United Liberty

When it comes to the 2nd Amendment who is the political gunslinger? Let’s go beyond the rhetoric.

It’s a question we need to look at closely, especially as the election draws near. Shutting off the media circus for a bit, lets look at these candidates strictly on issues. Then see what we come up with.

Sure enough, today we got a great article to back us up.

Kevin Tracy over at ktracy.com wrote a great post laying out, quite simply, why the NRA looks positioned to endorse Bob Barr. As many of you know, the NRA endorsement is something that most Republican’s sweep each year and is considered to be one of the bigger endorsements Presidential candidates seek. Bob Dole missed out on it in 1996 with his assault gun ban flip-flop, but other than that, the NRA is usually a GOP lock. This year however, the Libertarians have fielded Bob Barr, and he isn’t just a supporter of the 2nd Amendment, he’s quite a bit more…

So what about McCain?

Those voters who put a lot of emphasis on the second amendment and traditionally vote Republican may be in for a rude surprise when they look into the record of John McCain. As it turns out, Senator McCain’s record on the Second Amendment is sketchy at best, earning him only a C from the prestigious National Rifle Association (NRA).

So which candidate stands above the rest?

That candidate is Bob Barr, who proudly sports an A+ rating from the NRA for every year of the man’s career in the United States Congress. That’s no small accomplishment and gun owners and advocates of the Second Amendment, who are among the most well informed voting blocks in the country, are going to realize how inadequate John McCain is to represent them on issues important to them.

He also sat on the NRA Board of Directors and is rumored to be a gun enthusiast. I wrangled up this quote from Bob on Georgia gun ownership:

“These and other firearms-related issues likely will – and should – occupy the attention of our legislators during the 2008 session. One hopes that organizations like the NRA and GeorgiaCarry.Org, will continue to proactively educate and advocate on behalf of the inherent Second Amendment rights of all law-abiding Georgians, just as the lawyers representing such citizens in the District of Columbia will be doing in the Supreme Court early next year.”

“The extent to which Georgia’s laws restrict the carrying of a firearm by an otherwise law-abiding citizen as a result of these long-standing, but little-known laws is startling; and such laws should be amended. For example, unlike California, Georgia law prohibits the carrying (by a holder of a carry permit) of a firearm on a bus or a train – or even at or near a train or bus stop parking lot.”

Of course, he’s talking about the DC vs. Heller decision in which he released a video for which you can catch below. Thank you Bob Barr, not only for talking about supporting gun ownership when pressed, but making it a central issue of your campaign.