by Chad D. Baus
Two Republican presidential candidates with documented pro-Second Amendment rights records as governors are seeking to make sure that primary voters are aware that former governor Mitt Romney’s record on the issue looks more like Barack Obama’s or Hillary Clinton’s than that of a supposedly pro-gun conservative.
One of the flip-flop issues consistently mentioned about Romney?
His record on gun rights.
Deer must be checked in by 11:30 p.m. the day of harvest
COLUMBUS, OH – More than 24,000 white-tailed deer have been checked through Ohio’s new automated game check system, according to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR), Division of Wildlife.
Hunters must still report their deer harvest, but they are no longer required to take their deer to a check station for physical inspection. Instead, hunters have three options to complete the new automated game check:
All three check-in methods are being used, with 50 percent of hunters using the phone method. Hunters checking in via the Internet are second at 35 percent followed by those traveling to a license agent’s location (15 percent) to check in their game.
“The response to these new game check options has been really positive in both numbers and feedback we hear from the field,” said Dave Lane, chief of the Division of Wildlife. “Our goal is to offer hunters both traditional and convenient methods of checking deer and turkey, so they could choose the option that is best for them.”
by Chad D. Baus
Although it appears Ohio Republicans will not get to vote in a presidential primary until it is already decided (the primary has been moved back from its usual March Super Tuesday spot to near the back of the line in June 2012), GOP political figures in the Buckeye State have begun to weigh in on who they believe should be the nominee to face Obama.
The Dayton Daily News is reporting that NRA Board of Directors member and former Ohio Treasurer and Secretary of State Ken Blackwell has endorsed Texas Governor Rick “gun control means using both hands” Perry for President. Blackwell, who is the first African-American to be elected to statewide executive office in Ohio, also earned the Republican nomination for governor in 2006.
The season for three of Ohio’s most popular game species — ring-necked pheasant, cottontail rabbit, and bobwhite quail — begins Friday, November 4, according to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR), Division of Wildlife.
“The state’s cottontail population has been very good for the last several years, and this year should provide some excellent opportunities for sportsmen,” said Nathan Stricker, project leader with the division’s Olentangy Wildlife Research Station. “Statewide, rabbit numbers have increased over last year.”
According to Stricker, quail and pheasant populations may be lower than previous years. “Heavy snows this past winter, followed by an extremely wet spring have resulted in lower observed numbers of pheasants in parts of Ohio. Quail numbers are down slightly from last year, but they seemed to have done better than we had hoped following the severe winter weather of this past February,” said Stricker.
Private lands enrolled in the Conservation Reserve Program(CRP) have been very important to supporting upland game populations. Williams and Defiance counties in northwest Ohio have strong pheasant populations because of the habitat contributions by local landowners. Upland game populations are responding positively to habitat programs in other areas around the state, especially in counties with significant enrollment in Scioto Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program and Quail Buffer practices inCRP known as CP33.
Support for stricter gun laws in general is lowest Gallup has measured
by Chad D. Baus
A new Gallup poll has found that a record-low 26% of Americans favor a legal ban on the possession of handguns in the United States other than by police and other authorized people. According to the article, when Gallup first asked Americans this question in 1959, 60% favored banning handguns. But since 1975, the majority of Americans have opposed such a measure, with opposition around 70% in recent years.
The poll also finds that a majority of Americans are opposed to banning semi-automatic guns or “assault” rifles.
A majority of Americans also favor keeping gun laws as they are now, or making them less strict.
by Linda Walker Voters in Columbus will have the opportunity to kick anti-gun Mayor Michael Coleman to the curb on Nov. 8. Mayor Coleman has consistently worked against the Second Amendment and…
by Chad D. Baus
As the run-up to Republican presidential primary continues, Buckeye Firearms is interested in covering as many of the candidates as possible, in order to give our readers an informed perspective on the candidates’ position on the Second Amendment.
As it stands, however, there continues to be only one candidates among those polling in the top eight who is making a point to discuss the issue of gun rights in his campaign – Texas Gov. Rick Perry.
In September, Perry told attendees at a town hall meeting what his policy is when it comes to gun control – “use both hands.” A video of Perry delivering the quip went viral.
