North Texans Vocal On Both Sides Of Gun Discussion
DALLAS (CBSDFW.COM) - President Obama's gun control proposals are triggering reaction from those on both sides of the debate.
Sam Aloni supports banning the sale of assault-style rifles. "I applaud the President's decision to take these steps. I think the gun lobby in this country is powerful enough."
But Ken Harkness opposes the ban and limiting the number of rounds in magazines to 10. "I don't think a ban on 30 round magazines is going to do anything, some people will just get three magazines or they'll have three guns loaded."
James Claxton believes gun laws should mainly be an issue for the states to deal with, but he supports the new proposals. "Assault rifles, magazine capacity, those kind of broad spectrum bans should be adopted at a nationwide level."
At Targetmaster Gun Store and Range in Garland, owner Tom Mannewitz says in addition to the proposed ban on assault-style rifles and limits on magazines, he opposes the idea of increased background checks on the sale of guns between private citizens, "which would constitute a national registry of all firearms, I find that highly objectionable and illegal", he said.
He's noticing buyer's concerns "People panic because they take what's being said as that's what's going to happen and they go out and buy everything."
Marsha McCartney volunteers for the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence.
The group is named after James Brady, the Press Secretary who was shot along with former President Reagan in 1981.
McCartney says, "Of course, this is going to save lives. We may not stop every single shooting from happening, but we will see a reduction in gun violence."
Mannewitz disagrees, "I don't find anything that I've read would prevent the Sandy Hook disaster."
He and other critics worry the President's 23 executive orders may go beyond the President's authority.
Jeffrey Kahn, a Constitutional law professor at SMU, says the President has a lot of authority.
Kahn says "Although he cannot make law, when Congress delegates authority to the Executive branch, either to the President or agencies of the federal government, it's up to the President as head of the Executive branch, chief law enforcement officer or Commander in Chief to take care that the law is faithfully executed."
It's now up to Congress to decide whether to pass the President's pending legislation.
Some analysts believe he'll face an uphill battle in the Republican-controlled House of Representatives, and possibly the Senate, controlled by the Democrats.
Meanwhile, guns are flying off store shelves. And at national chains like Grapevine's Bass Pro Shop, they are taking a cautious stand. "We are in the process of reviewing the information delivered by the President in an effort to fully understand his plan." says spokeswoman Katie Mitchell. "We have always, and will continue to, take every measure to make sure we are in full compliance with all federal, state and local firearms laws."
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