Measure 101.
OFF wishes you and yours a happy and free New Year and thanks you for your support fighting for freedom.
Today the “National Reciprocity Act” passed the US House on a 231-198 vote.
While national reciprocity would be a good thing for gun owners, and override Oregon’s ridiculous refusal to recognize a single other state’s concealed handgun license, the bill was coupled with terrible legislation dubbed “Fix NICS”.
Unfortunately “Fix NICS” vastly expands the flawed and failed Brady background check law and will no doubt ensnare many more people who will be denied their right to purchase a firearm as a result offaulty background checks.
“Fix NICS” was supported by anti-gun organizations as well as NRA and the National Shooting Sports Foundation, always a troubling alliance.
Ultimately no amount of legislation is going tochange the fact that human error is responsible for the mess that the background check system is.
Now many people who are in no way dangerous or “criminal” are going to be added to the list of prohibited people. Nothing in the legislation provides any recourse for persons falsely denied.
The bill faces a very uncertain future in the Senate where it is quite possible that the reciprocity language could be stripped out leaving us with only more gun control.
It that happens, when the bill goes back to the House, the supporters of reciprocity will have a hard time opposing the new gun control they voted for.
As you no doubt know, pro-gun Republican Senator Jeff Kruse was recently stripped of all his committee assignments by anti-gun Democrat Senate President Peter Courtney.
For those who may not be too familiar with how our legislature operates, this punishment essentially makes Kruse incapable of having any influence on legislation, a job voters in his district have reelected him numerous times to do.
The explanation for this unprecedented, and possibly career ending, punishment was an allegation by Democrat Senator Sara Gelser that Kruse had engaged in sexual harassment against her by what has been described as “non-sexual inappropriate touching.” Oh, yeah, andKruse also smokes in his office.
After this story started making the rounds, we posted a Facebook post that acknowledged that yes indeed, Kruse has smoked in his office. We have actually seen this transgression.
We also commented that if (as of now totally unproven) allegations that he was groping Sara Gelser were true, he might need an eye test. On Tuesday October 24th, we deleted that post after considering how it easily it could be construed to be an attack on Gelser’s appearance and how that was hardly the point.Soon after, there were several media stories commenting on that post and stating how it simply proved that there is an ingrained culture of sexual harassment in Salem, and that we were essentially guilty of it ourselves.
So, now, (since the media considers our commentary newsworthy) we’d like to clarify and expand on those remarks.
First, it’s important to note that Gelser claims that Kruse’s “inappropriate ” touching has been going on, literally, for years. But as far as we can tell, Gelser chose to keep this from the public until she climbed on the Hollywood Hashtag bandwagon following the revelations that a powerful, millionaire, Democrat donor and movie producer was abusing, harassing and allegedly raping young and aspiring starlets.
That, of course, would be Harvey Weinstein, a man who has publicly stated that he HATES guns and promised to singlehandedly “take down” the NRA. Oh, and he also produced such anti-gun classics as“Kill Bill.” As stated, Weinstein is a big donor to Democrats. In the past he sent money to Oregon Democrats.
None of Weinstein’s crimes and disgusting behavior were any secret in Hollywood. They were, of course, kept secret from the public by the mainstream, liberal dominated, media who also knew about his actions but spiked stories, because, well that’s what the left does for each other.
After the revelations were made public, numerous actresses who had been assaulted or otherwise abused by Weinstein started a Twitter campaign to let the world know what they all knew, or had experienced themselves, and kept silent about for years. It was then, and only then, that Gelser decided to join the chorus with her own Tweet. The implication was clear. Although at first she would not name names, she soon made it known that is was Kruse she was accusing.
As far as we can tell, most, or at least many, of the transgressions Gelser has accused Kruse of have taken place on the Senate Floor. It is hard to imagine a more public, populated and videotaped place on Earth.Not only can anyone watch the proceedings on any computer, but the galleries above the chamber provide a bird’s eye view for any member of the public who choses to go there.
In this forum, surrounded by Senators, staff, reporters, police, the public and constant video surveillance, is where Kruse’s alleged outrageous behavior took place….for years. Of course, sitting at the front of this august chamber, high above the floor, with possibly the best view of all, stands the man who stripped Kruse of his committee assignments, Senate President Peter Courtney, who like so many others within spitting distance of the accused…saw nothing, for years. It’s all rather remarkable.
