Gubernatorial rivals blast Haslam on gun stance

[Tim Nunan]

So the article states how many cities/counties have banned park carry but doesn't tell how many have accepted the state law or voted to allow park carry... no agenda there huh?
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http://www.knoxnews.com/news/2009/sep/2 ... ebgunreax/

NASHVILLE - Bill Haslam's rivals for Tennessee's Republican gubernatorial nomination are finding ammunition in the Knoxville mayor's position on guns.

Senate Speaker Ron Ramsey of Blountville and U.S. Rep. Zach Wamp of Chattanooga, both vocal supporters of gun rights, are targeting Haslam's support for a Knoxville City Council vote earlier this week that keeps in place a ban on handguns in city parks, playgrounds and sports fields.

"Once again Mayor Haslam comes down on the wrong side of our Second Amendment rights guaranteed in the Constitution," Wamp said in a statement.

The state Legislature this year passed a law that allows handgun carry permit holders to bring their weapons into city and county parks. But the law gives local governments the power to opt out.

About 70 cities and counties have decided against allowing people with permits to go armed in local parks.

Haslam supported the ban at the council meeting because it could be worse for gun owners if "we monkey with the situation we have right now," because changing the ordinance might lead to criminal penalties for violators. Knoxville is the only large city in Tennessee without criminal penalties for bringing guns into parks, he said.

Campaign consultant Tom Ingram said he expects Haslam's opponents to "try to obscure that and some other things that are as clear as the nose on your face." But Ingram said voters should see through any attacks on Haslam over gun rights.

"People who pay attention and understand that he is a staunch advocate for the Second Amendment - and ignore people who mislead and distort - will be fine with his position," Ingram said.

Haslam has been publicly refining his position on guns as he makes his statewide race.

Earlier this year, he withdrew from the Mayors Against Illegal Guns group for what he called a departure from its original mission of fighting gun crimes in urban areas.

"As soon as that came to light he resigned, as did many other mayors," Ingram said.

Ramsey spokesman Brad Todd said gun rights are a "big issue" for Republican primary voters.

"It's a long campaign," Todd said. "I'm sure a lot of people will have questions for him around the state. He's going to have a lot of explaining to do."

Ramsey was an original sponsor of Tennessee's handgun carry law, and Todd said his consistent stance on guns is what will appeal to voters.

"He doesn't try to tell one audience on thing and tell another audience another," Todd said. "He supports Second Amendment rights, period."

Wamp has made gun rights a staple of his campaign speeches, including a statement that if President Barack Obama were to issue an order to confiscate guns, "We will meet him at the state line."

"Limiting the rights of citizens who have gone through the training and permitting process required to legally carry a gun in order to protect themselves and their families - while letting the criminals run free - makes little sense to me," Wamp said.

Haslam's campaign raised $3.8 million in the first half of the year, compared with Ramsey's $1.3 million and Wamp's $1.2 million.

A fourth Republican candidate, Memphis prosecutor Bill Gibbons, raised about $412,000. Gibbons has expressed reservations about another new Tennessee law that allows permit holders to carry their guns into bars and restaurants that serve alcohol.

[tkdmavrick]

This is the post that I put on the Knox News-sentinel message board with respect to this article:


I was at last Tuesday Night's city council meeting and was one who voice recorded the whole thing. Personally, I am on the fence about Haslam, but it is important to note what happened at the meeting.

First of all. Haslam can only chair the meeting, not vote, and can only direct the general direction, but obviously not what is said.

Councilman Booker finally spoke and said that he didn't understand how people were discussing the Second Amendment, because no one is in "the militia" (the old Collective Rights argument). After he spoke, Mayor Haslam did publicly correct him by saying that the recent Supreme Court case known as Heller, establishes the right to own a gun in your own home, as an Individual Right. Councilman Booker should have at least done his homework on this one with all the KCC delays and the workshop.

The motion on the table was Steve Hall's motion to rescind the old Knoxville ordinance establishing a civil penalty of $50 for carrying a gun in a Knoxville park. Knoxville could not, by the state pre-emption law, establish a NEW ordinance, one way or another. The vote was 6-3 to not rescind the old ordinance.

It was a case of "be careful of what you wish for". If KCC had rescinded the old $50 fine, their only option would have been to "opt-out", thus making the act of carrying a gun in a Knoxville park a criminal act on the State level (class A misdemeanor). Since the vote was 6-3 with most KCC members against "guns", I think some members voted with the 6, to block any attempt at "opting out".

I think it was a case of being able to live with the status quo: the pro-gun folks can merely pay the $50 fine if caught - the anti-gun folks have a penalty imposed, and can feel good about it. Nobody overtly wins - nobody overtly loses. A result politicians love.

As far as actually keeping guns OUT of parks - it didn't do a darn thing.
.

[bmike27]

Congressman Zach Wamp , made a surprise visit to to the Knoxville meeting .. This was sent out via Twitter ....

http://twitter.com/brianhornback/status/4452416026 , I wish there was a picture of Haslam's face when Zach came in .........

[tkdmavrick]

BMIKE27 .... you got this one ALL wrong. You have confused the two legislative bodies totally.

The Knoxville City Council decided to keep their existing ordinance in place. They did not "opt-out". So carry in a Knoxville Park is a $50 civil penalty. Bill Haslam is the mayor of Knoxville. He chairs the Knoxville City Council meetings. This meeting was held Tuesday, 9/22/09.

The Knox County Commission decided not to "opt out", thus carry by a HCP holder is perfectly legal in Knox County parks.. They had their meeting Monday, 9/28/09. The Knox County mayor is Mike Ragsdale. He was there at the Commission meeting in the audience, but has no role on the Commission. To my knowledge Bill Haslam was not present ... why should he be? The meeting was the Knox County Commission, not Knoxville City Council. This is the meeting where Zach Wamp made a brief appearance.

It may be easy to confuse ... Knoxville ...Knox County, and they both use the same meeting room (it's in the City/County Building after all). I was at both meetings, prior meetings, workshop, etc.

[GKar]

[tkdmavrick]

First of all I am not a supporter of Haslam - or against him either (even though his belonging to Mayor Bloomburg's mayoral group was disturbing - many mayors later quit when they dug deeper into Bloomburg though - so on this I personally will give him the benefit of the doubt). Ok, that being said, Mayor Haslam chairs the Knoxville City Council meetings - BUT - does not have a vote. So his opinion doesn't count. The votes simply were not there to rescind the old ordinance AND then NOT opt-out. It was a case of the lesser of two evils - a civil penalty of $50 (I am checking with the TN General Assembly's attorney through my State Rep. to see if the HCP would be affected in any way - my reading is that it would not) versus criminalizing carry by a HCP holder as a class A misdemeanor.

[bmike27]

Let me get this straight, Knoxville as big as it is and all the revenue coming into the county and city and they cannot or will not have seperate meeting spaces?

That's really confusing..........And thanks for the info ....


Also I'd like to say no matter who you support , it's your right and either way i have a great deal of respect for those who participate and get involved .
As opposed to those who sit at home on election day and then cry about the outcome .