Mexican President Felipe Calderon had some helpful advice for us in his speech to Congress today:
"President Felipe Calderón of Mexico argued before a joint meeting of Congress today that his country was making extraordinary investments in confronting drug-fueled crime – a problem that also affects the United States — as he implored lawmakers in Washington to restore a ban on the assault weapons often used by traffickers.
He also assailed as a "terrible idea" the new Arizona law that allows law enforcement officials to detain anyone suspected of being in the country illegally, repeating the criticism he made Wednesday, when he spent much of the day with President Obama. Mr. Obama himself called the law "misdirected."
"I strongly disagree with the recently adopted law in Arizona," Mr. Calderón said. "It is a law that not only ignores a reality that cannot be erased by decree, but also introduces a terrible idea: using racial profiling as a basis for law enforcement."
In a 35-minute speech before the joint session of Congress, Mr. Calderón talked about the human toll of the violence associated with drug trafficking. "Restoring public security will not be easy and will not be quick," he said, adding that it "will take time, it will take money and, unfortunately to our deep sorrow, it will take human life as well."
But he added, "This is a battle that has to be fought because the future of our families is at stake."
Mr. Calderón was for the most part warmly received, though some of the issues he raised – including illegal immigration – are among the most divisive in American politics. He said that Mexico was doing its best to create thousands of jobs and keep Mexicans at home. "My government does not favor the breaking of rules," he said.
On the gun question, Mr. Calderón said: "We have seized 75,000 guns and assault weapons in Mexico in the past three years, and more than 80 percent of those we have been able to trace came from the United States."
He said it did not seem coincidental that violence in Mexico had begun to grow in 2006, not long after the weapons ban expired in the United States. Drug-related killings are estimated to have approached 23,000 since Mr. Calderón began a war on trafficking that year.
While Mr. Calderón's speech was interrupted with frequent applause and at least a half-dozen standing ovations, his call for a new assault weapons ban appeared to draw applause only from some Democrats, while most Republicans remained seated.
Indeed, in the current largely pro-gun Congress, there seemed to be little chance of passing a fresh ban. Ever since Democrats gained control with the election of moderate to conservative members, efforts to enact gun-control curbs have mostly failed.
After Mr. Calderón's speech, Senator Richard J. Durbin, the majority whip from Illinois, lamented the violence — especially along the northern border of Mexico — that has spilled into both countries. But he, too, noted the lack of a receptive climate in Congress toward restoring the assault weapons ban.
On the floor of the Senate, Mr. Durbin said he was sure that Mr. Calderón's call for prohibiting assault weapons wasn't welcomed by a lot of lawmakers on Capitol Hill. Beyond the protections afforded to law-abiding citizens of the United States under the Second Amendment, however, "the people who are buying and shipping guns into Mexico from the United States are not engaged in the type of protected constitutional activity which the Supreme Court noted," Mr. Durbin said." (NYT 5/20/10)
BEST DAMN ARGUMENT FOR THE SECOND AMENDMENT I HAVE SEEN IN YEARS!
"President Felipe Calderón of Mexico argued before a joint meeting of Congress today that his country was making extraordinary investments in confronting drug-fueled crime – a problem that also affects the United States — as he implored lawmakers in Washington to restore a ban on the assault weapons often used by traffickers.
He also assailed as a "terrible idea" the new Arizona law that allows law enforcement officials to detain anyone suspected of being in the country illegally, repeating the criticism he made Wednesday, when he spent much of the day with President Obama. Mr. Obama himself called the law "misdirected."
"I strongly disagree with the recently adopted law in Arizona," Mr. Calderón said. "It is a law that not only ignores a reality that cannot be erased by decree, but also introduces a terrible idea: using racial profiling as a basis for law enforcement."
In a 35-minute speech before the joint session of Congress, Mr. Calderón talked about the human toll of the violence associated with drug trafficking. "Restoring public security will not be easy and will not be quick," he said, adding that it "will take time, it will take money and, unfortunately to our deep sorrow, it will take human life as well."
But he added, "This is a battle that has to be fought because the future of our families is at stake."
Mr. Calderón was for the most part warmly received, though some of the issues he raised – including illegal immigration – are among the most divisive in American politics. He said that Mexico was doing its best to create thousands of jobs and keep Mexicans at home. "My government does not favor the breaking of rules," he said.
On the gun question, Mr. Calderón said: "We have seized 75,000 guns and assault weapons in Mexico in the past three years, and more than 80 percent of those we have been able to trace came from the United States."
He said it did not seem coincidental that violence in Mexico had begun to grow in 2006, not long after the weapons ban expired in the United States. Drug-related killings are estimated to have approached 23,000 since Mr. Calderón began a war on trafficking that year.
While Mr. Calderón's speech was interrupted with frequent applause and at least a half-dozen standing ovations, his call for a new assault weapons ban appeared to draw applause only from some Democrats, while most Republicans remained seated.
Indeed, in the current largely pro-gun Congress, there seemed to be little chance of passing a fresh ban. Ever since Democrats gained control with the election of moderate to conservative members, efforts to enact gun-control curbs have mostly failed.
After Mr. Calderón's speech, Senator Richard J. Durbin, the majority whip from Illinois, lamented the violence — especially along the northern border of Mexico — that has spilled into both countries. But he, too, noted the lack of a receptive climate in Congress toward restoring the assault weapons ban.
On the floor of the Senate, Mr. Durbin said he was sure that Mr. Calderón's call for prohibiting assault weapons wasn't welcomed by a lot of lawmakers on Capitol Hill. Beyond the protections afforded to law-abiding citizens of the United States under the Second Amendment, however, "the people who are buying and shipping guns into Mexico from the United States are not engaged in the type of protected constitutional activity which the Supreme Court noted," Mr. Durbin said." (NYT 5/20/10)
BEST DAMN ARGUMENT FOR THE SECOND AMENDMENT I HAVE SEEN IN YEARS!
Just vote them all out in Nov. and get people who will run this country like the people want. Don
