By Dave Workman
Editor-in-Chief
Democrat Gov. Phil Murphy of New Jersey has renewed his gun control crusade, from the pulpit in the Saint Luke Baptist Church in Paterson, once again blaming guns for the rise in violent crime, while critics say the legislative proposals target law-abiding citizens instead of criminals.
Murphy was at an event at the church “attending (sic) by a number of other Democratic officials,” according to NJ.com.
The story quoted former State Senate President Stephen Sweeney (D-Gloucester), who said Murphy’s package, which stalled in the Legislature last year, will not prevent violent crime. Incredibly, Murphy unintentionally acknowledged that all of the strict gun control laws already on the books have failed by telling his church audience that in the past year, since first proposing his gun control schemes, 1,359 people had been shot in the Garden State, and 250 had been killed. It’s not be a very good record for a state identified by the Giffords gun prohibition lobbying group as having the second strongest gun control laws in the country.
“I’m tired of passing bills that are feel-good that do not do anything about the crime on the streets,” Sweeney observed when the legislation was being considered last year. Sweeney lost his re-election bid last fall.
Alan Gottlieb, chairman of the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms, told TGM via email, “Someone needs to tell Governor Murphy that a gun does not have a brain to hate with or a finger to pull its own trigger. He needs to support legislation that keeps violent criminals off the streets and stop attacking gun ownership for law abiding New Jersey people.”
Scott Bach, executive director of the Association of New Jersey Rifle & Pistol Clubs, threatened to take legal action if any of Murphy’s proposals are signed into law. As reported by NJ.com, last year Bach, an attorney and longtime member of the National Rifle Association’s board of directors, warned, “Not one of Governor Murphy’s schemes punishes gun crime. Instead, every single one interferes with the Constitutional right of honest citizens to defend themselves in an emergency.”
According to the Press of Atlantic City, Murphy, a Democrat, issued a statement in which he declared,
“The bills that I introduced one year ago are basic measures that will keep guns out of the wrong hands, help law enforcement apprehend the perpetrators of gun violence, and hold the gun industry accountable for its deceptive and dangerous practices.
“I hope to work with my legislative partners to continue making New Jersey a national leader in gun safety and prevent the meaningless violence and loss of life that results from the gun violence epidemic,” the governor added.
Democrats who joined Murphy also described the anti-gun legislation as “gun safety” measures.
Democrat Congressman Bill Pascrell Jr. (NJ-9) said in a statement he joined Murphy at the church-based event “because cities in North Jersey want comprehensive gun safety reform.”
Among Murphy’s proposals, which were erroneously labeled “gun safety” measures, is a mandate for microstamping technology an another bill to require gun owners moving into the state to register their firearms within 60 days.
There is also a bill to raise the minimum age for purchasing a rifle or shotgun from 18 to 21. Another proposal is to require firearms and ammunition to be stored separately in locked boxes or safes.
