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It came right down to the wire in Olympia on the last day of bill consideration, but a measure to expand background checks in Washington State died yesterday in the state House of Representatives. For now . . .

I’ve been following HB 1588 closely for some time now, because it would have required background checks for nearly all private firearms sales. Compared to many other civilian-disarmament bills floating around out there, this one wasn’t too poisonous. Sponsors tried to make it more palatable by exempting CCW permit holders, and they tried to ease the fears of a backdoor universal gun registry by prohibiting FFL dealers or law enforcement agencies from retaining copies of Form 4473s.

HB 1588 unfortunately survived the Great NW Gun Ban Bill Cull 0f 2013, but its Democratic sponsors (who have a majority in the House) couldn’t even round up enough fellow Democrats to guarantee its passage out of the House of Representatives. The session deadline was only hours away when its sponsors decided not to bring it to a vote. Even if it had somehow passed the House, it would have died a painful death in the GOP-controlled state Senate.

So I’m breathing a short-lived sigh of relief. This bill is dead, but much bigger threats loom on the horizon in the form of Chuck Schumer’s draconian (and almost Orwellian) version of ‘universal background checks.’

Now this is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning.

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42 COMMENTS

  1. Some welcomed new Washington session ends soon. Well call all your reps and sens say no to the federal bans and registration. Im Glad yesterday to read that most experts say it wont pass the house and DiFis ban might die in the Senate as well. Keep the pressure up.

  2. I’m relishing the idea of my soon-to-be outlaw lifestyle. I mean, once you’re already risking felonious charges for one thing, it becomes a lot easier to shrug off the potential risk of other things, right?

    • Yeah, I figure that’s how the bad guys feel as well. Another reason why any of these guns laws are so much BS…

    • I agree completely. It might be fun for a while. I’m looking forward to what happen when the government outlaws 100MM gun owners and they stop giving a crap about anything the government says or their rules. My small step in this direction started with the 2012 census when I told the government F-off in regards to giving them more than the basic info. Much to my surprise, no bureaucrat ever challenged me. Granted this was one VERY small stand; but a fire starts with just a spark. Outlawing my guns will be the equivalent to pouring a can of gas on that spark.

      • I also told the census bureau to take a flying fu.k at a rolling donut & when they started counting people only to let me know, Randy

  3. This bill was a toothless waste of time anyway. Exempting CPL holders (and WA is good and quick about its shall-issue CPL system) and not requiring any paperwork or record keeping of any sort whether the transaction was private-party or through an FFL or police/sheriff (to run a NICS check) basically voided all of the “good intentions” of the bill in the first place. Good riddance. Now if only our legislators could stop wasting their time on this crap and try to fix real problems — deficits, jobs, attracting companies to the State, etc etc…

    • It was not a waste of time. It was a “camel’s nose” type of bill. If it had passed it would have set a precedent.

  4. BTW, I received this response from one of our WA State Senators today:

    “As you know, on January 16, 2013, President Obama announced a series of legislative proposals and executive actions intended to reduce gun violence. I applaud the President’s efforts to close gun purchase loopholes and to create new tools for further background checks.

    Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) introduced a bill to regulate assault weapons (S. 150) on January 24, 2013. The proposed legislation bans certain military-style, semi-automatic weapons, and makes it illegal to produce, import, or sell magazines with capacity over ten rounds. The bill has been referred to the Senate Judiciary Committee, where it is currently awaiting further debate and review.

    In the past, I supported the original Assault Weapons Ban and the Brady Bill, as well as the Youth Handgun Safety Act of 1993, which prohibits juveniles from possessing or receiving handguns. I look forward to work with my colleagues in the Senate to strengthen responsible legislation to rein in gun violence. We need to work to close the loopholes in existing laws that allow criminals and children to gain access to firearms contrary to the law’s intention. One example is the well-known “gun-show loophole” which allows people to purchase firearms at gun-shows without undergoing the background check required when guns are bought from licensed dealers. Lastly, I believe we must support increased gun-safety and gun-use education.

    I support the Second Amendment and the rights of law-abiding Washingtonians who own guns. I also remain focused on addressing the deeply troubling violence in this country and making our state and our country as safe as possible for all people, including our most vulnerable citizens, our children. I believe both of these goals are important and can be simultaneously accomplished through common-sense gun laws and stricter enforcement of existing laws.

    Along with addressing gun violence, making services for the mentally ill and their families more accessible will encourage those suffering from mental illness to seek needed care and support. Mental health care is a critical component of our healthcare system and an individual’s overall health status. According to the National Institute of Mental Health, approximately one in 17 Americans suffers from a seriously debilitating mental illness. I care deeply about mental health care and understand the important role behavioral health services play in the lives of both those who suffer from mental illness and their family and loved ones.

    Sincerely,
    Maria Cantwell
    United States Senator “

    • I love these. They’re always like “I am continuing to do my level best to disarm all my despicable constituents before loading them on cattle cars.

      “Be assured that I fully support the Second Amendment and my soon-to-be gassed constituents’ right to keep and bear arms.”

      Yours truly
      Cruella DeVille
      U.S. House of Representatives, D-OH

    • your terminology is a little off. You referred to her as a WA State Senator, but she is a US Senator from Washington State.

      A State Senator would mean she was a legislator at the state capitol.

      Anyhow, from the wording of her letter, it sounds like she knows how she wants to vote, but isn’t steadfast. She keeps the on-the-fence language so that if it becomes clear that her constituency demands something, that she will probably swing that way. In other words, she won’t stick her neck out if enough of y’all tell her it’ll get chopped off.

      • Heh it would never fly. Roll through Queen Anns, Fremont, and the U District to see why. Seattlites love her. And she’s received 60% of the vote in both her re-elections.

