Tea Party Responds to Keith Olbermann

I've been to multiple Tea Party events myself, and I can vouch for the fact that it is a diverse group of Americans from all backgrounds and ethnicities. Keith Olbermann obviously has never been to such an event himself.

AZCDL Legislative Update

From AZCDL:

SB 1102, the Senate version of Constitutional Carry may have been stalled by a few Senate Republicans “crossing the aisle” to vote with Democrats to add the Cheuvront amendment, but that doesn’t mean it’s “game over” for Constitutional Carry in Arizona. We are working with Senator Russell Pearce, the bill’s sponsor, to find a way to move the bill forward in its proper form. There is still hope for the Senate version of the bill.

Even though the situation in the Senate remains tenuous, all is still not lost. AzCDL plans ahead! At the beginning of this session, identical versions of Constitutional Carry were introduced in both the House and Senate. The House version, HB 2347, was assigned to both the Judiciary and Military Affairs and Public Safety (MAPS) committees. HB 2347 passed out of the MAPS Committee on February 3, 2010, by a 5-2 vote. Though it didn’t seem to be moving in the House Judiciary Committee, Chairman Adam Driggs assured us that he supported the bill, and was only waiting to see that the concerns of stakeholders had been addressed via negotiated amendments. On Tuesday, February 23rd, true to his word, Representative Driggs withdrew HB 2347 from the Judiciary Committee. It will now be scheduled for a review by the House Rules Committee before heading to a floor debate in the Committee of the Whole. Please take a minute to thank Chairman Driggs for his support: http://azcdl.capwiz.com/bio/id/158343 .

Amendments were made to the bills mainly to address law enforcement’s concerns, but the underlying restoration of the right to carry concealed without a permit remains unchanged. As a result, most rank and file law enforcement organizations have dropped their opposition to the Constitutional Carry bills. The highlights of the current version of these bills include:

- Eliminating the prohibition and penalties for law-abiding adults who carry a concealed weapon without a permit in Arizona except in places, like restaurants serving alcohol, where the law requires a CCW permit.

- Increasing the penalties for criminals who carry a concealed weapon in the commission or attempted commission of a serious, violent, or major felony crime.

- Requiring a person carrying a concealed weapon to notify a Law Enforcement Officer, upon their request, that the person possesses a concealed weapon.

- Adding more training options for obtaining a CCW permit.

- Eliminating the storage requirement for CCW permit holders who enter a “non-secure” public building.

- Allowing LEOSA certified retired Law Enforcement Officers to carry on school grounds.

- Requiring confiscated firearms to be sold to an appropriate retailer rather than destroyed.

In other news, also on February 23rd, Representative Driggs released HB 2543, the House version of the firearms preemption bill, from his committee. HB 2543 passed out of the House Military Affairs and Public Safety (MAPS) Committee on February 17th by a vote of 7-1 with a recommendation for passage by the full House.

SB 1168, the Senate version of the firearms preemption bill, passed out of the Senate Judiciary Committee on February 22nd by a vote of 4-3 with a recommendation for passage by the full Senate.

Both firearms preemption bills will be reviewed in their respective Rules Committees before proceeding to Committee of the Whole (COW) debates.

SB 1153, the knife preemption bill, passed in the Senate Third Read on February 22, 2010 by a vote of 20-9 with one member not voting. It has been transmitted to the House.

On February 24, 2010, HCR 2008, which would, subject to voter approval, establish a Constitutional right to hunt and fish, passed out of the House MAPS Committee by a vote of 6-1 with one member voting present.

We received word that the Utah Firearms Freedom Act (SB 11) has passed their legislature, and is awaiting the Governor's signature. Sponsors of the Arizona Firearms Freedom Act (HB 2307 & SB 1098) have asked us to spread the word to encourage Utah Governor Gary Herbert to sign SB 11. His numbers are (toll free) 800-705-2464 and (local) 801-538-1000.

