Category: OFF Alerts

03.27.2023

Today’s “informational” hearing on SB 348 provided very limited “information” but here are the highlights :

Yes, if you have purchased a standard capacity magazine since Dec 8th of 2022, you will be subject to prosecution.

The drafter of the bill has no idea how you would prove you legally owned one before that date.

The provision in the bill to completely end firearms acquisitions by young adults was, in the words of Floyd Prozanski,… “a mistake.”

And… the supporters of Mz 114 think this bill is not extreme enough!

No, that is not a misprint. 

One unintentionally hilarious moment came when the head Marxist behind this measure, “The Reverend  Doctor” Mark Knudson, commented that the son of one of his supporters would be alive today if the ban on magazines over ten rounds had been in place.  Because you see, that young man was shot 12 times. You think we make this stuff up, but it’s all recorded.

The bill moves to a work session on March 30th where they will no doubt find ways to make it worse.

At this time there is no indication that the Republican legislators are prepared to do anything except ask you for more money.

But while all that is going on, there is another issue that needs to be addressed.

Tomorrow at 8am, the House Judiciary Committee is hearing HB 3513. 

This is another one of Brian Boquist’s bills. The bill creates a convoluted method for people in mental health crisis to be able to temporarily store their guns with others or gun dealers.  It “Directs Oregon Health Authority to establish grant program to fund storage of firearms pursuant to firearm hold agreement. Appropriates moneys to authority to fund grants.”

We have no argument with people storing their guns off site if they feel the need. However, this is another tax payer funded boondoggle that could be far more easily solved by simply revoking the idiotic law that makes doing that illegal. The state creates a problem and then wants you to spend millions to “fix” it.  But that’s not the worst of it.

This bill will also require that any training course for a concealed handgun license must include the “use of firearm hold agreements for firearm suicide prevention.” That means not only the regular CHL classes taught by NRA instructors, but also any of the hunter safety classes or law enforcement classes that qualify. That means that any class taught in any other state that used to qualify no longer will.

We were told there would be an amendment to address this problem. So far there is not one.  One Republican House Rep has already removed her name from the bill because of this issue.

Please consider testifying tomorrow on this bill or uploading testimony pointing out this problem.  The bill will still be a massive misuse of taxpayer funds when there is a solution that would cost nothing. But at least it won’t be one more pointless hurdle for people seeking the means to protect themselves.

You can submit testimony here:  https://olis.oregonlegislature.gov/liz/2023R1/Testimony/HJUD/HB/3513/0000-00-00-00-00?area=Measures

A complete overview of the bill can be found here: https://olis.oregonlegislature.gov/liz/2023R1/Measures/Overview/HB3513

Please note we added the following after further review of the bill:

Our original objection to the bill was that it would eliminate countless classes that qualify for concealed handgun licenses because any class that currently qualifies from any other state will no longer be accepted since other state’s law enforcement, NRA, or hunter safety classes are not going to teach about an arcane  Oregon law.

But the more we looked at the more we see how dangerous it  is.

This bill provides that licensed firearm dealers can enter into a “hold” agreement, but makes no provisions whatsoever for them to do it.

An FFL cannot simply have a person walk into their business, sign an agreement and leave a gun there. FFL’s are bound by strict federal rules that Oregon law can’t bypass.

Section 2 of the bill allows the Oregon Health Authority to create the rules for a grant program for storage of firearms.

The bill provides no guidelines or restrictions . There are no protections of any kind for the privacy of the people who signed the agreement.

There is nothing to prevent this information from being abused. Federal agencies are already taking guns away from veterans who they claim are not competent to handle their own affairs.

If a person declares in writing that they are a danger to themselves, they open themselves up to unlimited abuse . There is nothing that would prevent someone from using one of these agreements as a basis for requesting an extreme risk protection order.

And of course once again, the state is focusing on the how people commit suicide and not why.

We all want to address suicide. But this bill doesn’t do it.

03.26.2023

As we have told you, the Democrats have, at the last minute, dropped a 64 page anti gun bill.

We have more info on it in our two previous alerts, here and here.

The “informational”, “invitation only” hearing is tomorrow at 1 pm. A “public” hearing will be at 5 pm.

You may sign up to testify in person or remotely, or upload written testimony using this link:

https://olis.oregonlegislature.gov/liz/2023R1/Measures/Overview/SB348

The language of the bill postpones the implementation of the unconstitutional “permit to purchase” scheme until 2024. The intent of this element is to undermine the current injunction that was placed on Mz 114 by a Judge in Harney County.

