Your taxes at work for the NRA (and Cox)

[ricbak]

An article in the Detroit Free Press 7/08/2009. And a Follow Up Letter publish 7/09/2009 from Michigan's AG Mike Cox.


"Your taxes at work for the NRA (and Cox)"
Your taxes at work for the NRA (and Cox) | Freep.com | Detroit Free Press

July 8, 2009

Your taxes at work for the NRA (and Cox)
When he isn't running for governor, Mike Cox is Michigan's attorney general. And it was in his capacity as the state's top law enforcement officer that Cox announced with considerable fanfare Tuesday that his office has filed an amicus brief asking the U.S. Supreme Court to strike down a strict gun control ordinance in Chicago.
If you are wondering how a man with two full-time jobs has time to worry about what local officials in Illinois are up to, the press release issued by the AG's office ("Cox Joins NRA in Fight against Chicago Gun Ban") provides a clue.
Get it? Michigan's attorney general (did we mention he's running for governor?) is backing the National Rifle Association, which has the political clout to make or break gubernatorial wannabes like Cox and isn't afraid to use it, in its valiant fight against Chicagoans who want fewer handguns in their city.
And just to show he's not afraid to put your money where his political interests lie, Cox is deploying the AG's own taxpayer-supported staff to do it.
Let's suppose, for the sake of argument, that a panel of U.S. Court of Appeals judges got it wrong when they unanimously upheld Chicago's gun control ordinance.
Let's suppose the citizens of Chicago (a city like Detroit, only larger and safer) violated the U.S. Constitution when they proposed to regulate the sort of weapons that people could carry in their city.
And just to be charitable, let's forget that Michigan's attorney general made his reputation as a homicide prosecutor in Detroit, where another fellow might have learned something about what the unregulated proliferation of handguns can do to a city.
Don't Michiganders still have every reason to wonder what their attorney general is doing sticking his nose in Chicago's fight?
The obvious answer is that Cox is in that fight to curry favor with the one of the nation's most potent political lobbies. He wants his party's gubernatorial nomination, and he's pulling out all the stops to get it.
We just wish he would do it on his own time, and with his own money.

Published Reply in the Free Press

"A stand for principle on gun rights"
A stand for principle on gun rights | Freep.com | Detroit Free Press

July 9, 2009



A stand for principle on gun rights

BY MIKE COX
MICHIGAN ATTORNEY GENERALThe Free Press editorialized Wednesday -- "Your taxes at work for the NRA (and Cox)" -- against my filing of a legal brief with the U.S. Supreme Court that supports the National Rifle Association's challenge of a Chicago ordinance banning the possession of most handguns.
My support for this challenge to the Chicago gun ban is rooted in Michigan's own Constitution, which states: "Every person has a right to keep and bear arms for the defense of himself and the state."
My defense of this constitutional principle is longstanding. In 2007, I filed an amicus brief with the U.S. Supreme Court in opposition to the District of Columbia's drastic ban on guns, arguing that the Second Amendment's right "to keep and bear arms" is an individual right. The Supreme Court agreed with that position and overturned the D.C. ban in its Heller decision.
The Free Press failed to mention that 34 attorneys general signed on to the NRA's challenge of Chicago's strict gun ban, including both Democrats and Republicans. This isn't about politics; it's about standing up for principle.
It may come as news to the Free Press, but this office files amicus briefs all the time to protect the rights of the state and its citizens. For example, this office has filed amicus briefs in support of the Big Three auto industry and tougher standards to protect the Great Lakes.
In my own experience of more than 13 years as a homicide prosecutor and head of the homicide unit of the Wayne County Prosecutor's Office, I never saw anyone charged with murder who had a license to legally carry a concealed weapon. Most people who want to possess guns are law-abiding and present no threat to others. Rather than the availability of weapons, my experience is that gun violence is driven by culture, police presence, or the lack of same, and failures in the supervision of parolees and probationers.
Since becoming attorney general, I have worked to ensure that the rights of Michigan citizens to defend themselves are protected. For example, I have expanded the number of states that recognize Michigan CCW permits from eight states to 35 states. And I'll continue to take action when constitutional priciples are threatened.
I make no apologies for my support of the Constitution and the Second Amendment.
Mike Cox
Michigan Attorney General, Lansing

[AZSATT]

Wow, great read - thanks for sharing that.

Anti's are so blind and moronic I almost feel bad for them. Almost.

I actually laughed when I read that "Chicago is a city like Detroit, only bigger and safer." SAFER?! That fool needs to drive through the south side of Chicago after dark and tell me how "safe" he is!

Idiotic fool. (The reporter - not the MI AG.)

[MADnMO]

Liberals and the MSM couldn't care less about the Constitution of the United States of America. They don't believe in it.

[Scarecrow]

Originally Posted by MADnMO

Liberals and the MSM couldn't care less about the Constitution of the United States of America. They don't believe in it.

right. so they think they have the right to change it or just get rid of it.

[gogriz91]

Reaffirms my belief that Michigan in general and Detroit in particular have reached rock bottom and started digging. Is there anyone in senior leadership positions in the state that isn't under indictment or investigation?

[Red Hat]

Originally Posted by MADnMO

Liberals and the MSM couldn't care less about the Constitution of the United States of America. They don't believe in it.

That's why they keep saying it's a living document. That way if its living they can kill it!

[Bohemian]

Yes Michigan, get behind Attorney General Mike Cox! he is one of the good guys...

February 2006
MICHIGAN UPDATES MACHINE-GUN OWNERSHIP RULES
Michigan Attorney General Mike Cox has issued a legal opinion that makes it easier for residents to obtain modern machine guns.
The ruling says possession of machine guns manufactured prior to 1986 is legal for those who follow federal application procedures, including fingerprints, a photo and a criminal background check.
The Cox ruling overturned a 1977 Attorney General opinion that limited
Michigan ownership of machine guns to relics and antiques.
Congress passed a law that, as of 1986, outlawed ownership of machine guns, which did not apply to pre-1986 models.
The new ruling now allows Michiganders to own not just antique machine guns, but any made up to 1986.
The legal opinion was sought by Michael Sessa Jr, a competitive machine gun shooter and founder of Gun Owners of Macomb County.

Although Mike Cox did not go far enough on this issue in my opinion, and invoke the Second Amendment as justification for Michigan or any other State for that matter to ignore any federal firearm legislation (INFRINGEMENTS such as the Unconstitutional FOPA 1986 - Hughes Amendment) he did at least prevent Michigan from keeping firearm laws more prohibitive then federal ones...

Related...
Amend/Repeal Class III Ban - A Stepping Stone To Total Gun Confiscation

Ditto...
Gun bans - Don't think it can happen, watch

[gogriz91]

The Detroit Free Press, chronicling the gradual decline of what once was, a mediocre place to live. Look at some of the articles on there, the DPS is millions in debt and Conyers got ^&itcanned. Michigan has reached rock bottom and has started digging.