Senate Now Planning To Extend FBI Fishing Expeditions Into
Gun Sales Records
-- Even as opposition has begun to coalesce!
Gun Owners of America E-Mail Alert
8001 Forbes Place, Suite 102, Springfield, VA 22151
Phone: 703-321-8585 / FAX: 703-321-8408
http://www.gunowners.org
ACTION: Things are happening in the Senate! If you have not
contacted your Representative yet (as a result of yesterday's alert),
here's your chance to contact your senators.
There are six senators who have said they may be willing to
filibuster this legislation -- and one of them has even committed to
do so through the Thanksgiving recess. That's why it's imperative
that you contact your two senators.
Please urge them to oppose the conference version of the PATRIOT Act
(H.R. 3199), and specifically, its provision to allow secret court
orders to collect gun records.
You can use the pre-written message at the bottom of this alert and
send it as an e-mail by visiting the GOA Legislative Action Center at
http://www.gunowners.org/activism.htm (where phone and fax numbers
are also available).
Friday, November 18, 2005
Gun Owners of America contacted you yesterday about H.R. 3199, which
will expand the ability of the FBI to compile a registration list of
gun purchase records.
The Senate is now planning to vote on this PATRIOT Act
reauthorization bill as soon as Saturday, as Majority Leader Bill
Frist is trying to ram the bill through the Senate before it recesses
before Thanksgiving.
Under current law, Section 215 of the PATRIOT Act allows the FBI to
get secret court orders to seize ANY business records it believes
would be relevant to an anti-terrorism investigation... without
having to make the case that the records they're confiscating have
any connection to a suspected terrorist.
All along, the concern has been that "business records" can be
interpreted to mean "gun records." The FBI has been making this
assertion already, even though federal law doesn't specifically state
they have the authority to do so. (In fact, the McClure-Volkmer law
states that the feds cannot retain firearms records at all.)
Well, H.R. 3199 would change all that. The bill clearly states that
"firearms sales records" are now fair game for the FBI, in essence,
overturning the prohibition on gun registration.
But if H.R. 3199 were to be defeated, two things would happen:
1. The FBI would lose the ability to point to federal law and say
that they can get a secret court order to grab your "firearms sales
records," and,
2. Section 215 of the PATRIOT Act would sunset entirely, which means
the FBI won't be able to get secret court orders for ANY of your
records (including medical, library, financial, etc.).
Unfortunately, H.R. 3199 allows Section 215 to continue for another
seven years, when it would then "sunset." But seven years is too
long to allow these FBI fishing expeditions to continue.
Similar to yesterday, please use the pre-written letter below to
direct your comments to your Senators, and urge all freedom-loving
Americans you know to do the same.
-----Pre-written letter-----
Dear Senator:
The PATRIOT Act expansion bill (H.R. 3199) would allow the United
States government to seize every lawful gun sale record in the
country... solely on the basis of a bureaucrat's determination that a
national registry of gun owners would be useful in an anti-terrorism
investigation.
Registration leads to confiscation.
H.R. 3199 amends Section 215 of the PATRIOT Act to allow agents of
the federal government to get secret court orders for "firearms sales
records" which, in their opinion, are relevant to investigating
terrorism.
FFL holders must retain copies of the 4473 forms (yellow sheets)
filled out on every gun sale. Thus, an anti-gun administration could
easily determine that such records would be useful in the fight
against terrorism, and demand them all.
Even more ominous, the gun dealers would be required NOT to disclose
the existence of the investigation to their customers, meaning that
the dealer (rather than the gun purchaser) would be the only person
who could contest this action. And why should he risk his livelihood
on my behalf? This is massive gun control by simple executive fiat.
There is an illusory right to challenge the secrecy of the court
orders, but it's just that... an illusion. If the government claims
there is a national security issue at stake or that there's an
ongoing criminal investigation, then the FBI's fishing expedition can
remain a secret and remain unchallenged.
I believe that a national gun registry is a step this country cannot
afford to take, and one that the citizenry will not abide.
I would ask you, in the strongest terms, to oppose this PATRIOT Act
"reform" bill outright. Please vote against H.R. 3199 and support
any effort to filibuster it as well.
Sincerely,
****************************
Stop Supporting the Big Anti-gun Internet Service Providers!
The parent companies of AOL / Time Warner / Compuserve, Sprint /
Mindspring / Earthlink, and Southwestern Bell -- just to name a few
-- have all given money in the past to Sarah Brady. Now, there is an
ISP dedicated to gun rights and the sporting life. Plus a portion of
your monthly fee will be donated to GOA. By switching to Outdoors
Unlimited, you move money away from the Brady Bunch and to the fight
for the Second Amendment. Check out http://www.outdoorsunlimited.net
and consider switching your Internet service today.