If there is no immediate permit to purchase, it’s likely that the injunction would be moot.

How this will affect the injunction on the magazine ban is less clear. Please note the bill calls for the prosecution of anyone who bought or sold a standard magazine since Dec, 8, 2022.

Magazines are still being bought and sold because of the injunction.  Floyd Prozanski and the Democrats want to jail anyone who has done so since December.  They call that “equity.”

Furthermore, the bill bans the sale, or acquisition,  of firearms to young adults.  While it contains a provision to allow 18-20 year olds to acquire a small number of firearms that would be poor choices for self defense, it removes even that provision after July 1, 2024, 2026 at which point they can acquire nothing .

This is a well coordinated and hateful attack by the majority party on the half of Oregon who voted against Mz 114  which, of course, included many Democrats. It is a vindictive effort to bypass a court decision Prozanski and the Department of Justice don’t agree with. Along with the other bills the majority party are pushing it is a full court press against your rights and the Constitution.

It appears most Republican legislators have taken the position that it’s not their problem. That there is no need to worry, all these bills will be declared unconstitutional. That may be true. But that will take years and millions of dollars, and there is no way to estimate how many people will be harmed or die as a result of losing their ability to defend themselves through Republican inaction.

The anti-gunners have unlimited funds and the Oregon Department of Justice is doing all it can to bleed gun owners financially. As you may have heard, they are now demanding over $100,000.00 dollars from us for lawyers fees for our defense of the Columbia County Second Amendment Sanctuary law.

The people we elected to protect us have done nothing but ask us to sign petitions and send them money. The fact is, they still have tools to fight this madness. They just lack the will.

The Democrats are using the cowardice of the Republicans to ram through legislation that would have been unimaginable just a few short years ago.

And time is running out.

03.25.2023

Even before Measure 114 passed, the people behind it were admitting it was such a pile of crap that their lackeys in the legislature would have to fix it.

Even they could not have predicted that the “fix” would look like something drafted by crack head spider monkeys after a weekend of binge drinking.

Rational people would have been hard pressed to imagine that this deranged attack on common sense could have actually been made worse, but Floyd Prozanski was, apparently, up to the job.

The new bill, which is a gut and stuff of  short place holder bill SB 348 (which we told you would likely be used for this purpose) was just posted late yesterday. If you are interested in testifying on this bill we included info in our previous alert on how you can do that.

While it is far too complex, convoluted, poorly written, and contradictory to explain in depth (in fact, it may be impossible to explain at all) here are the lowlights we have found so far.

It will increase the cost of a “permit to purchase”. From $65.00 to $150.00.

It will increase the cost of a renewal from $50.00 to $110.00.

This change will be of interest to minority communities in low income, high crime areas. So much for “the consistent and equitable administration of the permitting process” (page 6 of the amendment.)

It will increase the wait time to get a permit after application from 30 days to 60 days.

Once again, people whose safety is at risk and live in places where the police simply do not respond will want to take special note of this provision.

The amendments still require that you complete a class that includes an:

“in-person demonstration of the applicant’s ability to lock, load, unload, fire and store a firearm before an instructor “approved” by a law enforcement agency.”

They provide no definition for what they mean by “lock.” We believe the word does not mean what they think it means.

It creates a 72 hour waiting period to take possession of a gun from a dealer AFTER you have gone through the process of getting a “permit.”  A process that does not, of course, exist.

It requires the State Police create a “report” which “shall additionally specify, for each county, racial and gender information concerning each applicant within the total number of permits granted…” though it’s not clear what “gender” actually means since that is now open to interpretation.

It forbids 18-20 year olds from even applying for permits to purchase, though it will allow those dangerous scoundrels to buy:

A) A single-shot rifle, whether centerfire or rimfire;

(B) A double-barreled shotgun;

(C) A repeating rifle, whether centerfire or rimfire, that has a bolt, lever, pump, straight-pull or revolving action;

(D) A rifle with an attached tubular magazine designed to accept,  and capable of operating only with, 0.22 caliber rimfire ammunition;

(E) A muzzleloader rifle; or

(F) A shotgun with a pump, break, level or revolving action

While the new language allows 18-20 year olds to buy pump action shotguns and “revolving action” shotguns, almost all of them are still banned under the magazine restrictions.

