Fleming Responds to President's Plan to Restrict Gun Ownership

Statement

Congressman John Fleming, M.D. released the following statement after President Obama announced plans to further tighten gun control:

"The President's proposed plan on gun control will reach further into our private lives and restrict our Second Amendment rights. The vague nature of the new ATF guidance means that the President could try to arbitrarily classify private gun owners as dealers subject to a high degree of regulation and criminal penalties.

"His plan will also expand on the VA's misguided "guilty-until-proven-innocent' criteria to restrict gun ownership for Social Security recipients who rely on someone else to handle their finances. I'm proud to cosponsor my colleague Ralph Abraham's (R-LA-5) legislation that protects seniors' gun rights and ensures that only people who have been adjudicated as mentally defective may be added to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS).

"Our hearts are all affected by tragedies such as Sandy Hook or the recent shooting in California. But studies have shown restricting gun rights do not prevent violence -- stronger law enforcement does. If we truly want to do the right thing, we must put more criminals behind bars, not waste time infringing upon our Second Amendment rights."

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