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McCain and Obama React to Heller

By John McCormack

McCain hits Obama hard:

I applaud this decision as well as the overturning of the District of Columbia’s ban on handguns and limitations on the ability to use firearms for self-defense. Unlike Senator Obama, who refused to join me in signing a bipartisan amicus brief, I was pleased to express my support and call for the ruling issued today. Today’s ruling in District of Columbia v. Heller makes clear that other municipalities like Chicago that have banned handguns have infringed on the constitutional rights of Americans. Unlike the elitist view that believes Americans cling to guns out of bitterness, today’s ruling recognizes that gun ownership is a fundamental right — sacred, just as the right to free speech and assembly.

Obama says he supports the decision, and doesn’t mention McCain:

“I have always believed that the Second Amendment protects the right of individuals to bear arms, but I also identify with the need for crime-ravaged communities to save their children from the violence that plagues our streets through common-sense, effective safety measures,” Obama said in a paper statement. “The Supreme Court has now endorsed that view, and while it ruled that the D.C. gun ban went too far, Justice Scalia himself acknowledged that this right is not absolute and subject to reasonable regulations enacted by local communities to keep their streets safe.

In 1996, Barack Obama supported legislation to “ban the manufacture, sale and possession of handguns,” according to two campaign questionnaires, but the Obama presidential campaign has blamed his campaign staff for incorrectly stating his position. During an April debate in Philadelphia with Hillary Clinton, moderator Charlie Gibson pointed out Obama’s handwriting was on one of those questionnaires, and Obama retorted: “No, my writing wasn’t on that particular questionnaire, Charlie. As I said, I have never favored an all-out ban on handguns.” This statement contradicted what an Obama aide told Politico weeks earlier. As far as I can tell, Obama has never been asked how his handwriting got on a questionnaire that falsely stated his position on guns. Today would seem a perfect opportunity for some intrepid reporter to ask.

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