Kerry Questioned About His 'Chinese Assault Rifle' By Susan Jones
CNSNews.com Morning Editor - September 17, 2004
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CNSNews.com - Does Sen. John F. Kerry really own a "Communist Chinese assault rifle," as he suggested in an interview in the latest edition of Outdoor Life magazine? The Second Amendment Foundation says if the senator does own such a rifle, it wants to know where Kerry keeps it, if it is legally registered, and how he got it into the United States. "Senator Kerry's own words once again trip him up in an apparent hypocrisy," SAF Founder Alan Gottlieb said in a press release. "Responding to a question from Outdoor Life ( http://www.outdoorlife.com/outdoor/news/article/0,19912,696240-4,00.html ) about whether he is a gun owner, and if so, what's his favorite gun, Kerry strongly intimates he has an assault rifle, which is illegal to own both in Massachusetts and Washington, D.C." The Kerry quote appears on Page 82 of the October issue of Outdoor Life. He told the magazine,
"My favorite gun is the M-16 that saved my life and that of my crew in Vietnam. I don't own one of those now, but one of my reminders of my service is a Communist Chinese assault rifle." Gottlieb called it another example of Kerry running on his Vietnam service history: "Now he's talking as if he's got an assault rifle stashed somewhere, while he's been railing against their ownership by other law-abiding American citizens," Gottlieb added. Kerry supported an extension of the so-called assault weapons ban, which expired on Monday. Last week, at a campaign stop in St. Louis, he said, "As a hunter, I have never ever thought about going hunting with an AK-47 or an Uzi or anything else." "Senator Kerry, where's the rifle?" Gottlieb asked. "In which one of your mansions are you hiding that gun? Why should it be okay for you to have a Communist Chinese assault rifle when you think nobody else should have one? And if you don't have one, why would you intimate to Outdoor Life that you do?"
Kerry has made it a point to appeal to gun owners by staging a number of gun-friendly photo-ops on the campaign trail.
Kerry says it's 'plain wrong' to let weapons ban expire
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''For the first time in 10 years, when a killer walks in a gun shop, when a terrorist goes to a gun show somewhere in America, if they want to purchase an AK-47 or some other military assault weapon, they are going to hear one word - sure,'' Kerry said. ''Today George Bush chose to make the job of terrorists easier and make the job of police officers harder, and that's just plain wrong.''
Rifle AK 47 Chinese Type 56
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A Chinese AK 47 is known as the Type 56 rifle. Chinese made Type 56 rifles were extensively used in Vietnam by the Viet Cong who found them to be ideal weapons for soldiers who were mostly small and slight by Western standards. They are also found in considerable numbers in the Yemen and other Middle East countries and as insurgent weapons in African nations.
John Kerry on Gun Control
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http://www.issues2000.org/2004/John_Kerry_Gun_Control.htm
Gun owner & hunter, but rights come with responsibility - John Kerry is a gun owner and hunter, and he believes that law-abiding American adults have the right to own guns. But like all of our rights, gun rights come with responsibilities, and those rights allow for reasonable restrictions to keep guns out of the wrong hands. John Kerry strongly supports all of the federal gun laws on the books, and he would take steps to ensure that they are vigorously enforced, cracking down hard on the gun runners, corrupt dealers, straw buyers, and thieves that are putting guns into the hands of criminals in the first place. He will also close the gun show loophole, which is allowing criminals to get access to guns at gun shows without background checks, fix the background check system, which is in a serious state of disrepair, and require that all handguns be sold with a child safety lock.
Source: Campaign website, JohnKerry.com, "Issues" Mar 21, 2004
Democratic Party shouldn't be for the NRA
Q: Do you find it necessary to kill animals for photo-ops?
A: I don't think the Democratic Party should be the candidacy of the NRA. And when I was fighting to ban assault weapons in 1992 and 1993, Dean was appealing to the NRA for their endorsement, and he got it. I believe it's important for us to have somebody who is going to stand up for gun safety in America and make certain that we make our streets safe, our children safe, and not allow people to get assault weapons in America.
Source: CNN "Rock The Vote" Democratic Debate Nov 5, 2003
Supports assault weapons ban & Brady Bill
Q: Your views on gun safety.
KERRY: There's a story in today's Washington Post that says that Democrats are going to run away from the issue of gun safety. I don't think that we can get elected nationally if we are not prepared to stand up against powerful special interests. Too many die each year from guns. I am for the assault weapons ban. I'm for the Brady Bill.
Source: Democratic Presidential 2004 Primary Debate in Detroit Oct 27, 2003
John Edwards on Gun Control
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http://www.issues2000.org/2004/John_Edwards_Gun_Control.htm
Right to bear arms protected by Second Amendment, with rules I believe the right to bear arms is protected by the Second Amendment. I also support reasonable measures to keep guns out of the hands of criminals, including closing the gun show loophole and vigorously enforcing gun laws.
Source: 2004 Presidential National Political Awareness Test Mar 3, 2004
Hunting is fine, but criminals & kids should have limits
Q: How will your gun stance play among Southern voters?
EDWARDS: I grew up in the rural South. Everyone around me hunted, everyone had guns. I respect and believe in people's Second Amendment rights. That does not, however, mean that somebody needs an AK-47 to hunt. It does not mean that somebody who's been convicted of a violent crime should be able to walk out of prison, walk across the street and buy a gun. It does not mean that we shouldn't take every step that we can take to keep guns safe and keep guns out of the hands of kids. So, my belief is, first, I defend people's Second Amendment rights, but I don't think it's without limit.
Q: What federal gun control measures you would propose?
EDWARDS: I think we should extend the Brady Bill, which is set to expire. I think that we need to close forever the gun-show loophole, [to avoid criminals] buying a gun. I think it does make sense to have trigger locks for the purpose of keeping guns safe from children.
Source: Democratic 2004 Primary Debate at St. Anselm College Jan 22, 2004
The Rev. Jesse Jackson Sr.'s Remarks to the Democratic National Convention _______________________________________________________
“In the dark, a president chooses tax cuts for millionaires but job cuts for steel and auto workers, firefighters and police. A president who talks of homeland security but wants to let AK-47's and Uzi's back on the street.”
The Edwards Record
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http://www.csgv.org/issues/elections/ontarget/issue14.cfm?&bsuppresslayout=1
Assault Weapons
John Edwards voted for renewal of the assault weapons ban, which outlaws certain types of military-style firearms, such as Uzis and AK-47s - the guns of choice for criminals and terrorists. U.S. military forces discovered an al Qaeda training manual in Afghanistan that urged terrorists to take advantage of lax U.S. gun laws, and terrorist websites have provided recruits with instructions on how to use an AK-47.
