Mayor Bloomberg says politicians who oppose measures to crack down on illegal guns have been "cowed or duped" by an "extremist gun lobby."
During an appearance in front of the Congressional Black Caucus in Washington yesterday, Mr. Bloomberg said elected officials in both political parties have been too "soft" when it comes to trafficking and possessing illegal guns.
"They say that they are protecting the Second Amendment, but that’s a red herring if ever there was one, and it’s time for us to start exposing it," Mr. Bloomberg said.
http://www.nysun.com/article/39360
Mayor Mike Bloomberg has made gun control a legacy issue of his second term in City Hall.
Bloomberg has been so stridently anti-gun, in fact, that the National Rifle Association used its muscle with the Senate earlier this year to shoot down the nomination of Diana Taylor, Bloomberg’s companion, to head up the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.
So why did City Councilman Andy Lanza (R-South Shore), a fellow Republican and one of the mayor’s most dependable allies, vote against two of the four gun-control bills that Bloomberg put forward this year?
It’s an issue we’re sure voters are going to be reminded of as Lanza continues his campaign to replace retiring state Sen. John Marchi (R-Staten Island) this year.
The two bills that Lanza voted against target gun dealers who sell guns illegally and then claim they were stolen or lost, as well as traffickers who buy many guns in one transaction.
Under the legislation, gun dealers must inspect their inventory every six months instead of once a year, and must report missing or stolen guns to the NYPD.
In addition, customers will be able to buy only one handgun every three months.
All four of Bloomberg’s bills passed the Council with room to spare, but Lanza’s stance seemed odd, especially given the fact that he was the only member of the Island’s three-member Council delegation to vote against any of the gun bills.
Odder still is the fact that Lanza cast his vote just before Bloomberg threw him a $1,000-per-head fund-raiser.
http://www.silive.com/newslogs/politics/