The Further Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2024<\/em>, which was unveiled at 2:32 AM the day before a vote, is a dream come true for anti-gun politicians and the bill even subsidizes the gun control lobby. Further, its expedited timeline is an outrage, not giving gun owners enough time to analyze the full extent of the gun control funded by the legislation.<\/p>\n On behalf of more than two million law-abiding gun owners, GOA urges all members of Congress to vote against this anti-gun funding bill that seeks further restrictions on the Second Amendment rights of Americans and advocates for gun control measures. <\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n Dickey Amendment Violations<\/strong><\/p>\n The Dickey Amendment is supposed to prevent the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) from \u201cadvocating or promoting gun control.\u201d However, Gun Owners of America has found that the bill appropriates a total of $25,000,000 for \u201cFirearm Mortality and Injury Prevention Research.\u201d The House of Representatives voted against <\/em>this language on November 15th<\/sup>, 2023 in the Mariannette Miller-Meeks amendment, which passed 216-211<\/a>.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n GOA\u2019s analysis of existing \u201cFirearm Mortality and Injury Prevention Research\u201d reveals how it completely subverts the Dickey Amendment. Identical funding to previous years is already being used by CDC and NIH illegally for:<\/p>\n This is why dozens of House Representatives wrote<\/a> to Speaker Johnson and Appropriations Chairwoman Granger late last week urging them to protect the Second Amendment. Apparently, such advice has been disregarded. <\/strong><\/p>\n Gun Control Lobby Subsidy<\/strong><\/p>\n One earmark even sets aside $59,000 for an anti-gun 501(c)(3) who boasts that they helped \u201ccreate Ethan’s Law\u201d which \u201cSenators Blumenthal and Murphy introduced\u201d and that they are lobbying to \u201cpass nationally.\u201d<\/p>\n This anti-gun 501(c)(3) is questionably lobbying for an unconstitutional federal unsafe storage law. \u201cEthan\u2019s Law\u201d is extremely dangerous to gun owners because it:<\/p>\n Speaker Pelosi forced a vote on this unconstitutional gun control in 2022 and Gun Owners of America also key voted<\/a> against this bill. This non-profit also hosts so-called \u201cgun buybacks\u201d of firearms which never belonged to the government in the first place.<\/p>\n Even though this earmark is directed towards a \u201cfirearm safety curriculum\u201d it is likely that the class will be anti-gun and discourage gun owners from having ready access to firearms to utilize for home defense. It will also subsidize the non-profits efforts by allowing them to redirect other funds to lobby for gun control and waste money on useless buyback programs.<\/p>\n Private Security for Congress<\/strong><\/p>\n While researching how to disarm American citizens, the legislation also funds increased private security for members of Congress. Elected politicians don\u2019t need \u201cEnhanced Member Protection\u201d or \u201cRisk-Based Protections for Members of Congress.\u201d Instead, politicians should exercise their Second Amendment-protected rights\u2014as any other American must\u2014and protect themselves by carrying a firearm for self-defense. Extra private security for members is hypocritical and sends a clear message to law abiding gun owners: \u201cguns for me but not for thee!\u201d<\/p>\n No Action to Protect Conservatives from Weaponized Government<\/strong><\/p>\n Apparently, Congress \u201cis concerned\u201d that the government is targeting folks, like GOA members who believe gun control is unconstitutional, as militia violent extremists, domestic terrorists, etc. But unfortunately, the omnibus only directs bureaucrats to write a few reports on it\u2014which is completely unacceptable!<\/p>\n The explanatory statement admits there are ongoing issues regarding rogue bureaucrats and their \u201cconsultation and coordination with non-governmental organizations to identify what constitutes \u2018extremism\u2019 and \u2018extremist organizations.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n Therefore, Congress needs to do more than just having those same anti-American bureaucrats give a biased \u201cbrief [to] the Committees.\u201d Simply publishing a report on \u201cthe ways in which the Department consults with and utilizes non-government organizations and non-profit entities to track alleged \u2018extremist\u2019 groups operating in the United States\u201d is not enough.<\/p>\n Congress just needs to ban bureaucrats from targeting conservatives! This study is meaningless, and the American people recognize that.<\/p>\n Failure to Rescind Past Gun Control Funding<\/strong><\/p>\n This bill also fails to rescind past gun control funding<\/a> for \u00a0the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) to coordinate with the Department of Veterans Affairs to create \u201cgun storage maps\u201d of where veterans keep their firearms, implement \u201csafe storage\u201d requirements, and utilize \u201cred flag\u201d gun confiscation laws.<\/p>\n GOA Key Vote Notification<\/strong><\/p>\n Gun Owners of America will be key voting against this minibus and scoring all votes to advance the bill as anti-gun votes in both the House and Senate. GOA urges Congress to vote against this unconstitutional, hypocritical, and anti-gun minibus. <\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n Any votes in favor of this anti-gun Further Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2024 represent an attack on the individual Second Amendment rights of the American people and will be scored as anti-gun votes.<\/em><\/p>\n This vote will be taken into account in Gun Owners of America\u2019s Scorecard, Voter Guide, and future Candidate endorsements\u2014which can be accessed here<\/a>.<\/p>\n![\"\u274c\"](\"https:\/\/s.w.org\/images\/core\/emoji\/14.0.0\/72x72\/274c.png\")
researching a firearm retirement<\/a> age for senior citizens;
\n safety check-ins to find guns<\/a> in pregnant women’s homes;
\n studying the effectiveness of gun confiscation<\/a>;
\n investigating mandatory wait periods<\/a> for gun purchases;
\n exploring expanded background checks<\/a>;
\n and more<\/a>!<\/p>\n Bans emergency access to firearms when gun owners want them for home and self-defense; and
\n Directs the Attorney General to seize firearms not stored according to unconstitutional bureaucratic standards.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.gunowners.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/3-8-240x300.png\")
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