Stay tuned! When critical legislation moves, we will notify you via these Alerts.If you want to get legislative news as it happens, follow AzCDL on Twitter: http://twitter.com/AzCDL_Alerts .
AzCDL “tweets” from the Capitol with committee votes and breaking news as it happens.

You can also follow AzCDL on Facebook: http://tinyurl.com/FacebookAzCDL .

AzCDL’s Political Action Committee (PAC) is also on Facebook: http://tinyurl.com/FacebookAzCDLPAC .

These alerts are a project of the Arizona Citizens Defense League (AzCDL), an all volunteer, non-profit, non-partisan grassroots organization. Renew today! http://www.azcdl.org/html/join_us_.html .

AzCDL – Protecting Your Freedom
http://www.azcdl.org/html/accomplishments.html .

Copyright © 2010 Arizona Citizens Defense League, Inc., all rights reserved.

Cheuvront Sabotage in the Senate

Yesterday afternoon Sabotage of the Senate Version of Constitutional Carry was conducted by Senator Cheuvront and those who voted in support of his hostile amendment. You can witness the horror of their attack on our freedoms for yourself here (currently not available but it should show up within a few days) Details from AZCDL:

[On the afternoon of Thursday February 18, 2010], the Senate debated SB 1102 in the Committee of the Whole (COW). The COW debate is the last chance for a bill to get amended before a formal (Third Read) floor vote by the full Senate. During the COW debate, Democrat Senator Ken Cheuvront (http://azcdl.capwiz.com/bio/id/1881) submitted a hostile amendment, right out of the Brady Center playbook, which would make it a class 4 felony to not verify citizenship on any private sale conducted at a gun show. This is the same amendment that was defeated during the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on SB 1102. The text of Senator Cheuvront's amendment is here: http://www.azleg.gov/legtext/49leg/2r/adopted/s.1102cheuvront1027.pdf .

Initially, Senator Cheuvront’s amendment was defeated by voice vote during the debate on SB 1102. However, parliamentary procedures allowed him to reintroduce his amendment during the process of “closing” the COW calendar containing SB 1102 and a number of other bills. At that point, Senator Cheuvront asked for a recorded vote. As expected, all 12 Democrats in the Senate voted for the Cheuvront amendment. Of the 18 Republicans, Senator Jonathan Paton was not present for the vote, and the following 3 Republicans “crossed the aisle” to limit your freedoms, voting to PASS the Cheuvront amendment by a 15-14 vote.

Senator Carolyn S. Allen: http://azcdl.capwiz.com/bio/id/1886 .
Senator Steve Pierce: http://azcdl.capwiz.com/bio/id/24366 .
Senator Jay Tibshraeny: http://azcdl.capwiz.com/bio/id/48998 .

If any one of this “turncoat trio” had voted against the Cheuvront amendment, it would have failed by 14-15. Joining in the vote of their fellow Democrats to damage your rights were two Democrats who have received favorable NRA ratings because of their prior support of pro-rights firearms legislation:

Senator “Manny” Alvarez: http://azcdl.capwiz.com/bio/id/136029 .
Senator Rebecca Rios: http://azcdl.capwiz.com/bio/id/148303 .

It is imperative that we let these 5 senators know, in no uncertain terms, what a grave mistake they have made. We strongly encourage everyone receiving this Alert to go to our Action Center and send the letter that is waiting there. We urge you to express your feelings and feel free to modify the language we have provided:
http://azcdl.capwiz.com/azcdl/issues/alert/?alertid=14703956 .

This is NOT the end of our attempt to get Constitutional Carry passed this session. There are several opportunities that we can take advantage of. However, at this point SB 1102 will not be calendared for a Senate Third Read (final vote before being sent to the House) until we have determined the optimum strategy.

Bottom-line: We will not sacrifice your right to privately sell firearms in order to achieve Constitutional Carry!