Now in the wake of Gelser’s accusations, the media is publishing quotes from other women (many unnamed) who work in the Capitol in one capacity or another. They include legislators and lobbyists.There is common agreement that there is a pervasive atmosphere of “good old boy” sexual harassment and bad behavior. It’s everywhere, and women there have been too afraid of a negative impact on their careers to talk about it before.
Clearly, politics under the dome in Salem is a damn hostile place for a woman. It’s a wonder they are willing to work there at all given how little opportunity they have.
So it really is hard to understand how we have a female governor, our last two Secretaries of State have been women and the Speaker of the House is a woman.
Almost 30% of all Senators are women. 35% of Democrat Senators are women. 22 of 60 House reps (or over 36 %) are women .
Over 54% of Democrat House members are women. (19 of 35)
As expected, Governor Brown issued a statement about inappropriate touching saying it was “unacceptable.”
Kate apparently does not hold herself to the same standard. We have it on good authority that Kate is not very close to Sheriff Glenn Palmer.
Kate Brown Getting Too Close to Sheriff Glenn PalmerKate Brown Inappropriately Touching Sheriff Glenn Palmer
Women hold positions of enormous power in Oregon, and Sara Gelser is one of them.
Gelser is no shrinking violet. She is an affluent, powerful member of the Senate who has no qualms about using slash and burn campaign tactics, including lying about her opponents supporters to get elected. She is a member of the ruling party. And yet..
Gelser alleges that Kruse’s inappropriate behavior began in 2011. That is 5 years before she made any official complaint. 5 lonely years of hell. But Gelser did not even get elected to the Senate until 2015. She and Kruse never served in the House together. When she was elected to the House for the first time, Kruse had already moved onto the Senate.So apparently, Kruse was making his way over to the House to touch her for years. And no one noticed that either.
House Speaker Tina Kotek’s legislative biography says “In 2013, Tina became the first openly lesbian speaker of any state house in the nation.”So Gelser served in the House under a lesbian woman for two years without mentioning to this powerful and very liberal person that a conservative Senator was coming over to their chamber to harass her.
(If you have any doubts about Kotek’s power and her willingness to exercise it, try being a pro-gun House Democrat. Sooner or later you will be neutered and groveling and voting for bills you oppose lest you face her wrath.)
During the years Jeff Kruse forced his unwanted attentions on her, Gelser either suffered in silence or, after 5 years, quietly asked others to intercede on her part. She never loudly and publicly rebuked him. She never slapped him, pushed him away or told him to leave his hands off her.
Former Democrat Senator Jackie Dingfelder also claims that Kruse “placed his hand on her back in an inappropriate way during a committee hearing in 2011 or 2012.” But Dingfelder said “…when Kruse placed his hand on her back she was clear with him that his touching was unwanted. She confronted Kruse then and there. ‘I said, ‘Jeff, don’t do that. That’s inappropriate. Don’t ever do that again.’ And he never did,’ she said.”
Apparently, this is the kind of complex verbal judo Gelser is incapable of.
Why?
Kruse has no power over her. He is not her boss, he is not her superior. He is in the minority party and, in many cases his vote, as a conservative, does not even matter. And where were all the male Democrat Senators while this unacceptable behavior was taking place? Surely such champions of women’s rights as Michel Dembrow and Floyd Prozanski would have leapt to her defense even if she was too intimated to do it herself, there on the Senate floor under the watchful eyes of thousands. Surely Mark Haas or Rod Monroe would have never stood for that. Where was Lew Fredrick and James Manning? Where the hell was “eye in the sky” Peter Courtney? This was going on for years. And if Gelser’s allegations are true, there were no real Democrat men in the House in the time she served there either.
Can anyone imagine what would happen to any man who inappropriately put his hands on Democrat Senator Betsy Johnson? He’d quickly find a walking cane coming down on his head. And Betsy doesn’t get around quite as fast as Sara these days.
So here’s the thing. There are three possibilities.
1) Jeff Kruse did what he is accused and no one except Gelser and Ginny Burdick noticed. If so he should change his name to Houdini.
2) Lots of people knew what he was doing but it was never caught on video and no one, except Burdick, (if you believe her) stepped up and confronted him.