And even THOSE exemptions disappear for any purchase after July 1st, 2026 when 18-20 year olds will lose the right to acquire anything!

(18-20 year olds are still free to vote, get married, and serve in the military.)

And as always, it declares “an emergency” so it goes into effect upon passage.

There’s lots more, but the bill is written so badly it would be impossible to get it all into an alert shorter than “War and Peace.”

This year Oregon Democrats have decided to double down on some truly disgraceful legislation.  So far Oregon Republican House Leadership has decided to respond by doing…nothing. They are not even requiring that bills be completely read before a vote, something even the Republicans in the Senate are doing.

Astonishingly, House Republican Mark Owens said:

“I have found this to be the most bipartisan session I have participated in so far, where legislators are given the opportunity to have a voice. I am grateful for my colleagues’ intentional efforts to have a diverse range of bills in each committee, encompassing both liberal and conservative viewpoints.”

Well maybe Mark, but when a 64 page bill gets dumped two days before the “hearing,” the people sure as hell are not given the “opportunity to have a voice” …unless those people are anti-gun and got this info long ago.

The ball is squarely in the court of the Oregon Republican legislators. If they will not stand up to this kind of abuse, there is damn little reason for them to be there at all.

Some of them are sending out emails complaining about the outrageous gun bills and asking you to send them money. They don’t need money. They need a spine.

In spite of what they may tell you, they do have some tools left.  If they refuse to use them, you no longer matter to them.

The clock is ticking and there ain’t much time left.

These two are Republican “leadership.”  They need to hear from you.

Representative Vikki Breese Iverson

503-986-1459

Senator Tim Knopp

503-986-1727

Call today. Leave a message.

And if you want to see just how stupid the people pushing this crap are… here you go:

https://olis.oregonlegislature.gov/liz/mediaplayer?clientID=4879615486&eventID=2023031310&startStreamAt=2466&stopStreamAt=2620

 

03.25.2023

As we warned you several times, the Oregon Democrats have taken a short, one page “place holder” bill and turned it into a 64 page re-write of gun laws.

The bill is a complete re-write of Measure 114.

We will be analyzing the amendments  and updating you as soon as possible, but you can read it all for yourself here:

https://olis.oregonlegislature.gov/liz/2023R1/Downloads/ProposedAmendment/23695

The invited only “informational hearing” is Monday at 1PM.  We have no idea who will be invited but we expect the hearing to make sure as little “information” as possible will be presented.

A “public” hearing will follow at 5pm.

If you want to sign up to testify, or if you want to submit written testimony, there are links at the top of this page to do so:

https://olis.oregonlegislature.gov/liz/2023R1/Measures/Overview/SB348

Obviously the short notice is designed to give you as little time as possible to analyze this monster or prepare a response.  You can rest assured the anti-gun crowd was given this long in advance as usual.

It’s the Oregon way.

03.21.2023

Today’s hearing on gun bills HB 2005, 2006, and 2007 was, not surprisingly, another game of “bait and switch” by Oregon Democrats.

OFF was invited to give testimony at this morning’s “informational hearing” and told we would be part of a three person panel. We would be given a total of 40 minutes for all three to address all three bills.

That worked out to 4.4 minutes for each panelist for each of the three bills.

Then yesterday we were told the panel had been expanded to 10 people and that we would each get a grand total of 4 minutes to address all three bills. A clear absurdity.

On top of that we were informed for the first time after the hearing started, that all three bills would be combined and there would be numerous amendments.  At the time this alert is going out, those amendments have still not been made available.

As you can imagine, it’s impossible to testify on language you have not seen, even when you are given a whole 4 minutes to do it.

Perhaps the most entertaining moment in the hearing was when Senator Floyd Prozanski suggested he would “arm wrestle” Senator James Manning for the privilege of carrying these anti-rights bills when they arrived at the Senate side.  Given Mannings extreme weight advantage we are eager to bet on that match.

The testimony from the proponents, which included militant anti-rights Attorney General Rosenblum, and Portland’s crime loving DA Mike Schmidt, was so riddled with fabrications and ignorance that 4 hours would not have been enough time to correct it all.

Suffice to say, not only are they delusional, they continue to spread those delusions unchecked.

The bills are scheduled to have a “work session” on March 28th.  That will be where the committee plans to consolidate the bills into one single, unconstitutional monstrosity and add the, as of yet, unavailable amendments.

We’ll keep you posted.

