Capitol Journal - Gun Control
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Opens to two men giving different opinions on new gun control legislation Wayne LaPierre, NRA representative, We believe the end result of this bill will be better law enforcement. Representative William Hughes (D - New Jersey) It s wrong. It is a direct threat to lives of our police officers. And we ve got to turn the tide.
Capitol Journal host Hodding Carter introduces the show.
Capitol Journal titles and animation roll.
Hodding explains American gun control history and legislation that is being passed in Congress that will loosen up gun control laws established in 1968 - window in left corner of screen displays corresponding images (this includes stills of martin Luther king and Robert Kennedy assassinations...how these incidents preceded the '68 resolutions)
Footage of a Baltimore police unit in the field investigating a reported gun shot incident at a Hotel. Police cars rush to the scene with flashing lights and sirens, spotlights are used to search the building's exterior. Police knocking on doors of various homes.
CU of gun firing with text on to statistics of amount of hand gun deaths per million in different countries
Interior of a gun store. Guns hanging on a wall in store.
CU of gun with text of the 1968 Gun Control Act
NRA (National Rifle Association) lobbyist meeting with Representative Arlan Stangeland (R - Minnesota). Stangeland, And I m a member of the NRA. I ve been for; I don t know how many years, but a good number of years. Because I believe that the citizens have a right to keep and bear arms and any kind of chink in that right can lead to more confiscation, more red tape, more breach, the whole bit.
NRA (National Rifle Association) lobbyist meets with a member of Congress.
CU of gun with text of a list of changes being called for in the Firearm Owners Protection Act.
Congressional committee meeting, CU of Peter Rodino (D - New Jersey).
CU of National Rifle Association petition.
Interview with Representative Peter Rodino (D - New Jersey) who explains why the bill should not be passed. If we loose, we re going to have a bill that weakens our gun control laws. That s going to make it possible, easier, for the criminal, the mentally incompetent and the addict to get his hands on a hand gun.
Representative William Hughes (D - New Jersey) explains to a group of policemen why the bill is dangerous for them. S49 and the Son of S49, as the Washington Post aptly described it today, a Cop Killer Bill, basically is a direct threat to you, our first line of defense in this country. And it s for good reason that the police in this country are outraged over the NRA in particular and the gun lobby, who try to push through, muscle through, bully through, legislation that is immitigable to the best interest of not just law enforcement, but this country.
Hughes proposed alternative bill is then explained.
Representative William Hughes (D - New Jersey) explains to a group of policemen why the bill is dangerous for them. I can tell you that it s an uphill battle. Your presence today on Capitol Hill can make a difference.
Police officers approach legislators coming to the Capitol about defeating Firearm Owners Protection Act, S49.
Cornelius Behan, President of the Police Executive Research Forum, We believed nine months ago, that the NRA was friendly to law enforcement. We really believed that. But now that we ve taken the position on this bill and their unwillingness to compromise and their desire to sell guns has overshadowed every other consideration.
Dick Boyd, President of the Fraternal Order of Police, You can buy a firearm, any place, any time and as many as you want, right in your own state. So that s not the issue. The issue is that they want to do more business for the people that advertise in their magazine. I think it is as simple as that.
Wayne LaPierre, NRA representative, explains the need for the Firearm Owners Protection Act - behind him the walls are lined with guns. The problem with the 68 Gun Control Act is that it is overly broad. Every violation under it is a federal felony. There are no misdemeanors at all, no matter how minor or inadvertent the error. You do not have to provide criminal intent to be proved before a conviction. So if a dealer or one of the 60 million Americans that lawfully owns guns, makes a mistake under this law, it s a federal felony and he can go to jail. So our point, if you really want to get at gun crime, you ve got to narrow the focus, put in some tough mandatory sentences, and go after the bad guys.
Lobbyists pursuing legislators and asking them to defeat bill, Firearm Owners Protection Act, S49.
Hodding Carter standing outside the Capitol segues to the White House's stand on the bill
Footage of the 1981 Reagan assassination attempt - crowd ducks around President's limousine as Reagan is pushed by Secret Servicemen into limousine
Attorney General Edwin Meese tells the press the White House supports the legislation being passed by Congress, Right now there is an attempt to bring it to the Floor of the House and we don t see any basis to change the essential recommendation of the administration which is to be affirmatively in favor of the legislation.
Images of Federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Fire Arms documents which are against the bill.
The lobbying efforts of Sarah Brady wife of White House Press Secretary Jim Brady.
Sarah Brady explains why she wants a waiting period for background check of gun buyers. John Hinckley for instance, wouldn t have been able to purchase the gun he used to shoot the President and my husband if there had been a background and waiting period. Because he went into Texas. He was not a resident of the state of Texas. And he lied on his federal form. But of course nobody checked. There was no law in effect that forced them to check and see that he lied. So he was able to walk out with a gun.
Wayne LaPierre, NRA representative, rejects background checks. Criminals don t walk into gun stores and buy their guns. They buy them on the black market or they steal them. And that s the type of activity we think you need to target and go after. But you don t have your criminal walking in and filling out forms. If you do all these background checks, they are going to be made against law-abiding folks, tying up police resources. And again, you get a diversion in the regulatory area, away from the real problem on the street.
Baltimore police officer says that Firearm Owners Protection Act will make it that much more difficult to combat crime. I see no end to it. I can t see it getting any better if they lax the laws or relax the laws that they ve got now. They re just going to make it easier for people to buy them. And it s going to be twice as hard for us out here to control them.