3) Gelser is a disingenuous and opportunistic fabricator with a political agenda.
If it was number 2, then the entire DemocratCaucus is no better than all the Hollywood types who went along to get along with the Weinstein machine. And they are all cowards.
But no matter what, it is still an outrage for Gelser to attempt to associate whatever she alleges Kruse did with the fate of countless dewey eyed ingenues who just got off the bus from Peoria and fell into the clutches of the pig Weinstein in hopes of scoring a walk-on part.
Gelser is not some kid whose dreams of being on the big screen let her discard her ethics and morals or some innocent aspiring starlet who found herself locked in a hotel room with a raping dirtbag.
She is an aggressive, accomplished, powerful woman who claims to have been the “victim” of someone who had NO power over her…for years.
She is part of the cabal of anti-gun feminists who would much rather perpetuate the entrepreneurial victimhood of women than to ever encourage them to stand up for themselves and have the means to do it. She has advanced her own career while voting to make sure that the most vulnerable among us are denied the right to protect themselves and she has timed her accusations to deflect the reality that a massive donor to the causes she supports has finally been exposed to the public in spite of years of efforts by the media to protect him.
It’s understandable that the mainstream media would use our comments to imply thatwe are part of some mass movement to denigrate and belittle women. A quick review of our campaign contributions will make clear that we have spent thousands to support female candidates.For Gelser to imply that she is in the same boat as some kid with stars in her eyes who is abused by powerful man who controls her future is absurd.
When a Republican House Rep was discovered to have taken advantage of a young female subordinate, he was rightfully driven from office. We strongly supported that action. Women (and men who are harassedby powerful women…see “Amanda Marshall”)should never be subject to any kind of improper behavior by someone with power over them.
Following the disclosure that “bump fire” stocks may have been used by the killer in the Las Vegas massacre, the NRA said :
“Despite the fact that the Obama administration approved the sale of bump fire stocks on at least two occasions, the National Rifle Association is calling on the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (BATFE) to immediately review whether these devices comply with federal law.”
Of course they comply with Federal law but the NRA lost no time jumping on board the gun control band wagon to demand that your rights be further eroded.
It would be easy to say that these stocks are not very useful, that it is very difficult to use them with any accuracy and they largely turn money into noise. But that’s not the point. Rest assured, the demands by the gun banners will not stop there, and now, once again, the NRA is giving comfort to the enemy in a display of ignorance and cowardice.
The fact is that banning these devices will have zero effect on anyone’s safety. For one thing, almost the same amount of carnage could have been created without them. Furthermore, with a bit of practice, a shooter can “bump fire” a rifle with NO modifications.
In fact, in a 2004 letter from Sterling Nixon, chief of BATF’s Firearms Technology Branch, Nixon determined that a shoelace was a machine gun. Yes a shoelace.
The letter said:
” In 1996,FTB examined and classified a 14 inch long shoestring with a loop at each end. The string was attached to the cocking handle of a semi-automatic rifle and was looped around the trigger and attached to the shooter’s finger. The device caused the weaponto fire repeatedly until finger pressure was released from the string. Because this item was designed and intended to convert a semi-automatic rifle into a machine gun, FTB determined that is was a machinegun as defined in 26 U.S.C. 5845 (b)”
They won’t stop at stocks.
The killer could not have used bump fire stocks if he did not use rifles. Why not ban them?
Rest assured it’s not just novelty accessories the gun grabbers, with the help of the NRA, are after.
Now is not the time to start caving.The NRA’s almost immediate capitulation was to be expected. In the coming days and months, there will be no end toefforts to ban modern firearms and standard magazines and we don’t expect to have much help from the people who declared that no one should have the ability to protect themselves in places that serve alcohol… after the bloody “Pulse” massacre. The same people who declared that nobody, no teacher, no school staff, no parent should be allowed to be armed in a school except uniformed police.
The endless and predictable comments about nobody “needing” this firearm or that accessory must not blind us to the fact that our rights are our rights and need no explanation or justification.
If you are an NRA member, now would be a good time to tell them plainly that you are not going to accept them crawling into bed with the gun grabbers.
On another note, today was the deadline to turn in signatures to refer SB 719, the Brian Boquist gun confiscation bill, to the ballot. Unfortunately the effort fell short.