03.21.2023

Tomorrow the House Judiciary Committee is scheduled to hear three anti-rights bills.

Those are House Bills 2005, 2006, and 2007.

We gave you the details here .

That link will also provide links if you want to testify on any of these bills or watch the hearings live.

Together these bills represent one of the most coordinated and hateful attacks on Second Amendment rights we have seen.

They will outlaw all privately manufactured firearms, eliminate gun and hunting rights for anyone under 21, and render CHL’s useless by declaring vast undefined areas of Oregon off limits to licensed carry.

All of these bills will, if passed, be found unconstitutional. The end goals of each have already failed court tests, the most recent being last Sunday when the US District Court in the Northern District of Texas decided that the ATF’s regulation of “unfinished receivers” was illegal. (Polymer Inc vs Merrick Garland).

As you know, Oregon Democrats have no concern about passing unconstitutional laws. If they pass YOU will have to pay to fight them in court while paying for lawyers on both sides of the fight.

You can still upload testimony or register to testify yourself either in person or remotely.

We assume you will be given a total of 2 minutes if you get to testify at all. They may consolidate testimony on all three bills which will give you a grand total of 40 seconds per bill. So be prepared.

“Invited testimony” will be at 8am. The public gets no time until 5pm. Please consider testifying anyway.

On another note, House Rep Dacia Grayber’s  racist “paramilitary bill” which we warned you about here was moved to the House Rules Committee. The Rules Committee is not subject to the same deadlines as other committees. When a bill goes there it is either to keep it alive long enough to massage it into something that can pass, or to allow it die with dignity. Something this bigoted garbage does not deserve. We’ll keep watching it but for now it is not moving forward.  And don’t think it’s because more rational people recognized that under Brandenburg v Ohio the bill was certainly unconstitutional. Far more likely was because the ACLU opposed it.

03.16.2023

ANTI GUN AVALANCHE

Our previous alert was a mere downpayment on what’s now coming.

Aside from the bad news in that alert, we can now confirm that next Wednesday, March 22, the Oregon House Judiciary Committee will be hearing and preparing to move, three extreme, unconstitutional, and dangerous bills.

HB 2005 bans privately made firearms, which of course, are perfectly legal under current Oregon and Federal law.  There are NO grandfather provisions in the bill. If you possess a firearm you legally made, that does not have a serial number engraved by a manufacturer or gunsmith, you will be a criminal, period.

There is no lawful way to add a serial number to any firearm you have already made. While a licensed gunsmith can take possession of a home made firearm to put a serial number on it, the owner of the gun may not lawfully deliver it.

HB 2006  Prohibits 18,19, and 20 year olds from owning any modern firearm. That includes any firearm they lawfully bought and currently own. There are no grandfather provisions.  If a person under 21 lawfully owns any modern firearm they will be criminals when this bill goes into effect, period.  This is not a ban on future sales or transfers. It is an outright prohibition and government theft of private property. 

HB 2007  Creates vast and undefined “off-limits” locations for CHL holders. Any government entity of any kind can not only declare its property off limits to law-abiding gun owners, but extend that to “adjacent” grounds which could mean anything.  A city hall could declare a nearby grocery store off limits.   A drive through any metropolitan area will make you a criminal countless times over.

All of these bills are scheduled for hearings on  March 22nd at 5pm. Earlier that day, at 8am, the committee will hold “informational hearings” on the bills which will only include “invited testimony.” Not you.

You can use this link: https://olis.oregonlegislature.gov/liz/2023R1/Committees/HJUD/2023-03-22-17-00/Agenda to sign up to testify in person or remotely (in the evening long after the “invited testimony” has wrapped up with no time limits) for all three of these bills.

If you want to upload written testimony you can use the same link. Just click on the bill number, and then above that, in the tool bar at the top of the page, click on “Submit Testimony.”

The chairman of the committee, and the person responsible for pushing these bills, is Democrat Jason Kropf.  Kropf alone decides which bills move forward. He has already locked down the votes of the other Democrats on the Committee and almost certainly has promises from all the other House Democrats to vote in favor of these outrageous, unconstitutional, and hateful bills.

You can contact him here: https://www.oregonlegislature.gov/kropf

Kropf, and his fellow leftists are determined to steal the property of law abiding Oregonians and render them defenseless while his party does all it can to flood our streets with violent criminals.

Now on to the Senate.

The Senate Judiciary Committee has its own anti-gun bills in the works.  These are being pushed by perennial gun hater and far left extremist Floyd Prozanski.

