Blood Money From The NRA

How many children have to be murdered before the cowards in Congress stand up to the NRA and their militia allies? Would Congress act if it had been 1,000 dead people in Connecticut instead of just 28? What about 10,000? Would Congress have the balls to make a move if 20,000 children were murdered. How about if some of the dead were congressional grandchildren?

This year the NRA paid out $16,147,440 in legalistic bribes in federal races through their PAC. Most of the bribes were paid to Republicans, of course, but they spread around a few bucks to certain Democrats as well. On the Senate side, for example, every single recipient of NRA cash was a Republican except one-- Joe Manchin of West Virginia, famous for using guns in his advertising. The NRA was more generous to House Democrats... or House... quasi-Democrats. One friend of mine in Congress, a gun owner and NRA member, told me his bribery application was so partisan and off-the-wall that after he stopped laughing, he just ripped it up and threw it away. These people didn't-- and they all got NRA payoffs:

• Jason Altmire (Blue Dog/New Dem-PA)- $2,500 (defeated)
• Joe Baca (Blue Dog-CA)- $2,500 (defeated)
• John Barrow (Blue Dog/New Dem-GA)- $4,950
• Sanford Bishop (Blue Dog-GA)- $3,650
• Dennis Cardoza (Blue Dog-CA)- $2,500 (retired)
• Ben Chandler (Blue Dog-KY)- $4,000 (defeated)
• Mark Critz (PA)- $3,500
• Henry Cuellar (Blue Dog-TX)- $2,000
• John Dingell (MI)- $5,000
• Brian Higgins (New Dem-NY)- $1,000
• Kathleen Hochul (New Dem-NY)- $3,000 (defeated)
• Tim Holden (Blue Dog-PA)- $4,950 (defeated)
• Ron Kind (New Dem-WI)- $2,000
• Larry Kissell (Blue Dog-NC)- $3,000 (defeated)
• Ben Lujan (NM)- $1,000
• Jim Matheson (Blue Dog-UT)- $6,950)
• Mike McIntyre (Blue Dog/New Dem-NC)- $2,000
• Mike Michaud (Blue Dog-ME)- $3,000
• Bill Owens (New Dem-NY)- $1,000
• Collin Peterson (Blue Dog-MN)- $2,500
• Nick Rahall (WV)- $2,000
• Mike Ross (Blue Dog-AR)- $5,000 (retired)
• Tim Ryan (OH)- $3,000
• Kurt Schrader (Blue Dog/New Dem-OR)- $3,000
• Heath Shuler (Blue Dog-NC)- $4,950 (retired)
• Tim Walz (MN)- $2,000
• 238 Republicans (like this one)

The NRA also contributed to other PACs, almost $200,000, much of it to the RNC, the Romney Victory PAC, the NRSC, the Blue Dog PAC and shady leadership PACs run by Boehner, Cantor, Miss McConnell and Patrick McHenry. But that ain't all, folks. The NRA also ran their own campaigns in the congressional races. Of the $9,493,815 they spent, $6,735,955 went into negative ads against Democrats; $2,563,137 in favor of Republicans. They also spent $179,469 to help defeat Richard Lugar in the Indiana primary on behalf of Richard Mourdock. Some of their biggest spends for 2012:

• $5,771,433 against Obama
• $1,850,526 for Romney
• $537,667 for Mourdock
• $344,832 against Sherrod Brown
• $210,823 against Claire McCaskill
• $163,967 against Tammy Baldwin

Am I saying the deaths in Connecticut are the fault of the NRA and the politicians who take their blood money? Of course I am! 87% of kids worldwide killed by guns are American kids.

In America, over one dozen guns are legally sold every minute of every day.

There are almost 300 million privately-owned firearms in this country-- that’s almost enough to arm every man, woman and child-- but while there is a gun in four out of every 10 of American homes, only a small percentage of owners have most of the weapons, with the average collection swelling in recent years to around seven guns per owner.

...The National Rifle Association is quick to associate more guns with less crime, saying that since the early ’90s, when many states relaxed their weapon laws, violent crime has dropped 70 percent.  Despite the rampages on campuses and military bases, as well as the hail of gang bullets in Chicago that has killed over 200 so far this year, the national murder rate is at a 47-year-low.

But on the other side of the argument, the Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence, a non-profit organization, points out that Americans still kill each other with guns at a level that is staggering compared to the rest of humanity.

A study in the Journal of Trauma and Acute Care Surgery found that the gun murder rate in the U.S. is almost 20 times higher than the next 22 richest and most populous nations combined.

Among the world’s 23 wealthiest countries, 80 percent of all gun deaths are American deaths and 87 percent of all kids killed by guns are American kids.

But regardless, polls show that public attitudes don’t change, even after a mass slaughter like this. Forty-nine percent say it’s more important to protect gun rights while 45 percent favor tighter gun control.

Today dangerous Republican sociopath Bryan Fischer was tweeting as they were finding more dead children that "When we had prayer in school, we didn't need guns" and hate monger Glenn Beck tweeted "Our society is broken. Our communities are suffering and it is because of the ever expanding lack of self control & personal responsibility... It is not the gun. It is the soul." Our old friend, Lee Rogers, the Democratic surgeon who ran against Buck McKeon this year reacted differently. He sent this letter of resignation to the NRA today"

12-14-12

Re: Resign Membership #190199339

Dear NRA Member Services,

I am a proud gun owner and advocate for the Second Amendment. I grew up in the Midwest as a hunter and currently own guns for self-protection.

  But there comes a time when society has to decide between competing rights. I believe one's right not to be mass-murdered by a gun in a movie theater, a mall, or a school outweighs the right to own an assault weapon or high capacity magazine.

Recent events highlight how some of the rights you fight for are too frequently exercised by deranged individuals that lead to the deaths of numerous adults and defenseless children. I cannot in good conscious be a member of an organization that mechanically argues for the right to purchase guns without background checks or waiting periods, the right to own high capacity magazines, or the right to own automatic assault weapons.

While running for Congress in 2012, I received your candidate questionnaire for endorsement. Even as a staunch supporter of gun ownership for self-protection, hunting, sport shooting, or collecting, I found your questions so outrageous. I was unable to answer "yes" to a single question.

Please accept this notification that I'm resigning my membership to the NRA effective today.

My thoughts are on the families of the victims in the multiple recent tragedies.

With a heavy heart,

Dr. Lee Rogers

Simi Valley, CA

And, yes, now IS the time to talk about gun control-- right now. It should be politicized to the max. Sorry if that offends anyone or if anyone has to reach for some smelling salts. Jerry Nadler (D-NY):

“I am absolutely horrified by news of the cold-blooded shooting of dozens of children in Newtown, Connecticut. Yet another unstable person has gotten access to firearms and committed an unspeakable crime against innocent children. We cannot simply accept this as a routine product of modern American life. If now is not the time to have a serious discussion about gun control and the epidemic of gun violence plaguing our society, I don’t know when is. How many more Columbines and Newtowns must we live through? I am challenging President Obama, the Congress, and the American public to act on our outrage and, finally, do something about this.”