In a press release, the committee to repeal SB 719 stated :
“It wasn’t for lack of support.We just simply did not have enough time.I blame Governor Kate Brown for that,” said Chief Petitioner Mike Nearman, who is also a State Representative from House District 23.
According to Article IV of the Oregon Constitution, petitioners have 90 days from the end of the Legislative Session in which the bill was passed, which was July 7, 2017.However, they cannot begin to gather signatures until the Governor signs the bill, which was not until August 15, 2017.
“The foot-dragging by Governor Brown cost us 39 of our 90 days.To make matters worse, she signed the bill on the Friday before the eclipse, so that cost us an extra three days.There was no reason to do this other than to keep us from gathering signatures and keep this issue from a vote of the people,” said State Representative Bill Post of House District 25, also a Chief Petitioner.”
Once again, the committee got no help from the NRA who refused to even acknowledge the effort.
It would have cost the NRA nothing to alert their members about this effort and direct them to the committee’s website, as Gun Owners of America did. But, as always, the NRA would rather “work with” gun grabbers than confront them. Thanks to everyone who signed a petition and rest assured that battle is not over.
We are in for a long, tough fight. We have seen how little we can expect from NRA. If you want to help us stand up to the coming attacks, please consider supporting our efforts. You can contribute here. Thank you.
As you know, the Governor has signed the Boquist/Burdick gun confiscation bill. What you might not know is how few of our friends in law enforcement are even aware of it.
When the courts begin ordering the seizure of guns from people who have committed no crime, things are going to get real ugly in Oregon. So it’s time to go to work.
Rest assured, as the effort begins to repeal this vicious attack on our rights, New York billionaires will be pumping a fortune into our state to continue the lies that the supporters of this bill told to pass it. This will NOT be an easy fight but you can do something about it. And you can start now.
Please visit http://www.repeal719.com/right now to download petitions to refer this bill to the voters. Please share this link with everyone you know who believes in liberty and due process, especially our friends in the rural parts of the state. Then… start gathering signatures. As many as you can.
The Repeal 719 website had both single signer sheets and 10 signature sheets if you are willing to gather other signatures. And why wouldn’t you be? These are your guns.
The website has everything you need to get going on this, including info on how to gather signatures and the reasons this bill is so dangerous.
Bring them to your gun club and share them with your friends.We have, and the response has been great.
This is the first part of the fight, a part you can play a major role in.After the referral is on the ballot, we will face a very expensive battle in a campaign against anti-gun billionaires but now we need SIGNATURES. We are NOT expecting any help from the National Gun Lobby. Please do your part.
The battle to overturn Brian Boquist’s gun confiscation law, SB 719, has begun.
A ballot referendum has been filed and your help is critically important.
We will provide updates with website information as it becomes available but for now please see the link on Bill Post’s website to get started fighting back against this outrageous attack on our rights and and common sense.
On August 16th, Kate Brown signed SB 719 into law.
This bill, sponsored by Senators Brian Boquist and Ginny Burdick, allows the police to confiscate firearms from people who have been neither convicted of, nor accused of a crime. These confiscations will be based solely on ex parte testimony of people who need have no mental health credentials but can claim that another person is a threat to themselves or others.
Testimony from mental health professionals may NOT be considered. The respondent will receive no notice of this action and no opportunity to defend himself against the order until after his firearms have been confiscated.
The bill offers no help for people who are suicidal and no protection for people living with someone who is genuinely dangerous.
You may lose your guns if you have ever had a DUI or if you have legally purchased a firearm in the last 6 months.
Today the Oregon House approved one of the most dangerous, hateful and mean spirited pieces of legislation ever introduced.
SB 719 A, the product of Republican Senator Brian Boquist’s collusion with the most militant anti-gunners in the legislature, will now allow the police to come to your home and confiscate your firearms and “deadly weapons” with no accusation or conviction of a crime.
There is NO question this bill will cost people’s lives.
Now a vindictive family or household member has the power to have your rights and property stolen from you simply because they chose to make an accusation against you.
“Dangerous” people will not be taken into custody.Self destructive people will receive no help.
The people who passed SB 719A know this. They don’t care about people’s well being. They only care about seizing as many firearms as possible.
The only Democrats to vote “no” were Jeff Barker, Brian Clem and Brad Witt. Deborah Boone was absent.
This is truly a disgraceful day in Oregon’s history.
Every Republican member of the House voted against this travesty.
The bill now goes to the Governor for her certain signature.
Senate Bill 719, Brian Boquist’s gun confiscation bill, is scheduled for a vote on the House floor tomorrow.
This is an incredibly dangerous bill that serves no purpose except to attack the gun owners that Oregon’s Democrats and Republican Senator Brian Boquist hate so much.
While providing no help for a troubled person and no protection for a family member of a dangerous person, the bill does allow the police to come to your home and demand that you surrender every firearm and knife in your house.
In what can only be described as the product of twisted minds, the bill allows people who are supposedly violent or suicidal to take 24 hours to turn their property over to the police, a gun dealer or a “third party.” For people who are truly suicidal or violent that’s a long time.
These supposedly “dangerous” people are not arrested, charged with a crime or taken into custody. They are free to hurt themselves or others. They have not lost their freedom to do violence, they have only been humiliated and robbed by the state.
This does not seem to be a recipe for domestic tranquility. This is a recipe for disaster.
No consideration has been given to what happens if the “third party” someone attempts to transfer to is delayed by OSP, something that happens with the regularity of a metronome.
A truly suicidal person now will be in the position to allow the cops who arrive to confiscate his property to provide a “suicide by cop.”
What do you have to do to be subject to one of these confiscation orders?
Well, you and your whole household can lose the right to own kitchen knives because in the last 180 days you bought or “attempted to buy” a firearm or “deadly weapon.”
Under this bill you can lose your gun rights if you have ever had a DUI.
This bill is pure evil.
Please use this link to take action and reach all members of the Oregon House.
Senate Bill 719, Brian Boquist’s gun confiscation bill, has been passed out of the House Rules Committee with NO public hearing and virtually NO notice. We expect this bill to be on the House floor on Wedesday.
This mean spirited and vindictive bill is designed to punish gun owners, pit family members against each other and promote conflict and hatred. All in the name of “compassion” of course.
If passed, this bill will allow a “family member,” who may not have seen you in decades, to demand that your rights and your property be confiscated by the police. This “family member” need have no credentials in mental health. The Judge who imposes this order against you will be, at best, trained in law, NOT mental health. Remember, there are “judges” in Oregon who believe even cop’s guns should be “put on a barge and dropped in the ocean.”
The bill also allows any police officer to ask the court to take your rights and property.
Under SB 719, you won’t even know there is a court order against you until the police arrive to confiscate your firearms. But it gets even worse.
Not only will they confiscate YOUR firearms, they will have to confiscate the firearms of every member of your household. Think that’s crazy? They will also have to confiscate every single knife in your house.
What do you have to do to be subject to one of these confiscation orders?
Well, you and your whole household can lose the right to own kitchen knives because in the last 180 days you bought or attempted to buy a firearm or “deadly weapon.”
You DON’T have to have committed a crime. You DON’T have to be suicidal. You DON’T have to have hurt anyone.
There is not one single word in the bill that seeks to get help for people who actually are in a mental health crisis. In fact, the Democrats on the committee refused to even discuss an amendment that would have addressed that.
Make no mistake, this bill is an expression of pure hatred for gun owners. The fact that one of its sponsors, Senator Brian Boquist, is a Republican who has always courted gun owner’s votes makes it all the more appalling. Under this bill you can lose your gun rights if you have ever had a DUI. (Of course, you don’t lose your car.)
If you contest the court’s order, they may NOT consider any “mental health diagnosis.” So if a mental health professional has concluded you are not mentally ill, the court may not consider that! The bill is the personification of insanity.
The proponents of this bill have blatantly lied about its purpose and its ramifications.
We hate to interrupt the Independence Day celebration, but if we don’t stop this awful bill, we will have taken another step down the road to serfdom.
Even if you have taken action before we need you to double down on your efforts to let the House members know how outrageous, counterproductive, and dangerous this bill is.
Please use this link to take action and reach all members of the Oregon House.
The Oregon State Police have confirmed that they are “delaying” all sales of “Shockwave” and “Tac-14” shotguns firearms.
