Obama's Agenda -- Will It Come to Fruition?

LEAA, while congratulating Obama and Biden on their victory, wants to point out: the Public Relations and Legislative FIGHT to protect and defend issues and values we hold sold dear HAS ALREADY BEGUN! The first choices of key senior staff have sent a clear warning shot across our bow: we will face a formidable, motivated and experienced 'team'!

In addition, as another observer group noted, 'Only hours after being declared the president-elect, the Obama transition team website announced an agenda taken straight from the anti-gun lobby--four initiatives designed to ban guns and drive law-abiding firearm manufacturers and dealers out of business': 

"Making the expired federal assault weapons ban permanent." Perhaps no other firearm issue has been more dishonestly portrayed by gun haters. There is no evidence that gun prohibition or gun control reduces crime. As LEAA has repeated so often, "Gun Control is NOT Crime Control!" Obama says that "assault weapons" are machine guns that "belong on foreign battlefields," but that is a lie; the guns are only semi-automatic, and they are not used by a military force anywhere on the planet. Bans on magazines that hold 'X' number of rounds are distraction from the real crime problem and other than harming honest gun owners and those who would defend themselves, serves no good purpose!

"Repeal the Tiahrt Amendment." The amendment--endorsed by many in the police community including not only LEAA, but also the Fraternal Order of Police--prohibits the release of federal firearm tracing information to anyone other than a law enforcement agency conducting a bona fide criminal investigation. Anti-gun activists and those who support the 'Trial Bar' hate these protections to your privacy because it helps prevent frivolous lawsuits against law-abiding firearm manufacturers; don't be fooled, it is not a stretch to say they want to abolish guns by making sure there are no gun manufacturers!.

"Closing the gun show loophole." There is no "loophole!" Under EXISTING federal law, all firearm 'dealer's' must conduct a background check on anyone to whom they sell a gun. For those with a gun-hating philosophy this is not enough: They want to regulate and restirct your right -- as a citizen gun owner -- to privately transfer your gun to whomever you wish, including your family or children! Beyond that, the effort to frame the debate with the misleading 'loophole' title is all about driving ALL gun shows out of business! 

"Making guns in this country childproof." "Childproof" is a codeword for a variety of schemes designed to prevent the sale of firearms by imposing impossible or highly expensive design requirements, such as biometric shooter-identification systems. LEAA long ago got involved in these efforts and discoverd that while legitmate efforts to save lives -- especially those of our children are to be lauded and supported -- this effort to 'Childproof' guns is a fraud and non-starter!

Here, for all to see -- in case it gets taken off the Obama website -- is what they say, in their own words:

CRIME AND LAW ENFORCEMENT

Support Local Law Enforcement: Barack Obama and Joe Biden are committed to fully funding the COPS program to put 50,000 police officers on the street and help address police brutality and accountability issues in local communities. Obama and Biden also supports efforts to encourage young people to enter the law enforcement profession, so that our local police departments are not understaffed because of a dearth of qualified applicants.

Reduce Crime Recidivism by Providing Ex-Offender Supports: America is facing an incarceration and post-incarceration crisis in urban communities. Obama and Biden will create a prison-to-work incentive program, modeled on the successful Welfare-to-Work Partnership and work to reform correctional systems to break down barriers for ex-offenders to find employment.

End the Dangerous Cycle of Youth Violence: As president, Barack Obama will support innovative local programs, such as the CeaseFire program in Chicago, that have been proven to work. Such programs implement a comprehensive public health approach that implements a community-based strategy to prevent youth violence. He will also double funding for federal afterschool programs and invest in 20 Promise Neighborhoods across the country to ensure that urban youth have meaningful opportunities to succeed.

Address Gun Violence in Cities: As president, Barack Obama would repeal the Tiahrt Amendment, which restricts the ability of local law enforcement to access important gun trace information, and give police officers across the nation the tools they need to solve gun crimes and fight the illegal arms trade. Obama and Biden also favor commonsense measures that respect the Second Amendment rights of gun owners, while keeping guns away from children and from criminals who shouldn't have them. They support closing the gun show loophole and making guns in this country childproof. They also support making the expired federal Assault Weapons Ban permanent, as such weapons belong on foreign battlefields and not on our streets.

End Racial Profiling: Barack Obama cosponsored federal legislation to ban racial profiling and require federal, state and local law enforcement agencies to take steps to eliminate the practice. He introduced and passed a law in the Illinois State Senate requiring the Illinois Department of Transportation to record the race, age, and gender of all drivers stopped for traffic violations so that bias could be detected and addressed..