NEWS RELEASE Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence united with the Million Mom March

TO RESTORE SANITY ON GUN ISSUE,

BRADY CAMPAIGN, MILLION MOM MARCH
ENDORSE JOHN KERRY FOR PRESIDENT
For Immediate Release:
10-01-2004
Contact Communications:
(202) 898-0792
Washington, D.C. – The following is a statement from Michael Barnes, President of the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence united with the Million Mom March:

“During the 2000 presidential campaign, the National Rifle Association’s Kayne Robinson said that if George W. Bush was elected President, the NRA would be working out of the White House.

“In test after test, Robinson’s prediction has turned out to be true. The NRA has gotten everything it asked for from President Bush. Every time he’s had a choice, he has sided with the gun lobby and against law enforcement and the victims of gun violence.

“The Bush Justice Department under Attorney General John Ashcroft secured legislation allowing it to destroy Brady background check records a day after the check is completed, against the advice of law enforcement leaders. President Bush signed that bill.

“The Bush Justice Department has made it easier for criminal defendants to challenge gun laws as unconstitutional by insisting that federal prosecutors adopt a view of the Second Amendment that is contradicted by virtually every federal appeals court.

“The Bush Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives secured a law to prohibit disclosure of crime gun records that would reveal the gun dealers supplying most of the guns used in crime. President Bush signed that bill.

“President Bush strongly supported an effort to give gun sellers unprecedented immunity from legal accountability to the victims of gun violence. The bill failed in the Senate – but President Bush supported it. And he signed similar legislation when he was the Governor of Texas.

“And in his most devastating blow to public safety, President Bush broke his promise to renew the Assault Weapons Ban. Instead of renewing the law, he turned his back on the law enforcement leaders and officers who had urged him to save that lifesaving statute, a law that had limited the firepower of criminals. He refused to even meet with police leaders to discuss it. He also turned his back on gun violence victims whose lives have been shattered by these weapons.

“This week, the U.S. House of Representatives voted to repeal local gun laws in the Nation’s Capital. The White House has said President Bush will sign the bill into law if the Senate takes action.

“Time and time again, President George W. Bush has caved in to the gun lobby and failed in his responsibility to keep Americans safe. He has chosen the extreme ideological policies of the National Rifle Association over the need to protect American citizens from gun violence every single time. Not once has the President opposed anything on the NRA’s legislative agenda. This is truly tragic, and it will lead to Americans, including police officers, losing their lives.

“On the other hand, Senator John Kerry has consistently supported sensible gun laws throughout his career in public service. As a prosecutor and as a legislator he has been a leader, working with law enforcement officials on efforts to reduce gun violence. As a hunter and a war hero, Senator Kerry knows that sportsmen do not need military-style assault weapons, and that measures to keep guns away from criminals, terrorists and children are just common sense.

“We urge Americans who care deeply about reducing gun violence in our nation to vote for Senator John Kerry.

“Mr. Bush should seek to be the President of the National Rifle Association. He has earned that job.”

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As the nation's largest national, non-partisan, grassroots organization leading the fight to prevent gun violence, the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence united with the Million Mom March is dedicated to creating an America free from gun violence, where all Americans are safe at home, at school, at work, and in their communities.