Dan Burton on Gun Control Republican Representative (IN-5)

Voted YES on prohibiting product misuse lawsuits on gun manufacturers.

• Prohibit individuals from filing a qualified civil liability action
• Exempt lawsuits brought against individuals who knowingly transfer a firearm that will be used to commit a violent or drug-trafficking crime
• Exempt lawsuits against actions that result in death, physical injury or property damage due solely to a product defect
• Dismiss of all civil liability actions pending on the date of enactment
• Prohibit the manufacture, import, sale or delivery of armor piercing ammunition

Voted YES on prohibiting suing gunmakers & sellers for gun misuse.

Voted YES on decreasing gun waiting period from 3 days to 1.

No lawsuits against gun manufacturers.

OnTheIssues.org explanation: This bill is a response to the success of tobacco lawsuits, which resulted in cigarette manufacturers paying billions to compensate for the long-term negative health effects of tobacco use. Gun manufacturers grew concerned that the same sort of lawsuit would be applied to guns.

OFFICIAL CONGRESSIONAL SUMMARY:

• To prohibit civil liability actions against manufacturers or distributors of firearms or ammunition for damages resulting from the misuse of their products by others.
• Requires dismissal of any such action that is pending on the date of this Act's enactment
• Specifies exceptions with respect to actions against persons who transfer a firearm knowing that it will be used to commit a crime of violence.

EXCERPTS FROM CONGRESSIONAL FINDINGS:

The Congress finds the following:
1. Citizens have a right, under the Second Amendment, to keep and bear arms.
2. Lawsuits have been commenced against manufacturers & dealers of nondefective firearms, which seek money damages for the harm caused by the misuse of firearms by third parties, including criminals.
3. The sale and use of firearms and ammunition is heavily regulated.
4. Businesses that are engaged in commerce of firearms or ammunition are not, and should not be, liable for the harm caused by those who unlawfully misuse firearm products.
5. The possibility of imposing liability on an entire industry for harm that is the sole responsibility of others is an abuse of the legal system.
6. The liability actions commenced are based on theories without foundation in hundreds of years of the common law and American jurisprudence.
7. An expansion of liability would constitute a deprivation of the rights guaranteed to citizens under the Fourteenth Amendment to the US Constitution.

Rated A by the NRA, indicating a pro-gun rights voting record.

While widely recognized today as a major political force and as America's foremost defender of Second Amendment rights, the National Rifle Association (NRA) has, since its inception, been the premier firearms education organization in the world. But our successes would not be possible without the tireless efforts and countless hours of service our nearly three million members have given to champion Second Amendment rights and support NRA programs.

The following ratings are based on lifetime voting records on gun issues and the results of a questionaire sent to all Congressional candidates; the NRA assigned a letter grade (with A+ being the highest and F being the lowest).

No United Nations taxation on firearms.

OFFICIAL CONGRESSIONAL SUMMARY: Prohibits appropriated funds from being used by any US official to promote any action by the UN which advocates the taxation of firearms or any other abrogation of rights under the Second Amendment to the Constitution. Condemns all proposals to tax or otherwise limit rights under the Second Amendment.

SPONSOR'S INTRODUCTORY REMARKS: Rep. PAUL: This legislation prohibits taxpayer support of any UN actions that could in any way infringe on the Second Amendment. The bill also expresses the sense of Congress that proposals to tax, or otherwise limit, the right to keep and bear arms are "reprehensible and deserving of condemnation."

Over the past decade, the UN has waged a campaign to undermine the right to keep and bear arms, which is protected by the Second Amendment of the US Constitution. UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan has called on members of the Security Council to "tackle" the proliferation and "easy availability" of small arms and light weapons. Just this June, the UN tried to "tackle" gun rights by sponsoring a "Week of Action Against Small Arms." Of course, by small arms, the UN really means all privately owned firearms.

Contrary to the UN propaganda, the right to keep and bear arms is a fundamental right and, according to the drafters of the Constitution, the guardian of every other right. Many victims of tyranny were first disarmed by their governments. If the UN is successful in implementing a global regime of gun control, then more innocent lives will be lost to public (and private) criminals. I would remind my colleagues that policies prohibiting the private ownership of firearms were strongly supported by tyrants such as Adolph Hitler, Joseph Stalin, and Mao Tse-Tong. Global gun control is a recipe for global tyranny and a threat to the safety of all law-abiding persons.

LEGISLATIVE OUTCOME:Referred to House Committee on International Relations; never came to a vote.

National cross-state standard for concealed carry.

Establishes a national standard for the carrying of concealed firearms (other than a machinegun or destructive device) by non-residents. Authorizes a person who has a valid permit to carry a concealed firearm in one state and who is not prohibited from carrying a firearm under federal law to carry a concealed firearm in another state:

• Notwithstanding any law of any State, a person who is not prohibited by Federal law from possessing a firearm and is carrying a valid license to carry a concealed firearm may carry in another State a concealed firearm.
• If such other State issues licenses to carry concealed firearms, the person may carry a concealed firearm in the State under the same restrictions which apply in that State.
• If such other State does not issue licenses to carry concealed firearms, the person may not carry a concealed firearm in a police station, in a courthouse, at a meeting of a governing body, in a school, at an athletic event, in an establishment licensed to dispense alcoholic beverages, or inside an airport, except to the extent expressly permitted by State law.

Teach kids Eddie Eagle GunSafe's lifesaving message.

RESOLUTION Commending the National Rifle Association for developing the Eddie Eagle GunSafe Program and teaching 23,000,000 children its lifesaving message.
• Whereas the National Rifle Association created the Eddie Eagle GunSafe Program to teach the fundamentals of firearm safety to children in an effective way;
• Whereas through activity books, posters, and other educational materials, children are reminded of a simple safety message, 'If you see a gun: STOP! Don't Touch. Leave the Area. Tell an Adult';
• Whereas the Eddie Eagle GunSafe Program has been used by more than 26,000 public or private schools, law enforcement agencies, and civic organizations, and has reached 23,000,000 children since 1988;
• Whereas the annual number of firearm accidents has declined more than 80 percent since the inception of the program; and
• Whereas the legislatures of 23 States have passed resolutions recommending the use of the Eddie Eagle Program;
• Now, therefore, be it Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
• commends the National Rifle Association for developing the Eddie Eagle GunSafe Program and teaching 23,000,000 children its lifesaving message;
• supports the goals and objectives of the National Rifle Association's Eddie Eagle gun safety program;
• encourages educators across the United States to incorporate gun education programs in elementary school curricula to help decrease the incidence of accidental gun-related deaths among children; and
• encourages civic and community organizations concerned about the safety and well-being of children across the United States to support funding for the Eddie Eagle GunSafe Program at the local level.

Loosen restrictions on interstate gun purchases.

Congressional Summary:Amends the federal criminal code to: