As President Obama once said, elections have consequences. There is no question that applies to the Midterm Elections of 2018 both in Illinois and across the country. In Illinois, the loss of Bruce Rauner brought an immediate legislative response the next day by anti-gun State Senator Julie Morrison (D-Deerfield). The votes had hardly been counted when Morrison introduced SB3637, an ammunition tax bill.
SB3637 seeks to tax law-abiding gun owners to support mental health. Mental Health is a universal problem and should not be placed on the backs of law-abiding gun owners. This is clearly an effort to penalize Illinois gun owners, make shooting more expensive and make it more difficult for Illinois firearm dealers to compete. This tax applies to every cartridge and shell, so this hits every firearm owner including hunters.
Not only is this a new tax but, once established it is easy to just raise the tax rate to an onerous level. The tax is now 1 cent per cartridge and shell but it would be easy to raise this to either 5 or 10 cents. This is designed to get the camel’s nose under the tent.
While not all of the votes have been counted yet, it looks like Speaker Madigan will have 75 Democrats in the Illinois House of Representatives. This is three more than he has ever had. What does that mean? There are 118 State Representatives. To pass a bill it takes only 60 votes, a super majority is 71 votes. A super majority is what is needed to override a veto and Speaker Madigan has 75.
The same is true for the Illinois Senate. Right now, President Cullerton has 39, or possibly 40, Democrats. In the Senate, it takes 30 votes to pass a bill. A super majority is 36 votes. We might as well get used to the idea that we are in a fight for our lives. The ISRA will fight with everything we have. I expect that we may have to go into the courts to get relief if it is possible.
Nationally, the blue wave was just big enough to cause all sorts of trouble for the Trump Administration. This will undoubtedly be troublesome for the entire country. Somehow there are those that believe their political party is more important than the United States. The US will never be defeated from the outside but, from the inside is a different matter and this is just a preview of coming attractions.
The Gun Sanctuary Resolution was on the ballot and all 18 counties passed overwhelmingly. This brings the number of counties which have passed such resolutions to 57 with still more to come. What these resolutions show is that Illinois is actually two states. It also shows that those who live outside the Northeast corner of Illinois feel disenfranchised and rightly so. This is true not only on the firearm issue but many other issues as well.
I have been receiving questions on the Permanent Restraining Order against Deerfield for the ban we believe is unconstitutional. The hearing is set for January 18, 2019. The Temporary Restraining Order remains in place. If anything changes, I will let you know.
As you all know J.B. Pritzker has won the Governor’s race. That means the fight is on and the ISRA will be there fighting for you. As Sir Winston Churchill pointed out, countries that fight, although they may get defeated from time to time, always rise again. That is also true of causes like ours. Those who don’t fight disappear and can only be found on a crumpled page of a history book. We will always fight on.
There are those who tell me they did not bother to vote because they didn’t believe their vote counted. In the recent election one pro-gun candidate was ahead by exactly one vote. Helene Miller Walsh lead her opponent, in the 51st District, with 25,106 votes to her opponent’s 25,105 votes. Whether she wins or not is yet to be determined because votes will be recounted. Don’t tell me your vote does not count.
To all those people who didn’t vote, or would not vote, for Bruce Rauner because he was not the perfect candidate: If bad firearm legislation passes into law it is your fault, plain and simple. Then, of course, there is the legislative map. Illinois is the very definition of gerrymandering and who could influence the map based on the 2020 census? Duh, the Governor. And you just delivered the new map into the hands of J. B. Pritzker and his partner Michael Madigan. So, don’t screech like a long-tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs when the new legislative map comes out. You helped draw it.
November 11, 2018, was the 100th anniversary of the ceasing of hostilities of World War I. Actually, WWI never ended until the end of World War II. WWII should be looked at as the second half of WWI.
As WWI approached in Europe, there were 27 monarchies which controlled Europe and its colonies. By the end of WWI, only one of those monarchies survived, the British Monarchy, and it exists only as an historical figurehead without real power.
The Armistice, which began on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month of 1918, ended the fighting. The incompetent victors, because of their short-sighted egos, immediately began sowing the seeds that led to WWII.
Whatever the mistakes of WWI, it thrust the mantle of world leadership on the United States and shaped the world we live in today.
In a recent court case, Ameren Illinois Co. v International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit upheld the “Parking Lot Law” regarding employees who have an Illinois Concealed Carry License (ICCL) and keep a firearm locked in their car. An Ameren Illinois employee, who is an ICCL holder, was fired for doing just that. Ameren claimed that it violated the company policy on work place violence even though the employee was complying with the Illinois law.
In short, the Seventh Circuit ruled the employee was within his rights. Hooray!
Senator John Kennedy (R-LA) is proposing federal legislation that would prohibit the federal government from granting contacts to banks that discriminate against lawful businesses. Recently, the Attorney General of New York has been contacting banks, including some in Illinois, trying to get them to stop doing business with people or companies in the firearms or firearms related industry. This is Senator Kennedy’s answer to that problem. Senator Kennedy is 110% pro-gun.
A group of Riverside County California residents have filed suit against the sheriff for not issuing concealed carry permits to people who are here legally but not yet American citizens. This is a violation of the 14th Amendment. This case also points out the problem of local politicians and bureaucrats being put in positions of power when they think they can ignore the law or make up extraneous rules as they see fit.
When I was reporting on the outstanding job Illinois shooters were doing at the National Rifle Championships at Camp Perry, Ohio, I missed one. ISRA Member Farrell Porter won the Springfield 1903 Match with a superb score of 292-10X. Sergeant York would be proud…Congratulations!
A few months ago, I discussed the importance of applying for your FOID card immediately. Please be very careful, particularly if you are unfamiliar with a computer; if you answer anything wrong, it becomes a mess. When sending correspondence to the Illinois State Police (ISP) for your FOID, please send your documents either priority mail with a tracking number or send them certified mail (signed for). This will allow you to track and ensure receipt of your documents. Remember: if you are an ISRA member, our office will assist you. You will need to call Mary at 815.635.3198 to schedule an appointment.
As of October 31, 2018: FOID – 2,287,291 & ICCL – 318,435
Reminder: Before the end of the year, you can make a tax-deductible contribution to the ISRA Legal Assistance Committee. The ISRA Legal Assistance Committee is dedicated to pursuing court cases that will help insure that the Second Amendment is secure in both Illinois and nationally.
As you might expect, pressing Second Amendment issues through the courts is an expensive, but necessary, part of keeping our Second Amendment freedoms in Illinois.
Please make your ISRA-LAC tax-deductible contribution today. You can send your check or money order to:
ISRA Legal Assistance Committee
PO Box 494
Chatsworth, IL 60921
You may also call the ISRA office at 815.635.3198 pay donation with a credit card.
Santa’s press office has updated me on the situation. I have been assured that even if Donner and Blitzen are not ready to go, Santa has gotten 10 good relievers for this year’s Rookie Reindeer tryouts. Two of those rookies are Meteor, Comets younger brother, and Rose, Cupid’s sister; they are warmed up and waiting in the reindeer pen, ready to go. In the tryouts, Meteor set a new rookie record in the 3000 mile dash, and Rose came in first in the chimney obstacle course. I don’t want anyone to worry; Santa is on his way.
Merry Christmas!
Richard Pearson
Perfect Christmas Gift is an
ISRA Membership!
A Gift that Gives all year long…
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Wishing All A Wonderful Holiday Season…
Thanks for your support and being a member!