It appears this new policy started on Friday. They said they are awaiting a decision from the Department of Justice on whether these firearms are “legal” under Oregon law.
“a shotgun having one or more barrels less than 18 inches in length and any weapon made from a shotgun if the weapon has an overall length of less than 26 inches.”
However, Oregon law does not define what a “shotgun” is.
Under Federal law, these are not shotguns at all since they are not designed to be fired from the shoulder. These firearms are not considered to have been “made from a shotgun” either since they come from the factory configured with no stock.
While Oregon law prohibit shotguns with barrels shorter than 18 inches, it provides for an “affirmative defense” if the shotgun
“was registered as required under federal law.”
Of course, these guns cannot be “registered” under Federal law because they are not regulated under the NFA.
As you may know, many of these guns have already been transferred with OSP approval. OSP has no word on what will happen to people who bought them legally prior to this new policy.
OSP has promised to provide a copy of whatever determination the Department of Justice makes on these guns. If we receive it we will provide it.
You know in any confrontation, the most important thing to do is watch your opponent’s hands. Their words can’t hurt you, their actions can.
Although the Democrats in the Oregon Legislature announced that the close of the session was “imminent” at the end of May, there is no sign that they will be going home before the Constitutionally mandated end date of July 10.
But as we told you, that announcement allowed both House and Senate Committees to schedule action on bills with virtually no notice.
This session, the big sticking point has been, of course, the Democrats desire to jack up taxes, which they could not do legally without some Republican support. It was this leverage that might have allowed the Republicans to impede the passage of the anti-gun bills that are still alive in the legislature.
The Democrats have found creative ways to pass tax increases without the legally required “super-majority” and the Republicans have started caving in to tax increases they could have stopped.
In the House, Republican Sal Esquivel joined the Democrats to pass HB 2391A, a bill to tax health insurance of all things. When the bill went to the Senate, Republicans Jackie Winters, Fred Girod and Republican leader Ted Ferrioli joined the Democrats and sent the bill to the governor.
These capitulations, and the announced intention of the Democrats not to seek new corporate taxes (which is not a sure thing while they are still in Salem) may very well mean the Democrats can turn their attention to other mischief.
Many of you have contacted OFF asking what the current status of anti-gun bills in Salem are.
Currently, there are two anti-gun bills still in play in Salem. SB 719, the Boquist/Burdick gun confiscation bill, and SB 1065, the Prozanski, Burdick, Williamson omnibus anti-gun bill.
Both of these bills are sitting in committees that do not have deadlines for completing their work, which means they can still take action to pass these gun grabbing bills.
As you may know, anti-gun extremist, billionaire Mike Bloomberg, is once again pouring money into the state to run ads promoting the anti-gun bills. You may have heard Multnomah County Sheriff (and Bloomberg lackey) Mike Reese pushing Bloomberg’s agenda on the air. (Reese has become a reliable mouthpiece for the anti-gun left.)
There is still plenty of time for the committees holding these bills, and the entire legislature, to ram them through.
So we are asking you to do what you can to counter Bloomberg’s money bomb and reach out to the legislature once again in opposition to these dangerous bills.
Even if you have done so in the past, the legislators need to know we are watching them and Bloomberg’s stooges and we won’t stand for more attacks on our rights.
The Oregon Legislature has announced that “sine die” is “imminent.”
“Sine Die” means the last day of the legislative session. (Literally “without a date.”)
While this does not mean we actually have an announced day for closing the circus down, it does mean the rules change.Once this announcement has been made, the notice required of when hearings are going to take place goes down to as little as an hour.
(Unless of course, you are an anti-gun activist. Then, if the past is any indication, you will get advance notice.)
So unless you are camped out in the Capitol, you will not get a chance to testify on any pending legislation. You are particularly out of luck if you live in a rural county any distance from Salem.The very design of this rule shuts out the voices of citizens who live in most parts of the state.
It is essential that you take a moment, one more time, to express your opposition to the two dangerous anti-gun bills that are still in play.
SB 719, the Boquist/Burdick gun confiscation bill has passed in the Senate and now sits in the House Rules Committee.
SB 1065 (an outrageous omnibus anti-gun bill) has been assigned to the Senate Rules Committee.These committees are not subject to the deadlines most committees face, so they can act on these bills at any time with virtually no notice.