Stay tuned! When critical legislation moves, we will notify you via these Alerts.

If you want to get legislative news as it happens, follow AzCDL on Twitter: http://twitter.com/AzCDL_Alerts .
AzCDL “tweets” from the Capitol with committee votes and breaking news as it happens.

You can also follow AzCDL on Facebook: http://tinyurl.com/FacebookAzCDL .

AzCDL’s Political Action Committee (PAC) is also on Facebook: http://tinyurl.com/FacebookAzCDLPAC .

These alerts are a project of the Arizona Citizens Defense League (AzCDL), an all volunteer, non-profit, non-partisan grassroots organization. Renew today! http://www.azcdl.org/html/join_us_.html .

AzCDL – Protecting Your Freedom
http://www.azcdl.org/html/accomplishments.html .

Copyright © 2010 Arizona Citizens Defense League, Inc., all rights reserved.

AZ Constitutional Carry Scheduled for Senate Debate

SB 1102, the Senate version of Constitutional Carry, is scheduled to be debated on the Senate Floor tomorrow. Now would be a great time to contact your Senator to voice your support. More from AZCDL:

Your immediate action is needed to support SB 1102, the AzCDL-requested Senate version of Constitutional Carry that eliminates the prohibition and penalties for law-abiding adults who carry a concealed weapon without a permit.

A short while ago, the Senate placed SB 1102 on their Committee of the Whole (COW) agenda on Thursday, February 18, 2010. It is critical that you immediately contact your Senator and urge them to support SB 1102 during the COW debate. A letter is waiting to be sent by you at AzCDL’s Action Center:
http://capwiz.com/azcdl/issues/alert/?alertid=14697526 .

If you care about restoring the right of law-abiding citizens to carry open or concealed, on their person or in their vehicle, without asking permission from the government, then contact your Senator right away!
http://capwiz.com/azcdl/issues/alert/?alertid=14697526 .

Also in the Senate COW on Thursday is SB 1153, which establishes that state law preempts local rules and ordinances concerning the regulation of knives and knife making components. We have also set up a letter on SB 1153 at our Action Center:
http://capwiz.com/azcdl/issues/alert/?alertid=14697756 .

Stay tuned! When critical legislation moves, we will notify you via these Alerts.

If you want to get legislative news as it happens, follow AzCDL on Twitter: http://twitter.com/AzCDL_Alerts .
AzCDL “tweets” from the Capitol with committee votes and breaking news as it happens.

You can also follow AzCDL on Facebook: http://tinyurl.com/FacebookAzCDL .

AzCDL’s Political Action Committee (PAC) is also on Facebook: http://tinyurl.com/FacebookAzCDLPAC .

These alerts are a project of the Arizona Citizens Defense League (AzCDL), an all volunteer, non-profit, non-partisan grassroots organization. Renew your membership today! http://www.azcdl.org/html/join_us_.html .

AzCDL – Protecting Your Freedom
http://www.azcdl.org/html/accomplishments.html .

Copyright © 2010 Arizona Citizens Defense League, Inc., all rights reserved.

National Park Gun Ban Ending Soon

The existing weapons ban at our National Parks is ending next week on Monday February 22nd. Are any of you planning to visit a National Park next week? If so, you'll finally be free to defend yourself from two and four legged animals. When seconds count, a Park Ranger may be hours away if you're lucky enough to even have cell phone service. Your handgun or rifle on the other hand will be right at your side, ready to be a useful tool in defense of you & your family.

AZCDL Legislative Update

From AZCDL:

Three pro-rights bills are being debated in their respective Committee of the Whole (COW) [today], Thursday, February 11, 2010. We apologize for the last minute notice.

Please visit our Action Center to send a message of support for these bills to your Representatives and Senator. Use the prepared text or create your own message: http://capwiz.com/azcdl/issues/?style=D .

HB 2307, the House version of the “Firearms Freedom Act,” will be debated in the House COW.