Gun Sales Records
-- Even as opposition has begun to coalesce!
Gun Owners of America E-Mail Alert
8001 Forbes Place, Suite 102, Springfield, VA 22151
Phone: 703-321-8585 / FAX: 703-321-8408
http://www.gunowners.org
ACTION: Things are happening in the Senate! If you have not
contacted your Representative yet (as a result of yesterday's alert),
here's your chance to contact your senators.
There are six senators who have said they may be willing to
filibuster this legislation -- and one of them has even committed to
do so through the Thanksgiving recess. That's why it's imperative
that you contact your two senators.
Please urge them to oppose the conference version of the PATRIOT Act
(H.R. 3199), and specifically, its provision to allow secret court
orders to collect gun records.
You can use the pre-written message at the bottom of this alert and
send it as an e-mail by visiting the GOA Legislative Action Center at
http://www.gunowners.org/activism.htm (where phone and fax numbers
are also available).
Friday, November 18, 2005
Gun Owners of America contacted you yesterday about H.R. 3199, which
will expand the ability of the FBI to compile a registration list of
gun purchase records.
The Senate is now planning to vote on this PATRIOT Act
reauthorization bill as soon as Saturday, as Majority Leader Bill
Frist is trying to ram the bill through the Senate before it recesses
before Thanksgiving.
Under current law, Section 215 of the PATRIOT Act allows the FBI to
get secret court orders to seize ANY business records it believes
would be relevant to an anti-terrorism investigation... without
having to make the case that the records they're confiscating have
any connection to a suspected terrorist.
All along, the concern has been that "business records" can be
interpreted to mean "gun records." The FBI has been making this
assertion already, even though federal law doesn't specifically state
they have the authority to do so. (In fact, the McClure-Volkmer law
states that the feds cannot retain firearms records at all.)
Well, H.R. 3199 would change all that. The bill clearly states that
"firearms sales records" are now fair game for the FBI, in essence,
overturning the prohibition on gun registration.
But if H.R. 3199 were to be defeated, two things would happen:
1. The FBI would lose the ability to point to federal law and say
that they can get a secret court order to grab your "firearms sales
records," and,
2. Section 215 of the PATRIOT Act would sunset entirely, which means
the FBI won't be able to get secret court orders for ANY of your
records (including medical, library, financial, etc.).
Unfortunately, H.R. 3199 allows Section 215 to continue for another
seven years, when it would then "sunset." But seven years is too
long to allow these FBI fishing expeditions to continue.
Similar to yesterday, please use the pre-written letter below to
direct your comments to your Senators, and urge all freedom-loving
Americans you know to do the same.
-----Pre-written letter-----
Dear Senator:
The PATRIOT Act expansion bill (H.R. 3199) would allow the United
States government to seize every lawful gun sale record in the
country... solely on the basis of a bureaucrat's determination that a
national registry of gun owners would be useful in an anti-terrorism
investigation.
Registration leads to confiscation.
H.R. 3199 amends Section 215 of the PATRIOT Act to allow agents of
the federal government to get secret court orders for "firearms sales
records" which, in their opinion, are relevant to investigating
terrorism.
FFL holders must retain copies of the 4473 forms (yellow sheets)
filled out on every gun sale. Thus, an anti-gun administration could
easily determine that such records would be useful in the fight
against terrorism, and demand them all.
Even more ominous, the gun dealers would be required NOT to disclose
the existence of the investigation to their customers, meaning that
the dealer (rather than the gun purchaser) would be the only person
who could contest this action. And why should he risk his livelihood
on my behalf? This is massive gun control by simple executive fiat.
There is an illusory right to challenge the secrecy of the court
orders, but it's just that... an illusion. If the government claims
there is a national security issue at stake or that there's an
ongoing criminal investigation, then the FBI's fishing expedition can
remain a secret and remain unchallenged.
I believe that a national gun registry is a step this country cannot
afford to take, and one that the citizenry will not abide.
I would ask you, in the strongest terms, to oppose this PATRIOT Act
"reform" bill outright. Please vote against H.R. 3199 and support
any effort to filibuster it as well.
Sincerely,
****************************
Stop Supporting the Big Anti-gun Internet Service Providers!
The parent companies of AOL / Time Warner / Compuserve, Sprint /
Mindspring / Earthlink, and Southwestern Bell -- just to name a few
-- have all given money in the past to Sarah Brady. Now, there is an
ISP dedicated to gun rights and the sporting life. Plus a portion of
your monthly fee will be donated to GOA. By switching to Outdoors
Unlimited, you move money away from the Brady Bunch and to the fight
for the Second Amendment. Check out http://www.outdoorsunlimited.net
and consider switching your Internet service today.