PA Bill Number: HB335
Title: In inchoate crimes, further providing for prohibited offensive weapons.
Description: In inchoate crimes, further providing for prohibited offensive weapons. ...
Last Action: Removed from table
Last Action Date: May 1, 2024
Protecting the Second Amendment :: 03/03/2016
When I took my oath of office to support and defend the Constitution of the United States, that responsibility included the Second Amendment right to bear arms.
Unfortunately, one of the Administration’s first acts of 2016 was to circumvent Congress and sign an executive order placing further restrictions on the sale of firearms. These executive actions are an affront to Second Amendment rights, and the separation of powers laid out in the United States Constitution.
Unfortunately, this is only the most recent action in the Administration’s long-running campaign to place more regulations on owning and purchasing guns. I believe the President’s focus is all wrong. We should enforce our current laws, fix our flawed mental health system and combat terrorism.
In fact, research conducted by Syracuse University shows that firearm prosecutions peaked at 11,015 under the Bush Administration in 2004, and dropped to 6,600 in 2014 under the current Administration.
Before we start passing new legislation and placing more burdens on law-abiding citizens, we need to first enforce the laws already on the books. We also need to focus less on gun restrictions and focus more on what is often the root cause of violence and mass shootings — mental health.
The mental health system in our country is failing to provide the services necessary to meet the demand of those most in need. In Congress, I have supported legislation, such as the Helping Families in Mental Health Crisis Act, which would take steps to correct the flaws in our mental health system.
This bill would research the causes of mental health illness, address the shortages of mental health care providers, and make sure those suffering from mental illness are receiving the proper care they need. Mental health services must be a priority if we want to curb the violence in our country, and I will continue working to find ways to address this issue.
We can also keep Americans safer by ensuring we have a comprehensive strategy to combat terrorism around the world so we can keep it from coming to our shores, as it did in San Bernardino. The National Defense Authorization Act, which was signed into law by the President in November, required the Administration to submit a comprehensive strategy to defeat the ISIS by February 15, 2016.
The deadline came and went last week, and still no strategy has been introduced. It is imperative we have a strategy which builds a coalition of allies in the Middle East region if we can ever fully defeat ISIS. I hope the President will step up and allow America to lead in the effort against ISIS.
I regularly hear from those who are concerned about the President’s executive actions and government interference with their Second Amendment rights, and I fully understand those concerns. Please know that I remain committed to fulfilling my oath and protecting your right to bear arms.
Should you have any questions regarding what we are doing in Congress to protect your Second Amendment rights, or any other issue facing the federal government, I invite you contact my Washington, D.C. office at 202-225-2015, Hilliard office at 614-771-4968, Lancaster office at 740-654-2654, or Wilmington office at 937-283-7049.
Steve Stivers is a member of Congress from Ohio’s 15th Congressional District. He periodically writes a column published in The Logan Daily News. His views may not necessarily reflect that of the newspaper.
