Miller Newsletter

Op-Ed

Miller Newsletter

Due to high profile, gun-related violence, proponents of gun control legislation have continually stepped up their attack on our Second Amendment rights. I believe it is outrageous that these groups and individuals are using such tragedies to further their own political agendas. Last week Congress passed H.R. 800, the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act.

This legislation prohibits civil liability actions from being brought or continued against manufacturers, distributors, dealers, or importers of firearms or ammunition for damages resulting from the misuse of their products by others. In other words it will bring an end to predatory lawsuits attempting to hold firearms manufacturers and dealers responsible for the criminal misuse of their lawful products by others. As a cosponsor of this bill, I enjoyed supporting it on the House floor during final passage last week. The legislation is now on its way to the President's desk to be signed into law.

It has taken six long years for this critical legislation to get to this point. The enactment of this common sense and reasonable legislation represents an important victory for our nation's gun owners and sportsmen as well as the future of the Second Amendment.

Far too often we see attention paid to the firearm and not the criminal. One example has been the semiautomatic weapons ban. I was glad to see it expire in September of 2004 as law enforcement demographics, poverty and other factors that affect crime have shown that the semiautomatic weapons ban did not reduce any type of violent crime. Such policies fail to recognize that criminals, not guns, are the root cause of crime and violence in America .

As a strong supporter of our 2nd Amendment rights, I believe tougher enforcement of our nation's existing gun laws must be done before any more laws are enacted and put on the books. I have always been a firm believer in the longstanding American principle of having the right to bear arms and I will remain committed to see that this freedom is not infringed upon, revoked, or limited in any way.

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