Rep. Cohen to apply for handgun carry permit

[Pat McGarrity]

First a chapter note; I have asked for someone with the Shelby County District Attorney's office to speak with us 1-20-11 and will confirm ASAP.

While I'm told Rep. Cohen was not particularly anti-gun as a state senator, he is "F" rated by Gun Owners of America as a U.S. congressman...







WASHINGTON – In the wake of the shootings in Tucson, Ariz., on Saturday, U.S. Rep. Steve Cohen, D-Tenn., plans to apply for a permit to carry a handgun, he said this morning.

U.S. Rep. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., already has one, and has for some time, her spokesman, Claude H. Chafin, said this morning.


Steve Cohen

Cohen said he was at the Midtown Schnucks grocery store Sunday when he was approached by a man asking him about his interview with former pro wrestler and Minnesota Gov. Jesse Ventura. The “Conspiracy Theory” show focused on Ventura’s belief that the federal government has created concentration camps for dissidents and has gone viral on the Internet.
Cohen told him that the allegations were all lies, but the man appeared to give them credence, he said.

“It was scary,” Cohen said of the encounter. “The guy was obviously somewhat borderline.”

Cohen said he qualified for a permit years ago but never picked one up. He said he owns a pistol but declined to say what kind.

“If I should decide to carry it in the car or something, I want to do it legally,” he said. “I’m not going to carry it on my hip on a regular basis.”

Cohen wrote an op-ed in today’s Roll Call newspaper expressing concern that false reporting and “lies” are stirring a dangerous contempt for politicians and the federal government.

In the context of the Arizona shooting of U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, Cohen wrote about his experience last November with Ventura’s truTV show.

“Outrageous claims and outright lies designed to increase ratings and generate revenue by instilling fear and distrust of government could incite those who believe them to act violently,” Cohen writes. “Even more disturbing is that the reckless dissemination of inflammatory misinformation is not limited to hucksters like Ventura.”

Cohen mentions the Oklahoma City bombing in 1995 spurred by Timothy McVeigh’s “consuming hatred and distrust of government.”

“Death panels, government takeover of health care, bald-faced lies about our president’s country of birth or religion – these are the kinds of falsehoods that permeate our culture,” he writes. “Reckless and hateful speech often has a terrible human cost.”

U.S. Rep. Alan Nunnelee, R-Miss., does not have a handgun carry permit, his spokesman, Alexander Finestone, said this morning. A call to the office of U.S. Rep. Stephen Fincher, R-Tenn., was not immediately returned.

[wlhawk]

I look forward to seeing Rep. Cohen listed in the HCP database at the Commie Appeal.