SB 1021, which incorporates defensive display language into the statutes regarding the justification of deadly force, will be debated in the Senate COW.

SB 1172, which expands the list of qualified Arizona Gun Safety Program course instructors, will be debated in the Senate COW.

More information on these bills can be found here: http://capwiz.com/azcdl/issues/bills/ .

In other news, SB 1168 will be heard in the Senate Judiciary Committee on Monday, February 15, 2010. A separate Alert is being drafted for contacting the committee members. SB 1168 strengthens state firearms preemption laws, adds firearms storage and accessories to the list of things political subdivisions cannot regulate, and removes the prohibition on carrying a firearm in public parks without a CCW permit.

Stay tuned! When critical legislation moves, we will notify you via these Alerts.

If you want to get legislative news as it happens, follow AzCDL on Twitter: http://twitter.com/AzCDL_Alerts .
AzCDL “tweets” from the Capitol with committee votes and breaking news as it happens.

You can also follow AzCDL on Facebook: http://tinyurl.com/FacebookAzCDL .

AzCDL’s Political Action Committee (PAC) is also on Facebook: http://tinyurl.com/FacebookAzCDLPAC .

These alerts are a project of the Arizona Citizens Defense League (AzCDL), an all volunteer, non-profit, non-partisan grassroots organization. Join today! http://www.azcdl.org/html/join_us_.html

AzCDL – Protecting Your Freedom
http://www.azcdl.org/html/accomplishments.html

Copyright © 2010 Arizona Citizens Defense League, Inc., all rights reserved.

Arizona Association of Chiefs of Police Hysteria

John Thomas, lobbyist for the Arizona Association of Chiefs of Police is worried that removing some of the current infringements on the right to keep & bear arms (Constitutional Carry) could somehow make Police Officers less safe. Someone should let John Thomas know that the Police only get attacked by criminal thugs, people who generally don't obey the thou shalt not murder law, much less the existing laws requiring a CCW permit.

JD & David responded to John's fears with excellent information. Hopefully JohnThomas will read up. I also recommend that John Thomas see a shrink soon about his Hoplophobia. An irrational fear of guns is something that the Lobbyist of the Arizona Association of Chiefs of Police should get addressed ASAP.

AZ: 118th Annual Washington's Birthday Match

The Arizona State Rifle & Pistol Association is sponsoring the 118th Annual Washington's Birthday Rifle Match at the Ben Avery Shooting Range this Feb 20th & 21st which includes a practice session and beginners clinic on Saturday February 20th. Chris says it's the longest continuously running rifle match in the nation, and it certainly sounds like a fun time to me.

Due to recent expansion at Ben Avery there is room for up to 320 shooters in the competition this year, so come one and all to join in on the fun! The deadline to submit your entry form is Feb 16th or whenever they hit the 320 shooter limit, whichever comes first. Don't miss out on the fun!

AZCDL Legislative Update

Update from Arizona Citizens Defense League:

Thanks to the hundreds of you generating almost 4,000 emails to committee members, we made great progress this week!

The companion AzCDL-requested Constitutional Carry bills, SB 1102 and HB 2347, were both voted out of their respective committees. The SB 1102 vote was 4-3 in the Senate Judiciary Committee and the HB 2347 vote was 5-2, with one member not voting, in the House Military Affairs and Public Safety Committee.

Both Constitutional Carry bills have been amended in almost identical fashion. The primary Constitutional Carry language remains intact! The biggest change was in the CCW training requirements. SB 1102 and HB 2347 originally proposed eliminating the CCW permit training altogether. The strong resistance to this was not unexpected. AzCDL-suggested language was added that improves, but no longer eliminates, the existing statutory CCW permit training requirements. This resulted in reduced opposition. Other changes to the Constitutional Carry bills include:

- Correcting the language regarding the sale (versus destruction) of confiscated weapons.
- Requiring CCW permit holders to have their permit, when required, and available to law enforcement.
- Preventing law enforcement from confiscating a weapon lawfully possessed by a permit holder.
- Other technical corrections.

As a result of AzCDL’s representatives addressing the concerns of “stakeholders” of SB 1102 and HB 2347, some of the law enforcement unions have changed their position to “neutral” (from “opposed”). This is critical to successful passage. And, the NRA has registered support for Constitutional Carry with their representative testifying during the HB 2347 hearings. We hope to see even more support from the NRA on these bills.

The next step for SB 1102 and HB 2347, as with all bills passing out of committee, is a review in the Rules Committee in their respective chambers before being scheduled for debate and vote on the Senate and House floors.

Constitutional Carry was not the only pro-rights issue being addressed this week.

SB 1011, authorizing college and university faculty members, with CCW permits, to possess a concealed firearm on campus, was heard in the Senate Public Safety and Human Services Committee on Wednesday, February 3, 2010, but after discussion was “held” without a vote.

SB 1015, clarifying the "no firearms" signage requirements for restaurants, is also being held. An agreement was reached with the stakeholders (i.e., Liquor Lobby), to clarify the posting requirements via a change in the liquor laws. Senator Barbara Leff, chair of the Senate Commerce and Economic Development Committee (where SB 1015 is assigned) is closely monitoring the situation.

SB 1098, the "Firearms Freedom Act," was heard in the Senate Judiciary Committee on Monday, February 1, 2009. It passed out of committee by a party line vote of 4-3. The House version of SB 1098 (HB 2307) passed out of the House Judiciary Committee on January 28, 2010.

It looks like next week will be relatively quiet. Most key firearms related bills have been voted favorably out of their assigned committees and appear to be moving along nicely.

Stay tuned! When critical legislation moves, we will notify you via these Alerts.

If you want to get legislative news as it happens, follow AzCDL on Twitter: http://twitter.com/AzCDL_Alerts .
AzCDL “tweets” from the Capitol with committee votes and breaking news as it happens.

You can also follow AzCDL on Facebook: http://tinyurl.com/FacebookAzCDL .

AzCDL’s Political Action Committee (PAC) is also on Facebook: http://tinyurl.com/FacebookAzCDLPAC .

These alerts are a project of the Arizona Citizens Defense League (AzCDL), an all volunteer, non-profit, non-partisan grassroots organization. Renew your membership today! http://www.azcdl.org/html/join_us_.html

AzCDL – Protecting Your Freedom
http://www.azcdl.org/html/accomplishments.html

Copyright © 2010 Arizona Citizens Defense League, Inc., all rights reserved.

Project Appleseed

I took one of my boys to a Project Appleseed event in Buckeye Arizona at the General Joe Foss Shooting Range this past weekend. It coincided with the 1 year anniversary of the opening of the range, so we all took a short break to attend the flag ceremony put on by US Military Veterans which was a nice bonus. While waiting for the flag ceremony to begin, I found my friends from the Arizona Citizens Defense League had set up a table nearby, so I took a quick moment to renew my AZCDL membership early.

Massad Ayoob attended an Appleseed event in Florida the same weekend and did an excellent writeup of what Appleseed is all about. The description of what a rifleman is from the Appleseed website itself is:

What's a rifleman?

In short, a rifleman is an armed American, trained in the tradition of American Liberty. It's a man [or woman] who has learned to shoot a rifle accurately — accurate enough to score "expert" on the Army Qualification Course. Until you can do that, you're considered a "Cook," unprepared and unqualified to carry a rifle on the firing line of freedom. But after attending an Appleseed AQT shoot, you'll have the credentials necessary to be a true rifleman, and will understand the critical need for defending freedom in this country.

There was a great mixture of men, women, and children attending the Appleseed event. I can vouch for the fact that none of the women there felt outnumbered, and some of the best shots at the end of the day ended up being some of the women and young ladies shooting for the first time rifles they had never even fired before.