On March 27, at 1pm the Senate Judiciary Committee has anti gun bills scheduled for hearings. 

SB 348. While the bill’s summary says “Directs Department of Justice to study ways to address unlawful possession of firearms, and to provide results of study to interim committees of Legislative Assembly” that’s also almost all the bill says. The problem is the “relating clause.” And THAT, is “relating to firearms.”

Bills that direct any state agency to conduct virtually any study are “placeholder” bills designed to be “gut and stuffed” at the last minute, and this is a prime candidate.  They have not yet revealed what they plan to stuff it with, but keep an eye on it. It’s almost certainly coming.

SB 527 “Allows” a  gun dealer to refuse to sell to anyone under 21. While we think any dealer who wants to snub lawful gun buyers has the right, and we have the right to shop elsewhere, we think this bill is a gateway to mandating it. And given the House’s intention to ban possession for anyone under 21 it should be watched.

You can sign up to testify for either of these bills, remotely or in person here https://olis.oregonlegislature.gov/liz/2023R1/Committees/SJUD/2023-03-27-13-00/Agenda .

As noted above, you can also use that link to submit written testimony by clicking on the bill number and going to “Submit Testimony” at the top of the page.

As always you should contact your own representatives. You can use this link to connect with them:

https://geo.maps.arcgis.com/apps/instant/lookup/index.html?appid=fd070b56c975456ea2a25f7e3f4289d1

THIS BILL COULD PUT YOU IN PRISON.

Last month we warned you about HB 2572.

On March 20th, at 8am the House Judiciary Committee will be holding a “work session” to move the bill to the floor for a vote.

This bill is designed to entrap law abiding gun owners who may try to defend their property against looters and rioters.  It was designed to specifically exempt leftist thugs like antifa.

In fact, during the hearing that was held on the bill, antifa was not mentioned one time, only “Three Percenters”.

The bill was supported by militant anti-rights extremists.

As written, it could well outlaw private security guards who may be the last line of defense in lawless places like Portland, for while it appears to provide an exemption for them, it only exempts them “when under the direction and control of a governmental authority.”

The amended bill also gives the state broad and clearly unconstitutional powers to drag into court anyone who they accuse of even knowing about “paramilitary activity.” 

“If it appears to the Attorney General that a person has possession, custody or control of any information, document or other material that is relevant to an investigation of paramilitary activity as described in subsection (1) of this section, or that could lead to the discovery of relevant information in an investigation of paramilitary activity as described in subsection (1) of this section, the Attorney General may cause an investigative demand to be served upon the person. ”

So what qualifies as “paramilitary activity?”  Anyone who “Publicly patrols, drills or engages in techniques capable of causing physical injury or death;”

That sounds a lot like anyone protecting a friend’s business from rioters or who is part of a church security team.

This bill is clearly unconstitutional and an undisguised effort to entrap and imprison gun owners who respond to the ever growing threats of criminals the Democrats coddle and release from jail.

Please contact the House Republican Leader, Vikki Iverson, and the Republican members of the House Judiciary Committee and tell them to put every roadblock possible in the way of this very dangerous bill.  Remember, phone calls, even to voice mail, cannot be filtered into folders that will be ignored.

If they ask if you live in their district remind them that as committee members they represent everyone in the state.

Republican Leader Representative Vikki Breese Iverson

Capitol Phone 503-986-1459

Email rep.vikkibreeseiverson@oregonlegislature.gov

website http://www.oregonlegislature.gov/breese-iverson

 

Representative Rick Lewis

Capitol Phone: 503-986-1418

Email: Rep.RickLewis@oregonlegislature.gov
Website:http://www.oregonlegislature.gov/lewis

 

Representative Lily Morgan

Capitol Phone: 503-986-1403
Email: Rep.LilyMorgan@oregonlegislature.gov
Website: http://www.oregonlegislature.gov/morgan

 

Representative Kim Wallan

Capitol Phone: 503-986-1406
Email: Rep.KimWallan@oregonlegislature.gov
Website:http://www.oregonlegislature.gov/wallan

 

 

Representative Charlie Conrad

Capitol Phone: 503-986-1412
Email: Rep.CharlieConrad@oregonlegislature.gov
Website: https://www.oregonlegislature.gov/conrad

Link to the bill, amendments and schedule: https://olis.oregonlegislature.gov/liz/2023R1/Measures/Overview/HB2572

03.13.2023

On March 28th at 3pm, the Senate Education Committee is scheduled to hold a “work session” on SB 551.