    • Quote: ‘One example is the well-known “gun-show loophole” which allows people to purchase firearms at gun-shows without undergoing the background check required when guns are bought from licensed dealers.’

      I’m still blown away every time I see or hear a person say this. It is the complete polar opposite of truth. No one buys guns from licensed dealers without a NICS check… ANYWHERE. No dealer would risk his FFL (thus his livelihood) over something so stupid. It doesn’t happen. Period.

      Senator Cantwell has obviously never been to a gun show. People who can’t bother to educate themselves about an issue should not be dictating policy on it to the rest of the nation.

  5. Can we get an update on the situation in California? Especially for the CA readers of this blog. Check out the OP of this thread for a NRA/ILA flyer on the most imminent threats to freedom in the sunshine state:

    http://www.calguns.net/calgunforum/showthread.php?t=719030

    While all most of you may believe that CA is a lost cause, those of us living under the CA government are still fighting, and fighting hard. If you check out that flyer, you’ll see that there are some absolutely draconian bills working their way through the legislature. The passage of AB174 in particular would result in the outright confiscation of MSRs. No holds barred, CONFISCATION. We ought to be yelling, shouting, and screaming about that piece of legislation. Don’t let this retarded state set a precedent for confiscation in the rest of the nation.

    Also, there’s a planned rally on March 7th in CA that isn’t getting much attention. If you do put up a CA-themed post, maybe throw some attention in it’s direction? We need as many people protesting at the capital as we can get.

    https://www.facebook.com/events/479883518744483/

  6. WA gun laws > CA gun laws.

    I feel bad for all my family in CA, but if they don’t want to listen to me about how much I enjoy life in the Pacific Northwest… well, that’s their choice. I’d much rather visit CA on vacation and live in WA than vice versa, that’s for sure.

  7. Note that WA is a state with a Democratic majority in both the House of Representatives and the Senate.

    Will all the people who claimed in their comments here that voting for Dems is completely and utterly incompatible with gun rights, and called those who do “libtards”, now apologize?

    • Two Democrats switched parties in the Senate to give control to the Republicans. Otherwise, we’d be screwed. We still have a hard fight ahead trying to kill off initiatives funded by Bloomberg and who knows what other shenanigans.

      • Did you miss the part of the article where it says that not all Dems have supported the law? (note that this is in the House, not in the Senate, so no side-switching involved)

    • Ha ha. The Republicans control the chamber of the state senate in Washington. Only two Republicans voted for the bill in the house, even though it almost passed (cuz their are so many LIBTARDS). ALL gun grabbers vote democrat, therefore, it IS a democrat problem.
      No apology needed.
      Now, stop voting democrat, dummy.
      Alot of those dem basards would vote to ban ALL guns it they thought they could get away with it and not be voted out, so always keep that in mind.

      • I’d rather be a libtard than a Bible-thumping hate-monger. Get back to me when Republicans have something to offer that does not include that latter part.

        • Dude, you must be a homo or something. What in the hell are you talking about? Stay on subject (as you seem to REALLY care about gay marriage or something more than the subject of this forum). ALL the anti-gunners vote democrat.
          I am correct in all I stated above and you MUST deal with the insane gun ideas of (evidently) your democrat political friends.
          Suck it.

    • Washington has a large amount of rural areas that you don’t want to mess with. Pretty much the entire state is red except for the I-5 corridor.

    • Will all the people who claimed in their comments here that voting for Dems is completely and utterly incompatible with gun rights, and called those who do “libtards”, now apologize?

      So a couple of renegade Democrats vote correctly and that supposedly immunizes the party? What a load of cr@p.

      • No-one said anything about “immunizing the party”. The point was solely that not all Dems are anti-gun, contrary to what is often claimed here – and that it is possible to have politicians in power who espouse liberal values on other issues without taking away your 2A rights.

  9. Washington State is interesting… yes, Democrats control both houses here (though barely in the Senate), but a lot of those Democrats are from rural or semi-rural parts of western Washington (outside of Spokane or Yakima, I don’t think there are any Democrats in eastern Washington).

    I’m amazed at just how many folks I’ve met around here who are liberal on everything… until you get to guns. Then it’s “hands of my rifles”.

    • “Hands off my rifles” is being liberal on guns. “Liberal” means “in favor of freedoms”. Don’t allow that term to be hijacked by people who use it in direct opposite of what it means.

    • Don’t forget Olympic Arm is in Olympia and is a major employer in the state that makes AR-15s and M-1911A1s.

    • “I’m amazed at just how many folks I’ve met around here who are liberal on everything… until you get to guns. Then it’s “hands of my rifles”.

      That’s me in a nut shell. I voted yes on legalizing marijuana. Voted to keep same sex marriage. Voted yes to disband the state liquor stores. You see I don’t smoke pot. I’m not gay. And I don’t drink a lot. I just vote for more freedom in general, even on issues that don’t involve me. But GUNS……. Now you have stepped on my tail. Now I am involved along with many others just like me. Even though I live 5 miles from the capital campus I never have really gotten involved in what goes on there. Not this year. I am fully engaged. Even last night I was placing comments on the legislatures bill HB 1588. Looks like it worked again. The Democrats thought 1994 was a bad year for them. They are really not going to like 2016 because we will not forget this.
      Oh, if your ever in the area you should stop by Olympic Arms. They are really nice people who care a lot about what they do and the products they make. They have a front counter so you can just stop on in and have a good look around.

  10. FWIW, Senator Cantwell is an avowed enemy of gun rights. She’s never seen a gun ban she didn’t like. She’s also a pay-to-play politician, who shamelessly carries the water for the high-tech cronies (including the worst patent trolls in the IP business) who send her big campaign checks.

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