By Dave Workman | Senior Editor
Michael Bloomberg
Pacific Northwest gun owners are under siege, with Oregon facing several measures that come as “no surprise” to the Oregon Firearms Federation, while neighboring Washingtonians are not only facing a slew of restrictive proposals, but also the arrival in full force of the Michael Bloomberg presidential campaign.
Bloomberg spokesman Michael Nutter, former Philadelphia mayor, was in Seattle recently to “to discuss the billionaire candidate’s campaign strategy,” according to Seattle’s KING 5 News, the local NBC affiliate.
Beaver State gun owners are preparing for a tough legislative session beginning Feb. 3 in which there will be “no real surprises” in terms of gun control proposals, according to OFF.
The group’s alert came just a week after OregonLive announced that summaries of several gun-control measures were now available for public comment. The initiatives “would create preconditions to buying semiautomatic weapons, ban all sales of semiautomatic weapons to people under 21 and ban magazines that carry more than 10 rounds.”
Legislation up for consideration in Salem this year includes House Bill 4005, which the gun rights group says “creates a virtual prohibition on firearms possession by persons under 18, no matter how competent and responsible they are.” It’s a so-called “safe storage” bill.
House Bill 4036 would create new restrictions for concealed handgun license holders and police officers at airports, OFF says.
Senate Bill 1538 would allow local municipalities and counties, metropolitan service districts and school districts to “create their own rules for firearm possession.” According to OFF, “Oregon’s pre-emption law is under attack by the usual suspects.”
Meanwhile, a Portland-based coalition of “faith based” groups will be pushing a ban on so-called “assault weapons” and “high capacity magazines,” according to KGW. The group calls itself “Lift Every Voice Oregon.”
North of the Columbia River, the focus is on Olympia, where Democrats led by Seattle-area anti-gunners are pushing more than a dozen gun control bills that include a proposed repeal of the state’s 35-year-old preemption law, and another measure to ban original capacity magazines.
And now billionaire Bloomberg is looking at opening ten campaign offices around the Evergreen State. Bloomberg’s Everytown for Gun Safety gun prohibition lobbying group just announced it will spend at least $60 million in an effort to elect anti-gun lawmakers nationwide, at all levels.
Alan Gottlieb, chairman of the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms, said in response, “Last year he bought Virginia, now he’s trying to buy the United States.”
“Virginia was a test of Bloomberg’s buying power,” Gottlieb added, “and look how that has worked out. Now his gun prohibition lobbying group is promising to roll out the big bucks to buy state legislative and congressional races nationwide. He is weaponizing his wealth in an attempt to purchase the presidency, along with Capitol Hill and every state legislature in hopes of forcing every American to live under his dictates.”
In 2012, when he was still New York mayor, Bloomberg announced a ban on sugary drinks larger than 16 ounces. At the time, according to Forbes, Bloomberg told MSNBC, “We’re not taking away anybody’s right to do things, we’re simply forcing you to understand that you have to make the conscious decision to go from one cup to another cup.”
The effort was ruled unconstitutional by a state appeals court, which said he had no authority to impose such a ban.
“Gun owners cannot allow Bloomberg to buy their gun rights,” Gottlieb warned in his Tuesday statement. “The Constitution is not for sale, no matter how much money some wealthy demagogue is willing to spend.”
Nutter told KING that Bloomberg’s campaign is “up and running in 30 states,” adding, “When you look at what’s going on in Washington D.C., and more specifically with the current occupant of the White House, Mike felt he was now compelled to run.”
What is going on with “the current occupant of the White House?”
Since taking office, Donald Trump has filled 187 federal court vacancies, including two spots on the U.S. Supreme Court, ostensibly bringing balance to the courts with conservative, pro-gun judges.
The economy has improved. Unemployment is down.
On Tuesday, the president unveiled a two-state Middle East peace plan, although the Palestinians have reportedly rejected the plan.
Trump has been impeached by the House, but the case in the Senate may be in trouble as the battle over calling witnesses unfolds.
Washington State has a presidential primary slated March 10. Bloomberg is apparently ignoring Iowa, but obviously not the Evergreen State. Gottlieb issued a “call to action” for gun owners in and beyond the Pacific Northwest.
“Get engaged,” he urged. “Be sure you’re registered to vote at your current address, and make sure your friends and family members are registered. Start organizing get-out-the-vote efforts in your communities. Get involved in political campaigns and actively support candidates who support your rights, and above all, make protecting the Second Amendment your personal responsibility.”