This bill requires that schools “provide specified information related to secure storage of firearms.”

The problem is, it does not say what that “information” is, who provides it, or who assures it’s accurate and unbiased.

Given that Oregon’s mandatory lock up laws call for very dangerous devices like “trigger locks” it’s a safe bet that any information the “state” will be providing about firearm’s storage will be false, biased, and hazardous .

As of right now,  no amendments have been posted for this bill that would clarify what information will be provided to students and their parents, but you can rest assured it will be anti-gun propaganda unless you speak up.

You can track any changes to this bill or its schedule here https://olis.oregonlegislature.gov/liz/2023R1/Measures/Overview/SB551

Please contact the Republican members of the Senate Education Committee and request that they vote against this bill unless amendments are added that allow the information on safe storage to be provided by professionals with actual knowledge of firearms.

Senator Suzanne Weber. 503-986-1716

https://www.oregonlegislature.gov/weber

Senator Dick Anderson. 503-986-1705

https://www.oregonlegislature.gov/anderson

Senator Art Robinson 503-986-1702

https://www.oregonlegislature.gov/robinson

The links will also provide their email addresses, but phone calls can’t be filtered into folders to be ignored.

Please note that Senator Art Robinson will almost certainly be aware of the dangers of this bill and is the person most likely to stand up for gun owners and common sense.

02.24.2023

Two gun bills were filed this week that we think you should know about.

While there are quite a few gun related bills in play in the legislature, these two are especially perplexing.

The first is SB 993. This bill is from Senator Brian Boquist, formerly a Republican and now an independent.

Boquist was also the author of Oregon’s gun- confiscation-with-no-due-process “red flag law”.

This bill is a straight up attack on core gun rights. It makes it a crime to carry an “unholstered” handgun. That means a gun in your car, in a purse, or in your pocket will be a felony.

It also makes “trespass with a firearm” a felony.  That means that if a hunter accidentally strays onto private property they are felons and lose their gun rights.

The bill also requires a public database of all persons convicted of a crime “involving a firearm”.

That would include the lost hunter or a woman who carried in her purse.

It is impossible to fathom what Boquist hopes to gain from this bill which is a Democrat’s fantasy.  Boquist has donated to the fight against 114, so this bill, like his red flag law, is incomprehensible.

The other bill, HB 3445 is the source of some confusion.

While some who have seen it think it’s a pro-gun bill, and undoubtedly the sponsors intended it to be, it has the potential to make things even worse for gun owners.

In our exchanges with three of the bills sponsors (most would not respond at all) it was clear none of them had read it.  They all believed it was a bill that would allow counties to “opt out” of Mz 114.  As you know, Mz 114 is still being held up by a court injunction and has not taken effect.

Under this bill counties could pass ordinances to remove their sheriffs and chiefs of police as “permitting agents” under 114.

The ordinances would also allow counties to bypass the need for permits-to-purchase if a county resident bought a gun in the county they lived in.

The problem is, while it removes sheriffs and chiefs of police as permitting agents, it replaces them with… nothing.

The permit system would still be in effect, but there would be no permitting agents.  That would be fine for people who lived in one of those counties if they could buy what they wanted in their own county.  But if they could not (some counties have NO gun stores) they would be prevented from buying a gun anywhere.

Their own sheriffs and police chiefs would not be permitting agents, and those people would have no other options to get a permit.

The bill leaves all the other onerous elements of 114 in place. It does not remove the magazine ban, the shotgun ban or the doxing list of people attempting to buy firearms that the state police are required to maintain.

We cannot understand how this is an improvement.

Two of the sponsors indicated that they did not believe the bill had any chance of moving forward. One called it “virtue signaling” and another said it had no chance of passing but Republicans had to “do something.”

It’s unclear how doing “something” that you think has no chance of success is worth the time and money spent. But there is another problem.  While the Republicans believe their bill is purely symbolic, they have, once again, handed the Democrats a perfect vehicle to “gut and stuff” and use this bill against gun owners.   And that IS something.

 

02.15.2023

Judge Calls Second Amendment Protection Laws Racist and Anti-Semitic

The Oregon Court of Appeals has struck down the Second Amendment Sanctuary Ordinance in Columbia County, an ordinance OFF has been defending with Gun Owners of America.