Steve and KC (known as AZGromit and AZRedhawk44 on the Appleseed forum) were knowledgeable & skilled instructors. They excelled at presenting the training materials in a way easy for all to follow & understand, and did a touching job of retelling the history of the American Rifelman and the people and events that lead up to the American Revolutionary War for the Independence and Freedom we still enjoy today.

There is probably an Appleseed Event coming to a location near you. Sign up, I'm confident that you'll be glad you did.

AZ:Committee Hearings This Week!

A bunch of pro gun bills will be heard at hearings this week. Be sure to contact your Representatives with your thoughts and submit your comments to the Arizona Request to Speak System for the hearings. If you are not yet registered for the Arizona Request to Speak System you can do so at any kiosk at the AZ House or Senate building (1700 W Washington, Phoenix, AZ 85007).

If you are unable to attend the hearing in person, you can watch online via either live or archived video streaming.

More on the upcoming hearings from AZCDL:

Four pro-rights bills are scheduled for committee hearings next week.

SB 1098, the "Firearms Freedom Act," will be heard in the Senate Judiciary Committee on Monday, February 1, 2009.

SB 1102, the AzCDL-requested "Constitutional Carry" bill, will also be heard in the Senate Judiciary Committee on Monday.

HB 2347, the House version of SB 1102 (Constitutional Carry), will be heard in the House Military Affairs and Public Safety Committee on Wednesday, February 3, 2010.

SB 1011, authorizing college and university faculty members, with CCW permits, to possess a concealed firearm on campus, will be heard in the Senate Public Safety and Human Services Committee on Wednesday, February 3, 2010.

We urge you to contact the committee members on these bills and WE’VE MADE IT EASIER FOR YOU!

AzCDL has added a Legislative Action Center to improve YOUR ability to contact Arizona legislators and share your opinion at http://capwiz.com/azcdl/home/ . This is the same interface used by Gun Owners of America and many other successful organizations.

To take action on the above bills from AzCDL’s Legislative Action Center home page, click on “Issues,” then click on “Legislative Alerts and Updates” (http://capwiz.com/azcdl/issues/?style=D&). There you will find a list of the bills mentioned in this Alert that require action. Clicking on any one of them will take you to an editable letter. You can add your own text or send it as is, after filing in the required fields. WE WILL NOT SHARE YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION WITH ANYONE! We also recommend keeping the “remember me” box checked so that next time you send a letter there will be less work to do.

Our Legislative Action Center is new to us also. If you spot any errors or have any suggestions, please let us know by sending an email to treasurer@azcdl.org.

In other news, the following bills recently passed out of committee.

HB 2307, the House version of SB 1098 (Firearms Freedom Act), passed out of the House Judiciary Committee by a 5-2 vote, with one member absent, on January 28, 2010.

SB 1172, which improves the language in Arizona’s school gun safety program statutes, passed out of the Senate Education and Accountability Reform Committee, by a unanimous 7-0 vote, on January 27, 2010.

The normal process for any bill passing out of a committee is to go to their respective chambers Rules Committee. The following bills are due to be heard Monday, February 1, 2010 in the Senate Rules Committee:

SB 1021, which incorporates defensive display into the statutes regarding the justification for deadly force.

SB 1153, knife preemption.

SB 1172, school gun safety improvements.

Stay tuned! When critical legislation moves, we will notify you via these Alerts.

You can also follow AzCDL on Twitter: http://twitter.com/AzCDL_Alerts
and Facebook: http://tinyurl.com/FacebookAzCDL .

AzCDL’s Political Action Committee (PAC) is also on Facebook: http://tinyurl.com/FacebookAzCDLPAC .

These alerts are a project of the Arizona Citizens Defense League (AzCDL), an all volunteer, non-profit, non-partisan grassroots organization. Renew your membership today! http://www.azcdl.org/html/join_us_.html

AzCDL – Protecting Your Freedom
http://www.azcdl.org/html/accomplishments.html

Copyright © 2010 Arizona Citizens Defense League, Inc., all rights reserved.

