Bloomberg Backed Gun Bill Dead in Vermont

A bill  pushed by Everytown for Gun Sense, a Mike Bloomberg funded operation, has floundered against intense grassroots opposition in Vermont.

Vermont has some of the least infringements on second amendment rights in the country.  Vermont always had constitutional carry, with no permit required, for its entire history.  Vermont has always had one of the lowest crime rates in the country.   From burlingtonfreepress.com, a Gannet company:

Supporters of the bill faced strong headwinds, including the opposition of Gov. Peter Shumlin and pushback from Vermont's hunters and police chiefs. The most controversial provision would have required almost all private gun sales to go through a federally licensed firearms dealer and a background check.

"S.31 is not on the table," said Sen. Dick Sears, D-Bennington, the chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, during a discussion Wednesday morning. "Quite frankly, it's dead."

A commenter on the article, Alex Knight made this victory statement:

  Freedom and individualism has won, tyranny and collectivism has failed. Bloomberg and your minions, GET OUT. And leave Vermonters and their freedoms ALONE!

One of the principle grass roots organizations opposed to the bill was gunownersofVermont.org.  As with most second amendment supporters, they concentrated on facts and logic.  Here is some of the testimony(pdf) that they presented to the legislature, concerning Vermont's stellar record of responsible, unfettered, gun ownership:

There are also millions of firearms in Vermont that have been purchased over the previous 200 years, yet Vermont is consistently the safest state in the nation, and we are comparable to Switzerland, long held to be one of the safest places in the world. The anti-gun crowd would have you believe that there is something wrong with Vermont’s laws that needs to be “fixed”, and that the citizens of Vermont can no longer be trusted. For over 200 years, Vermonters have responsibly owned, traded and used firearms for hunting, target shooting, and self-defense against man and beast, yet now, this centuries old tradition is being challenged by out-of-state voices and money.

 Legislatures are afraid of media campaigns financed by billionaires.  They are subject to being influenced by large campaign donations.  But they fear energized and organized constituents more.

 ©2015 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice is included.
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