And while that is not a particular surprise, what is a surprise was the scathing, incendiary, and frightening “concurring opinion” from Judge Egan.

In his vicious attack, Egan equated ordinances protecting the Second Amendment with white supremacists and anti-semites.

In the opening page of his opinion, Egan attacks the ordinance and the people who argued for it saying :

“In other words, Intervenors came before this court and referenced UN mandates,which as explained below is a well documented trope meant to invoke white supremacist, antisemitic fear of a takeover of our country by outsiders and minorities who are manipulated by an elite class of supervillians.

On occasion, however, individual members of the court must call out  illegitimate quasi-legal arguments and theories for what they are-viz., antisemitic and  racist tropes. “

On page 6 of his screed he titles one section “The Antisemitic and Racist Origins of the Ordinance”

He claims that constitutional sheriffs “ embrace racist and white nationalist ideologies.”

He claims, referring to constitutional sheriffs:

“The premise of such writings is the antisemitic and racist conspiracy theory that Jews are at the heart of America’s problems, that people of color are unwitting pawns to be manipulated by one side or the other, and that zealots must prepare for a final battle in the last days. The proponents of these ideas claim that a cabal of elites or globalists (code words for Jews) in the UN, or the fictional New World Order or Zionist Occupational Government, manipulate our federal government and, by extension, state governments. These ideas are, of course, nothing new, unique, or intelligent: They are, instead, just a rehashing of the ancient trope of a secret Jewish government; they are the retelling of a lie that led to the murder of over six million Jews within living memory.”

But there’s more. He continues:

“Intervenor’s reference at oral argument about UN mandates in support of an absolute right to firearms threatens to give legal foundation to a world view that embraces religious, racial, and ethnic hatred. The arguments propounding unfettered access to guns, ammunitions, and implements of destruction give rise to waging of war on government because the proponents believe that our government is infected by those they hate. This hate is unquestionably embedded in the trope that the UN or some other nefarious entity is manipulating government behind the scenes and that the courts are simply tools of those manipulations. As a judge, sworn to uphold the Oregon constitution and the United States Constitution, I cannot stand by without identifying the origins of that argument, and the origins of the Ordinance.”

The Judge also attacked Oregon Firearms for its defense of the ordinance in the voter’s guide.

We have come to expect these kinds of mindless and false attacks from the left and their pawns in the media. But coming from the bench, this kind of blatantly false and hate filled rhetoric, is not only unsettling, it is dangerous. It inspires violence and retribution.  It is frankly, unhinged.

The Columbia County case was carefully and thoughtfully argued. To suggest that its motives were white supremacist or antisemitic is a lie and defamatory.  But it also calls into question the legitimacy of the court and the likelihood of getting fair rulings from it.

Our lawsuits against Ballot Measure 114 continue in Federal Court. And while we have not had favorable rulings there so far, we are confident that eventually we will win. But we are very dubious that the parallel case in State Court will be decided fairly if it gets to the Oregon Court of Appeals. These kinds of baseless and grossly unprofessional attacks are unconscionable.

We are extremely grateful for your support in this fight. And now more than ever it’s clear that our Federal lawsuit is critical.  Please help us protect our rights against these kinds of abuses.

This battle has never been more important or more dangerous.

To contribute to this fight please use this link and pick Oregon Firearms Educational Foundation for your donation.

https://oregonfirearms.ejoinme.org/MyPages/DonationPage/tabid/70447/Default.aspx

02.09.2023

Gun owners in Oregon, (and Gun Owners of America) scored a major victory today when the Oregon Supreme Court again slapped down the anti-rights extremists and upheld a stay on Mz 114.

As you know, a judge in Harney County placed a hold on the absurd and unconstitutional Mz 114.

To no one’s surprise the anti-gun Attorney General moved to overturn this commonsense decision.

Today in a two sentence ruling, the Oregon Supreme Court sided with the Constitution and refused to overturn the Harney County Judge.

Simply put, this means that Mz 114 is still blocked in its entirety and, for the moment, law abiding gun owners do not face arrest for possessing common ammunition magazines.

This is a massive win.

There is still a very long way to go and we will follow up with more information on this case and the Federal Case that is still underway.

The judge in the Federal case has ruled that 114 may go into effect.  The state ruling blocked that, so we are safe for now but there is much still to be done.

We fully expect the legislature to attempt an end run around the courts to implement their own version of 114, but for right now enjoy a solid victory for gun owners and common sense.