AZ: Home Intruder Demanding Keys to Car Given Lead Instead

A suspect who robbed a carwash had his car break down while he was making his getaway. He ditched his car at an elementary school, causing the school to go into lockdown, and took off on foot into the nearby neighborhood. He broke into a home and demanded the keys to the car. Instead of keys, the homeowner gave him lead.

I love happy endings!

H/T to Shawn.

AZ: Firearms Freedom Act HB 2307

The House Judiciary Committee is scheduled to hear HB 2307 the Firearms Freedom Act today (Thursday, January 28, 2010) at 9 AM MST in House Hearing Rm 4. If passed into law it would prohibit the Federal Government from sticking it's nose into the sale or regulation of guns fully manufactured & used only in Arizona as they would not be involved in interstate commerce.

Be sure to contact your Senator with your thoughts and submit your comments to the Arizona Request to Speak System for the hearing. If you are not yet registered for the Arizona Request to Speak System you can do so at any kiosk at the AZ House or Senate building (1700 W Washington, Phoenix, AZ 85007).

If you are unable to attend the hearing in person, you can watch online via either live or archived video streaming.

Update 1: The House Judiciary Committee passed the bill out of Committee with a do pass recommendation by a vote of 5 to 2.

Steve Lee: I Like Guns

Tom Gresham interviewed Steve Lee, a singer/songwriter in Australia who created the I Like Guns Music Album. The first part of the music video takes place in Australia where there is a current ban on most semi-automatic guns, the second half took place in Cambodia - you'll notice the weapons he used in Cambodia included items not legal in Australia such as full auto machine guns and rocket propelled grenades - looks to me like he had a blast. Steve Lee has an I Like Guns album available in iTunes.

AZ: Senate Judiciary Committee Hearing

Our first 2010 Senate Judiciary Committee Hearing on gun rights bills is scheduled for this Monday Jan 25th at 1:00 PM MST in Senate Hearing Room 1. Be sure to contact your Senator in addition to the members of the Senate Judiciary Committee, and submit your comments to the Arizona Request to Speak System for the hearing.

If you are not yet registered for the Arizona Request to Speak System you can do so at any kiosk at the AZ House or Senate building (1700 W Washington, Phoenix, AZ 85007).

If you are unable to attend the hearing in person, you can watch online via either live or archived video streaming.

More from AZCDL:

Bills are already starting to move! The Senate Judiciary Committee has the 5 following pro-rights bills scheduled for a hearing on Monday, January 25, 2010 (http://tinyurl.com/SJUD20100125):

SB 1021 – Incorporates defensive display into the justification for deadly force statutes.
(Bill text: http://www.azleg.gov/legtext/49leg/2r/bills/sb1021p.pdf ).

SB 1098 – Arizona’s version of the “Firearms Freedom Act.” If passed and signed into law, any firearm manufactured in Arizona and that remains in the state, “is not subject to Federal law or Federal regulation, including registration, under the authority of Congress to regulate interstate commerce and it not considered to have traveled in interstate commerce.”
(Bill text: http://www.azleg.gov/legtext/49leg/2r/bills/sb1098p.pdf ).

SB 1101 – Allows certain detention officers and retired law enforcement to possess a concealed firearm without a CCW permit.
(Bill text: http://www.azleg.gov/legtext/49leg/2r/bills/sb1101p.pdf ).

SB 1102 – The AzCDL-requested Constitutional Carry bill that eliminates the prohibition and penalties for adults carrying a concealed weapon without a permit.
(Bill text: http://www.azleg.gov/legtext/49leg/2r/bills/sb1102p.pdf ).

SB 1153 – A knife preemption law being championed by the national Knife Rights organization (http://www.kniferights.org).
(Bill text: http://www.azleg.gov/legtext/49leg/2r/bills/sb1153p.pdf ).