A few weeks later, Perry told an inquisitive journalist what he does with his free time: “I don’t play golf, I shoot guns.”
And just last week, the Associated Press followed Perry on a pheasant hunting trip into the Iowa fields, and published an extensive article on Perry’s pro-gun record.
From the October 22 article, entitled “At ease, Rick Perry hunts pheasants in Iowa:”
Meet Rick Perry, lifelong hunter.
He’s floundered on the debate stage. He’s stumbled on immigration. But the Perry who showed up for a pheasant hunt on a chilly Iowa Saturday was perfectly, naturally at ease – and not afraid to talk about it.
“As long as I’ve got memory I’ve had something to go hunting with,” Perry said, “so it was a long love affair with a boy and his gun that turned into a man and his gun and then it turned into a man and his son and his daughter and their guns.”
The article goes on to say that Perry has been a hunter for decades, and contrasts his strong support for gun rights with that of GOP rival Mitt Romney.
“Perry had an old junky airplane we flew everywhere; he had an old snub-nosed 310,” said Cliff Johnson, a former state legislator who still hunts with Perry, referring to a small Cessna 310 airplane. “Hell, every time third time we flew we’d have an onboard fire. They were put together with John Deere parts, let’s just put it that way.”
Contrast that with his rival, Mitt Romney, who struggled mightily to explain his own limited personal background with hunting and firearms. In 2008, Romney said he’d been “a hunter pretty much all my life” when he’d actually only been out a handful of times. He backed the 1994 Brady gun control bill, and as governor of Massachusetts, he supported the state’s strict gun control laws and signed one of the nation’s tougher assault weapons laws.
The AP neglected to mention it, but in his last attempt to win the nomination, Romney lied about having received an NRA endorsement on national television. Is it any wonder he is hoping to win the GOP nomination without discussing the gun issue this time around?
BELLEVUE, Wash. — The Obama administration “is seeking advice and consent” for Senate ratification of an international small arms treaty, and also supports the inclusion of small arms in the UN Register…
by Chad D. Baus
Lorain Morning Journal reporter Bill Delaney has done what few in the media are going to be willing to do – compare the claims of what opponents said would happen when Ohio’s restaurant carry law went into effect with the reality that is being experienced so far.
From the article:
Almost a month ago, at midnight on Sept. 30, Senate Bill 17 became law, allowing concealed carry permit holders to bring their concealed handguns into places where alcohol is served, as long as they don’t drink.
And so far, the law hasn’t resulted in problems or violations, according to law agencies in the area.
“We haven’t had any problems yet,” said Huron County sheriff’s Lt. Theresa Shean. “What I am truly finding is that people who come in for permits are responsible people, and they are very concerned in carrying out their rights in a responsible way.
“The people that should not have weapons, we’re not going to see those people come in and apply for a permit,” she said.
Supporters of the change in law say the measure is about allowing people who legally have the right to carry concealed weapons to be able to take them into establishments that serve alcohol, instead of leaving them in a vehicle. Guns must still be left outside if a bar or restaurant posts a “no guns” sign, under the new law.
Delaney goes on to note that opponents of the change predicted it would lead to a dangerous mix of booze and firearms.
The Washington Times is currently running an excellent series of articles entitled “Emily Gets Her Gun.”
The series follows senior editor Emily Miller as she legally tries to get her hands on a gun in the nation’s capital, navigating the city bureaucracy and outdated rules in order to legally buy a firearm.
The first installment of the series begins like this:
I want a gun. I don’t feel safe living in Washington, D.C. and want to protect myself. I’m starting today by going down to City Hall to find the gun permit office to tell them, “I want a gun.” This series will follow me as I navigate the city bureaucracy and outdated rules in order to legally buy a firearm.
My desire for a gun started when I had to face down over a dozen criminals on an empty cul de sac in Washington, D.C., armed only with a Blackberry.
…I want a gun to protect myself, but it seems my city government officials may work against me. There’s only one way to find out if that’s the case and that’s by going through all the hoops. Keep watching this space or follow me on Twitter to see how the story unfolds.
Emily recently appeared on NRA News to discuss her quest: