Disarmed and Defenseless

April 13, 2007: State Representative Daryl Metcalfe - 12th District, Butler County

Disarmed and Defenseless: An Inside Look at the Liberal, Gun-Grabbing Agenda of PA House's "Reformed" Democrat Majority

"There was a war last year in our Commonwealth in electoral politics and make no doubt about it the people of Pennsylvania won,” claimed House Democrat Leader Bill DeWeese in a Jan. 23, 2007 press release. Touting the initial meeting of the Speaker’s Commission on Legislative Reform, DeWeese stated that this is “the start of a new day in Pennsylvania politics.”

But based on the more than one dozen previously defeated gun control measures being rolled out yet again by gun grabbing, Big City, Liberal House Democrats such as Angel Cruz, Babette Josephs and Dan Frankel, can Pennsylvania’s 2+ million licensed hunters and other outdoor sports participants legitimately claim that they are the victors?

Furthermore, are repeated liberal Democrat-initiated efforts to rob us of our Constitutional right to keep and bear arms (that each of these legislators have sworn an oath to uphold and defend), really the type of government reform that our state’s law abiding firearm owners are looking for?

Even as you’re reading this, Mr. DeWeese is undoubtedly ducking and covering behind his “perfect” NRA voting record from past legislative sessions. Meanwhile, his extreme left-wing, Democrat colleague Representative Cruz’s current, legislative assault (House Bill 760) to disarm law-abiding gun owners strongly suggests that outside of Gov. Ed “One Gun a Month” Rendell, the Second Amendment may have never had a more relentless enemy in Pennsylvania than the current liberal left wing of the House Democrat Majority.

For starters, if enacted, House Bill 760 would penalize Pennsylvania gun owners by charging them with an annual $10 per-gun registration fee. Simple math reveals that if a citizen owns six firearms, that would amount to an additional $60 annual “gun tax” that they must pay to execute their Constitutional rights to protect their lives, their families and their property from criminal intruders who could care less about complying with mandatory gun registration.

In addition, individual gun owners would be forced to undergo annual fingerprinting, an annual criminal background check and forever carry a photo registration card with their gun(s) at all times.

Putting this legislation into practice throughout all of Penn’s Woods, realistically means that any licensed hunter who did not break one single law enforced by the Pennsylvania Game Commission could be charged as a criminal for unknowingly losing their mandatory gun registration while chasing down a prized buck or mistakenly leaving their photo I.D. at home on the kitchen table. In other words, hand over your hunting rifle and show the government your papers.

Which brings us to the most reprehensible, Orwellian nightmare contained in House Bill 760. If annual registration is denied for any reason, your firearm(s) would be immediately confiscated.

Again, House Bill 760 comes courtesy of the same Philadelphia Democrat Representative Angel Cruz who recently denounced our bipartisan “National Security Begins at Home” package. This package is designed to bring an end to the illegal alien invasion in Pennsylvania. But Cruz claims that these bills “are not conducive to promoting the ideals on which this nation was founded.”

What could be more destructive to our nation’s founding principles than the premeditated efforts of Cruz, Babette Josephs and other like-minded Liberal, gun-grabbing members of the House Democrat majority to defend the illegal alien invaders for violating our laws? All this, while at the same time, doing everything within their power to leave law-abiding Pennsylvania citizens completely disarmed and defenseless against violent criminals!

History and violent crime statistics from around the world confirm two undisputable truths in this regard: the safest societies are armed societies; and, citizenries deprived of their right to own firearms by their governments have been denied the most effective means to defend themselves against those who seek to do them harm.

Regardless of political affiliation, gun owners across this Commonwealth are justifiably outraged. Once again, gun owners are being threatened by state government with the loss of their Constitutional freedoms and personal security due largely to the City of Philadelphia’s failed “catch and release policy” concerning convicted gang members and other violent criminals.

I want to encourage each and every freedom-loving Pennsylvanian to make the time to participate in the Second Annual statewide “Right to Keep and Bear Arms Rally” on Tuesday, April 24. Beginning at 9 am, in the State Capitol Rotunda, I will join with other legislators and second amendment advocate groups to unveil a package of bipartisan legislation that is specifically designed to keep Second Amendment Liberty in Pennsylvania Second to None. For more information visit my web site at RepMetcalfe.com.

Rep. Daryl Metcalfe

12th District

Pennsylvania House of Representatives

(724) 772-3110

(717) 783-1707