Gun Rights Activists Celebrate House Approval Of Concealed Carry Reciprocity Bill

Andrea Noble at the Washington Times reports that the House passed the Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act.

The House delivered a win for gun rights groups Wednesday with the passage of legislation that would force states to recognize concealed carry permits issued by other states and would strengthen the federal gun background check system.

The Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act, backed by Republicans, was adopted in a 231-198 vote that mostly followed party lines. The Senate now will take up the measure.

Supporters say the proposal would give law-abiding citizens the ability to protect themselves when they travel, but critics say it eviscerates states’ rights to uphold their own firearms standards by allowing gun owners who obtain permits in states with lesser requirements to carry in all 50 states.

You can read the rest of the piece via the below link:

https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2017/dec/6/concealed-carry-reciprocity-bill-passes-house/ 

You can also read my Washington Times piece on gun rights and concealed carry via the below link:

http://www.pauldavisoncrime.com/2017/08/a-distorted-view-of-concealed-carry.html 

Facebook Page Of Gunman James Hodgkinson Filled With Anti-Trump Rants

Andrea Noble and S.A. Miller at the Washington Times offer a piece on the gunman who opened fire on Congressmen in Alexandria, Virginia.

The gunman killed after opening fire on a congressional GOP baseball team practicing in Alexandria, Virginia, on Wednesday was the same man who approached the baseball field earlier to ask whether the players were Republicans or Democrats, according to a congressman.

Rep. Jeff Duncan said James T. Hodgkinson — the 66-year-old Illinois man identified as the gunman — had approached and asked him about the party affiliation of the players as he and fellow Republican Rep. Ron DeSantis left the practice just prior to the shooting.

President Trump broke the news Mr. Hodgkinson had died from his injuries as he spoke from the White House on Wednesday morning.

Details about the suspected gunman were just beginning to emerge Wednesday, as the FBI and law enforcement officials conducted a search of his home in the St. Louis suburbs of Belleville, Illinois. More than a decade ago, Mr. Hodgkinson was arrested for domestic assault but more recently was the subject of a complaint about gunfire outside his rural Illinois home.

It was unclear what motivated Wednesday’s attack, which witnesses described as a minutes-long gun battle between the shooter and Capitol Police and Alexandria police officers. The shooting occurred as Republicans practiced for an annual charity baseball game scheduled for Thursday, and sent members of Congress, staffers and even children hiding in a dugout or running from the baseball field. Five people, including Rep. Steve Scalise, two officers, a congressional aide, and a former staffer were injured.

A Facebook page believed to belong to Mr. Hodgkinson included criticism of Mr. Trump, calling him “a traitor” who “destroyed our Democracy.”

You can read the rest of the piece via the below link:

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2017/jun/14/james-hodgkinson-identified-gunman-shooting-scalis/ 

Jeff Sessions To Target Drug Cartels, Gun Offenses To Halt Potential Crime Wave

Andrea Nobel at the Washington Times offers a piece on the Attorney General’s plans to curb crime.

Attorney General Jeff Sessions said Tuesday that he plans to target drug cartels and crack down on gun crimes to snuff out what could be the start of a national crime wave, evidenced by a recent uptick in homicides and other violence.

But left unsaid is whether Mr. Sessions also will direct the Justice Department to disrupt the legal marijuana industry — a move that critics say could undermine his goals and enable the cartels.

Speaking Tuesday to the National Association of Attorneys General, Mr. Sessions warned of the dangers posed by cartels that are able to smuggle drugs such as marijuana and heroin across the U.S.-Mexico border.

“The less money they extract out of America, that is sent to their organizations, the less power and less danger they present to their governments and their people and the fewer people are addicted,” he said.

The attorney general has been steadfast in his opposition to marijuana legalization, saying drug use and crime go hand in hand.

“I do not believe that this pop in crime, this increase in crime is necessarily an aberration, a one-time blip. I’m afraid it represents the beginning of a trend, and I think what really concerns me in the bottom of all that is also the increase in drugs in America,” Mr. Sessions said. “They tend to follow one another. That’s what happened in the ‘60s and ‘70s. And I think it could happen now.”

You can read the rest of the piece via the below link:

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2017/feb/28/jeff-sessions-target-drug-cartels-gun-offenses-hal/ 

Authorities Monitoring Cyberattacks That Knocked Major Websites Offline

Andrea Noble at the Washington Times offers a piece on the cyberattacks that occurred today.

You can read the piece via the below link:

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2016/oct/21/authorities-monitoring-cyberattacks-major-websites/