NRA Partners With Conspiracy-Minded Gun Activists At Chicago CPAC
Published
This week, National Rifle Association president David Keene will moderate a “conservative conversation” at the Chicago Conservative Political Action Conference with NRA board member Maria Heil, Illinois State Rifle Association executive director Richard Pearson, and Wisconsin Tea Party figure Kimberly Jo Simac. Keene and the panelists all have a history of extreme and conspiratorial rhetoric.
NRA's Keene To Lead “Conservative Conversation” About Second Amendment At Chicago CPAC
Keene Will Moderate A Panel With Gun Activists On “The Liberal's Shadow War On Second Amendment.” From the Chicago CPAC schedule:
[From the CPAC Chicago schedule, accessed 6/5/12]
MODERATOR DAVID KEENE, PRESIDENT OF THE NATIONAL RIFLE ASSOCIATION
Keene Believes That Obama Is Involved In A Scheme To End Private Gun Ownership
Keene: Obama Supports Plan To “Severely Restrict Or Eliminate Our Second Amendment Rights.” From a column by Keene in the January 2012 edition of the NRA's America's 1st Freedom magazine:
This is a president who has signaled to the international anti-gun community that the United Nations should go ahead with its plan to develop a treaty that could severely restrict or eliminate our Second Amendment rights. [National Rifle Association, retrieved 6/4/12]
Keene: Gun Violence Prevention Advocates Developing “A Treaty That Could Destroy Private Gun Ownership In This Country.” From a column by Keene in the September 2011 edition of the NRA's America's 1st Freedom magazine:
As I write this, the United Nations has begun negotiating what many of its member states and supporters hope will be a comprehensive international treaty to regulate the trade in--and in many cases the private ownership of--small arms. Gun control advocates from this country have joined literally hundreds of like-minded Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) to work with international anti-gun delegates to develop a treaty that could destroy private gun ownership in this country in spite of our Second Amendment. [National Rifle Association, retrieved 6/4/12]
At NRA's 2011 Annual Meeting, Keene Said Obama Administration “Would Take Our Guns If They Could.” From an April 30, 2011 speech:
KEENE: The future is fraught with danger. Our political, cultural and ideological enemies are as determined to defeat us as ever, even if we force them to change their tactics. In Barack Obama we have a president who is more opposed to gun ownership than any in our history, and who still believes he will prevail. He's used every excuse to seek support for gun control measures. His team at the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms is harassing dealers and he has signaled the United Nations that his administration may look favorably on a treaty that would weaken or gut our Second Amendment. And most importantly he is fairly drooling at the prospect of another Supreme Court vacancy so that he can appoint someone who will empower liberals on the court to rewrite the Constitution and the Bill of Rights withouta Second Amendment. Make no mistake about it, Barack Obama, his minions in the Justice Department, his allies in the Congress, and his friends in the media would take our guns if they could, and they will if they can. [National Rifle Association, 4/30/11]
MARIA HEIL, NRA BOARD MEMBER
Heil Called United Nations “A Threat To The United States”
HEIL: Now is a very important time because we have a threat to the United States of America and that threat is the United Nations. And they have the Small Arms Treaty coming up.
[...]
It is actually an attack on our Second Amendment rights. And once they shred that they are going to be shredding the rest of the Constitution. [Freedom Armory, 10/3/11]
Heil Advocated Extreme Gun Agenda On C-SPAN
Heil: “Background Checks, I Can See Their Point, But It Is An Infringement.” From a July 29, 2000 interview with C-SPAN:
SUSAN SWAIN [C-SPAN HOST]: Does Second Amendment Sisters oppose any sort of proposals that have surfaced in recent years such as three day waiting periods, national reporting systems. Do you see any of those as infringement of Second Amendment rights?
HEIL: Yes, they are, because actually, three day waiting period, if a woman is being stalked? She needs that firearm now, if she's never owned one before. We advocate safety education, of course. But three day waiting period can kill people. It's simple as that, it can kill people.
SWAIN: How about national reporting systems?
HEIL: How do you mean, you mean registration?
SWAIN: Well, there have been requirements suggested that one must check on backgrounds before gun purchases can be allowed.
HEIL: There are background checks, currently.
SWAIN: Do you believe that's an infringment?
HEIL: If it delays getting the gun or if there is a problem with the system being down--which it has been down quite a bit--yes it is an infringement then. And background checks, I can see their point, but it is an infringement. And if someone has a concealed carry permit, they have passed a background check already. [C-SPAN, 7/29/00]
Heil: The Second Amendment Is A “Threat To Keep The Government In Line.” From a July 29, 2000 interview with C-SPAN:
CALLER: I was calling because I'm not a hunter or sportsman in any way, but the reason why this attack on the Second Amendment has to be stopped is because the government failed to protect its citizenry against a known liar and a contempter of court Bill Clinton, and Al Gore, who said he would go down as one of the great presidents of U.S. history. Our senators failed miserably to uphold the law and order and justice and revealed both themselves as corrupt and the man whom they were protecting.
SUSAN SWAIN [C-SPAN HOST]: Well where's the linkage with this and with gun issues?
