Response from John McCain

[bitstream]

Here's what I got from John McCain; I'm a little concerned:

Thank you for contacting my office regarding the tragic shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School, and its impact on federal gun legislation. I appreciate your taking the time to share your views with me.

As you know, on December 14, 2012, a mentally unstable gunman committed a senseless atrocity by murdering twenty students and six staff members at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newton, Connecticut. While many Americans continue to try to rationalize this tragedy it remains clear that the inhumane and depraved actions of this individual gunman appear to be motivated solely by his extremely disturbed mental state.

On January 16, 2013, President Obama and his administration introduced a twenty-three point plan which lays out both executive and legislative proposals that would attempt to prevent future violence. As the details of the President’s proposals become more clear, I look forward to reviewing them, and working with my colleagues to find sensible solutions that respect the Second Amendment but also help us prevent these type of horrific events from ever happening again.

While I am an unwavering supporter of the Second Amendment, please know that I will seriously consider all reasonable public safety legislation that comes before the Senate.
Thank you once again for contacting my office. Please do not hesitate to do so on this or any other issue of concern.


Sincerely,
John McCain
United States Senator

 

[nawilson]

Any time I hear "sensible solutions" in regard to gun control, I get worried. It I seems to be a code for "we'll get what we can now and come back for more later."

 

[Harrison]

Thoughtful people do not consider anti-gun laws and gun bans to be public safety issues. A public safety issue would be taking violent criminals off the streets and escorting them to a long term in jail.

 

[BCDWYO]

At least you got a response from McCain. I e-mailed him a letter about a month ago and haven't heard a peep back.

 

[Quick10]

I got like 6 responses from him in the last couple of days.

 

[bitstream]

At least you got a response from McCain. I e-mailed him a letter about a month ago and haven't heard a peep back.

The best response I got back was from my Representative, Mat Salmon:



Thank you for contacting me with your concerns over the recent debate about gun control. I appreciate hearing from you on this important issue.

Our country is mourning the recent shocking and senseless murders in Aurora CO and Newtown CT by lone individuals seeking to do unspeakable harm to their fellow Americans. In response, it is natural for us as a country to reflect and try to identify solutions and policies that will ensure such horrific events never happen again. Unfortunately, those who have long-sought increased gun restrictions are using these tragedies to once again try and limit the constitutionally guaranteed rights of law abiding Americans to own and operate firearms. It is never more important to fight to protect the rights of individual citizens than in the wake of a tragedy that tempts us with easy "solutions" that limit the rights of all.

As a gun owner and avid target shooter, I exercise my right as an American to keep and bear arms. I have enjoyed participating in various target shooting activities and value the safe-handling of firearms. I also believe that this natural, God-given right ought to be safeguarded as the Founding Fathers intended when they enshrined it in the Bill of Rights. The Second Amendment exists as a bulwark against those who would deprive the American citizen of his life, his liberty, or his property. This is the essence of the Second Amendment. As a result, I remain very concerned about the Obama Administration's plan to implement gun ownership restrictions. As a result, I join millions of Americans who refuse to allow my rights to be limited because of the action of a few; that is not America.

Going forward, I will stand as I have always stood, in the defense of all American's constitutional rights and I will continue to advocate for responsible firearm ownership and stand ready to defend against any encroachments on our right to bear arms.

Thank you again for contacting me. As we take up debate on this important issue, I will certainly keep your thoughts in mind as we work on solutions that will protect our families. If you have any additional comments or questions, please feel free to contact me or my office at 202-225-2635.

Sincerely,

Matt Salmon
Member of Congress

 

[boat770]

Now that guy, Matt Salmon, gets it. Bravo!

 

[MajorHal]

Here's what I got from John McCain; I'm a little concerned:

Thank you for contacting my office regarding the tragic shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School, and its impact on federal gun legislation.

The same response I received today, I am concerned as well?

 

[TStick]

John McCain is a certified American hero, because of his time as a POW. That being said, this nation, and all of us owe him a certain amount of respect and gratitude.
The letter from McCain submitted in previous posts only shows what happens to good, honest(sometimes heros), people. After they have been in public service for too long.
Years ago I believe John McCain would have stood up and said NO. Although we can never repay him for his sacrifices, I'm sad to say he may have been influenced by too many years in the political machine to know what's really going on in rural america. The letter he sent scares me too. Please reply to him and remind him why he fought and what he was imprisoned for.

NO AMERICAN SOLDIER THAT I KNOW, EVER FOUGHT FOR SOCIALISM.

Excellent post. Absolutely nailed it.