It’s time to remind the committee members that you are keenly interested in what they are doing, and that you want these bills to favorably pass out of the Senate Judiciary committee.

We urge everyone to contact the Senate Judiciary Committee members and politely ask them to support SB 1021, 1098, 1101, 1102 and 1153 when they meet on Monday, January 25, 2010. The following is a sample letter you can use. Following the sample are the email addresses of committee members.

Please be sure to include your name, address, and phone number in all correspondence.

If you are a subscriber to the RTS (Request To Speak) system at the Capitol, log on and express your support to the committee. If you want more information about how to set up an account on RTS, send an email to President@AzCDL.org.

Stay tuned! When critical legislation moves, we will notify you via these Alerts.

You can also follow AzCDL on Twitter: http://twitter.com/AzCDL_Alerts
and Facebook: http://tinyurl.com/FacebookAzCDL .

AzCDL’s Political Action Committee (PAC) is also on Facebook: http://tinyurl.com/FacebookAzCDLPAC .

These alerts are a project of the Arizona Citizens Defense League (AzCDL), an all volunteer, non-profit, non-partisan grassroots organization. Join today! http://www.azcdl.org/html/join_us_.html

AzCDL – Protecting Your Freedom
http://www.azcdl.org/html/accomplishments.html

Copyright © 2010 Arizona Citizens Defense League, Inc., all rights reserved.

TX: Austin PD Openly Attacks Freedom

In a flagrant attack on freedom and gun shows, the Austin Texas Police Department in conjunction with BATFE thugs illegally prohibited the private party transfer of personal property by law abiding American Citizens while attending Gun Shows. They had zero legislation with which to support this unconstitutional attack on our freedom, so both organizations are clearly acting outside of the law. You can listen to Alex Jones discuss this on his Jan 18th 2010 radio show in hours 1-4.

This is the type of attack I would not have been surprised to see in Washington DC or Chicago, but not Texas. Most of the Texans I know will not stand for this blatant attack on our liberty.

Update 1: Howard Nemerov has new details - it now looks like the property owner bears more blame than the Austin PD.

Ray Stevens: We The People

Excellent music video from Ray Stevens. How can you go wrong with the lyric "Hey Congress: You vote Obamacare, we'll vote you outa there! We the people have awakened to your tricks"

NRA Online Advisory Panel

The NRA has formed an NRA online advisory panel. Join in and share your opinion. After you sign up, you can take their 2nd Amendment Spectrum poll to see where you stand on the spectrum. You'll also be able to see how your stand compares with those of your elected representatives. I scored a 100%. Where do you fall on the spectrum?

There is also an online forum where you can join discussions on the issues. More details:

The NRA Online Advisory Panel

A few weeks ago, we launched a brand new service -- the NRA Online Advisory Panel -- a community of our most active and loyal supporters.

As a part of the Advisory Panel, you have the opportunity to engage with other NRA members, take weekly polls and surveys, compare Members of Congress, track federal legislation, and more. This is your chance to make your voice count. NRA wants to know what you think and what gun owners are concerned-or excited-about in your part of the country.

Thousands of NRA members have already joined and the community is growing every day. If you haven't already visited this new web site, please be sure to do so soon.

To find out more and to sign up to become a member of the NRA Online Advisory Panel, please visit: http://nra.civicscience.com.

Copyright 2010, National Rifle Association of America, Institute for Legislative Action. This may be reproduced. It may not be reproduced for commercial purposes. 11250 Waples Mill Road, Fairfax, VA 22030 800-392-8683

Good News for Hunters & Target Shooters in Arizona

The NRA has Won the right to defend Hunters against a lawsuit that was filed last year against the Arizona BLM & Fish & Wildlife Service that is seeking to ban lead ammunition. This is good news for all Arizona gun owners, for those who hunt, and those who don't.