CALLER: How does this link with gun issues? Because the government showed that it was failing to protect its citizenry. We need the Second Amendment more than ever now. When the government shows by the senators and the congressmen -- or the congressman passed the impeachment trial over to the Senate -- and then the senators, they said that the president basically was above the law. He had 33 senators in his pocket and he had more than that, that he was allowed to do whatever he wanted. It was a breakdown in the system. We were not protected. We need the Second Amendment more than ever.
SWAIN: Okay, thank you. Maria Heil?
HEIL: What the Second Amendment does, first of all the entire Bill of Rights protects all of our rights whether they are enumerated there or not. What the Second Amendment does, it protects us from a corrupt government. And everybody needs to realize that. It's the threat--if you want to call it that--it's the threat to keep the government in line. [C-SPAN, 7/29/00]
RICHARD PEARSON, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, ILLINOIS STATE RIFLE ASSOCIATION
Pearson Called Obama “An Enemy Of The Law Abiding Firearm Owner” And “A Friend To The Hardened Criminal”
Pearson: Obama Is “An Enemy Of The Law Abiding Firearm Owner” Who “Is More Than Willing To Use Other People's Money To Fund His Campaign To Take Your Guns Away From You.” From an October 15, 2008, letter published by the Illinois State Rifle Association:
Without a doubt, Barack Obama has proven himself to be an enemy of the law abiding firearm owner. At the same time, Obama has proven himself to be a friend to the hardened criminal.While a state senator, Obama voted 4 times against legislation that would allow a homeowner to use a firearm in defense of home and family.
[...]
Obama has shown that he is more than willing to use other people's money to fund his campaign to take your guns away from you.
While a board member of the leftist Joyce Foundation, Barack Obama wrote checks for tens of millions of dollars to extremist gun control organizations such as the Illinois Council Against Handgun Violence and the Violence Policy Center.
[...]
In closing, I'd like to remind you that I'm a guy who has actually gone nose to nose with Obama on gun rights issues. The Obama I know cannot even begin to identify with this nation's outdoor traditions. The Obama I know sees you, the law abiding gun owner, as nothing but a low-class lummox who is easily swayed by the flash of a smile and a ration of rosy rhetoric.
The Obama I know is a stony-faced liar who has honed his skill at getting what he wants - so long as people are willing to give it to him. [Illinois State Rifle Association, 10/15/08, emphasis added]
Pearson Promoted “One-World Government” United Nations Conspiracy Theory
Pearson: “The Goal Of The U.N. Is To Strip Our Second Amendment Rights Away.” From a June 23, 2006, column published by the Illinois State Rifle Association:
The goal of the UN is to strip our Second Amendment rights away, have all civilian owned firearms registered with a UN registry, and, ultimately, to confiscate our firearms.
The UN's aspiration is a one-world government that is free of firearms. Sadly, some American politicians are all for the gun ban, but fortunately, we know who they are. Some say it will never happen here, but let's suppose Hillary Clinton gets elected President and she nominates hubby Bill Clinton as UN Secretary General; the UN would then have an American anti-gun Secretary General who is protected by the US Secret Service. Secretary General would lead the charge against the rights of US citizens, while those very citizens are paying for his protection.
The UN is the first worldwide government-supported criminal organization that claims to exist only to fight tyranny throughout the world, when in fact IT is the most tyrannical organization in existence. “I'm from the UN and I'm here to destroy your Constitutional rights as American citizens,” should be the slogan of the UN. [Illinois State Rifle Association, 6/23/06, emphasis added]
KIMBERLY JO SIMAC, AUTHOR OF WITH MY RIFLE BY MY SIDE: A SECOND AMENDMENT LESSON
Simac Cited “Indoctrination” As Reason To Write Book That Teaches Children About Guns
Simac: “If America Is To Persist, We Must Stop Indoctrination So Contrary To The Beliefs Passed Down To Us.” From the introduction of With My Rifle By My Side: A Second Amendment Lesson, posted at the publisher's website:
The “Right to Bear Arms” is a Constitutional right embodied in the Second Amendment. It is a fundamental link to the heritage left to us by our nation's Founders. With My Rifle by My Side is a story that conveys this right to children and teaches the honor and responsibility that come with the ownership and handling of guns. If America is to persist, we must stop indoctrination so contrary to the beliefs passed down to us. It is our duty and responsibility to defend the ideals and principles that our Constitution was founded upon and restore the link to our heritage. [With My Rifle By My Side: A Second Amendment Lesson, 6/18/10]
Simac Compared Public Schools To Conditions In Nazi Germany
On Tea Party Website, Simac Reportedly Likened The Public School System To “What Actually Happened By The Regime Of The Nazi's [sic] In The Past.” According to a July 26, 2011 Talking Points Memo article, Simac appeared to post incendiary comments (which were subsequently deleted) about the public school system to a tea party website in 2010. Simac's post, as reported by TPM:
I am done raising my kids but if I was a young parent today I would take my kids out of the public school system today. At what point will we stop talking about the comparisons to what is occurring today and what actually happened by the regime of the Nazi's in the past?... Take the commercial that Glenn Beck showed from British Progressives that explains to little children that if they do not listen to their teachers recommendations on subjects such as carbon emissions, they could have their heads blown off. Add to that Kindergarten Sex Ed classes and I really wonder how it is American parents smile and kiss their children good bye every morning and in good conscience hand their most precious resource over to the hands of such questionable people. [Talking Points Memo, 7/26/11]