 

[Krell1]

I'm pretty sure that anyone who gets a response from the Senator will get the exact same answer. These letters are printed as needed and signed with an auto pen or a staff member. The Senator probably approves the content but he never wrote the response himself. These congressmen should be more aware that they work for us and should be fighting for our rights. The second amendment should be protected as well as the entire Bill of Rights. I've been a bullseye shooter for the last 50 years and NEVER shot anything but paper targets. It's good to hear that Congressman Salmon and hopefully others as well will continue to look out for honest sportsmen.

 

[PALADIN85020]

I have sent numerous letters and e-mails to John McCain, with the result that I got the same canned e-mail response each time as in the original post. I was VERY disappointed.

John

 

[ChattanoogaPhil]

McCain is now applauding efforts to expand NICS. Watch the video.

McCain on gun control: Most of the Senate will support universal background checks « Hot Air

 

[ChattanoogaPhil]

Hey guys, I deleted a bunch of stuff in this thread. This isn't the water boarding or POW section of the Forum.

 

[Steve in Vermont]

Please keep in mind that this is politics, pure and simple. Everything a politician says, everything, is scrutinized by people on both sides of an issue. They have learned, many the hard way, that things they said decades ago can come back to haunt them. And whatever stand they take will upset someone. If they want to get re-elected the idea is to upset the fewest voters possible. So don't take to seriously a "canned" response from a politician. It's in their genes.

 

[BCDWYO]

Update on my earlier post. I finally got a response from Senator McCain. The response I got is worded quite a bit more "pro-2A" than the OPs response. Interesting. I wonder if he has different response based on the tone of the letter he receives or if he is swinging his opinion back our way? As stated before he obviously doesn't personally answer all these, but it is interesting how the tone of his response is more gun friendly here:

Thank you for contacting me regarding gun control. I appreciate your concerns regarding this matter.



Congress, like the American people, continues to be divided on the issue of controlling firearms as a means of addressing the appalling level of violence which besets our nation. I do not believe, however, that the answers to these problems lie with gun control. We cannot resort to abridging law-abiding citizens' Constitutional rights in order to solve the tough problems that face our nation.



Criminals, by definition, have a patent disregard for the law. It would be dangerously naive to assume that they would abide by gun restrictions. Washington, DC, is an excellent case-in-point. The District has among the strictest gun control laws in the nation, and yet also holds one of the highest violent crime rates.



I will continue working to stop violent crime and those individuals who have or would abuse their Second Amendment rights. While addressing these important concerns, rest assured that I will ensure that the rights of honest, law abiding citizens are not abridged.



Again, thank you for contacting me. Please do not hesitate to do so regarding this or any other matter of concern.

Sincerely,


John McCain

United States Senator

 

[Poodle Soup]

The first one was while tempers were still high and playing to both sides, this one leans a little more our way now that things are cooling down some what.

 

[johngalt]

McCain's support for the 2nd has always been luke-warm at best.

 

[Jimstr]

My response from Ohio Sen. Rob Portman

Thank you for contacting me to express your views about the President's gun control proposals. It is good to hear from you.



As you know, President Obama recently issued 23 executive actions and endorsed gun control legislative initiatives following the terrible tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary School.



I had hoped President Obama would look to address the root causes of senseless acts of violence and work with Congress to develop a comprehensive plan to lessen the likelihood of these kinds of tragic incidents in the future. Unfortunately, the President has chosen to act unilaterally wherever he can and focus on new gun bans which I believe would undermine the Second Amendment rights of law-abiding citizens.



In response to tragic attacks like the one at Sandy Hook Elementary, I remain committed to ensuring that those who suffer from mental illness, a common thread in these instances, receive proper care, that current gun laws are enforced, and that school safety is enhanced as we address the deeper issue of violence in our society.



Thank you again for taking the time to contact my office. For more information, please visit my website at Rob Portman . Please keep in touch.





Sincerely,

Rob Portman
U.S. Senator

 

[rcnixon]

Senator McCain is a genuine hero and he comes from a long line of people who have served our country for a hundred years. That being said, I believe that he has stayed too long at the fair. He needs to be sent into honorable retirement by the people of Arizona.

Russ

 

[rakstr]

McCain served valiantly and I thank him for that. However, it is time he move on. He is a defining reason for term limits.

As to his response, he changes the wording daily based on polls. I know, shocking a career politician would do such things

Update on my earlier post. I finally got a response from Senator McCain. The response I got is worded quite a bit more "pro-2A" than the OPs response. Interesting. I wonder if he has different response based on the tone of the letter he receives or if he is swinging his opinion back our way? As stated before he obviously doesn't personally answer all these, but it is interesting how the tone of his response is more gun friendly here: