URGENT NOTICE TO ALL AMERICAN CITIZENS: NATIONAL "RIGHT TO CARRY" A HANDGUN FOR SELF-DEFENSE NEEDS YOUR HELP

The Arbalest Quarrel recently published an article, “Attention All Law Abiding Gun Owners: National Concealed Handgun Reciprocity is in Jeopardy.” And this wasn’t the first time we wrote specifically on this critical subject.In February 2018, almost ten months ago, we posted an article discussing 115 H.R. 38, “Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act of 2017.” The article is titled, "It’s Time for National Handgun Carry Reciprocity to Secure the Citizen’s Right of Armed Self-Defense, Throughout The Country.” In that article, we stated:“Representative Richard Hudson (R-NC), introduced the bill on January 3, 2017. The bill passed the House by Roll Call Vote of 231-198, on December 6, 2017. It was sent to the Senate one day later, where it was read twice and then referred to the Senate Judiciary Committee. President Trump supports it. The NRA supports it. And, rank and file law enforcement officers support it too. But, there has been to date no further action on it. The bill sits in limbo. Its prospect of passage is, at present, low. Why is that?What is the U.S. Senate waiting for?”On June 27, 2018, in the Arbalest Quarrel, under the title, “National Concealed Handgun Carry Reciprocity is the Answer To International Islamic Terrorism In The United States,” we once again questioned the seeming lackadaisical attitude of the Senate under the leadership of Mitch McConnell, toward national concealed handgun carry reciprocity. We once again asked,“What is the status of this [115 H.R. 38] bill? It languishes in Committee.” We are still asking. Indeed, why has this bill languished in the Senate Judiciary Committee for almost one year? Clearly, passage of this bill is critical to the strengthening of the Second Amendment, consistent with the intention of the founders of our free Republic who codified the natural right of the people to keep and bear arms, in our Bill of Rights. Since January 2017, the Arbalest Quarrel has written over twenty articles dealing with the importance of national handgun carry reciprocity. We invite interested readers to take a look at all of our articles.We know that the Democratic Party leadership, along with virtually all Congressional Democrats, and particularly those of radical “Left,” are adamantly opposed to this bill. The burning $10,000.00 question, though, is this: Is the Senate Majority Leader, Mitch McConnell, also opposed to national handgun carry reciprocity? If Senator McConnell isn’t opposed to the bill, the effect of his doing nothing to move it along has the same impact as active opposition to it. Ultimately, Senator McConnell, as the Senate Majority Leader, has absolute or virtually absolute control over what bills are acted upon and what bills are not. He wields immense power. It may be, of course, that Senator McConnell having having wished for and having sought bipartisan support on this bill and, realizing he was unable to obtain it, has been resigned to simply ignoring it, thereby allowing the bill to lapse of its own accord, without action in the Senate Judiciary Committee, where it presently sits. But, what can be more important than our fundamental and unalienable rights and liberties, especially the right of the people to keep and bear arms, for the purpose of self-defense and as the ultimate fail-safe mechanism to prevent tyranny?If the American people have to wait for conditions to be “right” for passage of national handgun carry reciprocity, we may be waiting until Hell freezes over, especially with so many new radical Left elements poised to flex their muscle when the 116^th Congress takes over on January 3, 2019. That is why it is necessary to fast-track the Senate bill on this without further delay, so it can be sent to President Trump for his signature before the lame-duck Senate adjourns for the Christmas Holiday. For, if the lame-duck Senate does not act at once, all unfinished business of the 115^th Congress remains unfinished—dead—until or unless any pending bill of the previous, 115^th Congress, is reintroduced in the 116^th Congress, when Congressional business starts anew.Once the 116^th Congress commences business in January 2019, however, you can forget about passage of national handgun carry reciprocity and you can forget about passage of any other bill that serves to strengthen the Second Amendment. For, if there is one thing Congressional Democrats—who will seat a majority in the the House of Representatives—will focus their energies on, apart from continuing their effort to undermine President Trump, and apart from their singular objective to open our Southern border to thousands, more, of illegal aliens, it is their single-minded desire and goal to weaken the Second Amendment. And, they seek to accomplish that through federal Statute, to the point that the right embodied in the Second Amendment becomes essentially non-existent.Remember, this: no bill becomes law unless both Houses of Congress agree on passage of a bill and the U.S. President then signs the bill into law. It is reasonable to assume that a Democratic Party majority in the House of Representatives will have no incentive to strengthen the Second Amendment—and this is no understatement. So, if national handgun carry reciprocity, which passed the Republican controlled House in 2017, does not see passage in the Senate now, it will go nowhere, in 2019.The newly reconfirmed Democratic Party House Speaker Nancy Pelosi—will likely never allow national handgun carry reciprocity, or any other Pro-Second Amendment bill, to make it to the Floor of the House for debate and for a vote by the full House even if a Republican House member reintroduces national handgun carry reciprocity in 2019. And, if for some reason Nancy Pelosi, were to allow debate and a roll-call vote of a new national handgun carry reciprocity measure on the Floor of the House in 2019 or 2020, it would only happen if she knew the bill would fail and, of course, she would want the bill to fail, as she is a fierce opponent of the individual right embodied in the Second Amendment.Time is therefore of the essence. If we are to see national handgun carry reciprocity, the Senate must act promptly on the bill that passed the House under Representative Paul Ryan, and which is now and has been suspended in the Senate Committee on the Judiciary.Ammoland Shooting Sports News and The Truth About Guns  immediately posted, on their websites, our article calling for Americans to urge the Senate to act on the bill the Senate has been sitting on for almost a year. And it is a top story. If you do a search on Google, using the phrase, “national handgun carry,” you will see also that the Arbalest Quarrel article, as it appears on Ammoland Shooting Sports News, has the number one spot, and the article has held that spot for several days.The Arbalest Quarrel continues to reach out to Pro-Second Amendment organizations and to responsible social media and news sources to mount a last-ditch grass-roots effort for passage of the “Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act of 2017.”Over the past few days, we have made substantial progress and hope remains. We trust that thousands of American citizens have responded to our plea and have made calls to Senators Mitch McConnell and Charles Grassley, and that they have contacted NRA and the White House, too. And, we know that thousands of Americans who cherish their sacred Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms have responded with their views and comments on Pro-Second Amendment websites and social media to get the word out. Your message to Senate Republicans should be clear and clearly expressed: “If you want my vote, pass national concealed handgun carry reciprocity now!” “Votes” are one thing that all politicians know well and are sensitive to.The Arbalest Quarrel is doing its part. To further this important and timely matter. The President of the Arbalest Quarrel, Stephen L. D'Andrilli, sent a letter to Vice President Mike Pence, asking the Vice President to urge President Trump to call the Senate Majority Leader, Mitch McConnell, urging Senator McConnell to hold a full Senate Roll-Call vote on the bill, before the Senate adjourns for the Christmas Holiday, and the business of the 115th Congress ends.The content of that letter which was sent on official Arbalest Quarrel letterhead, on Tuesday, November 27, 2018, via Priority FedEx Overnight, is as follows:________________________________________________November 27, 2018                                 via FedEx Priority OvernightThe Vice President of the United States The White HouseOffice of the Vice President1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W. Washington, DC 20500Re: National Concealed Handgun Carry ReciprocityDear Mr. Vice President:I had the distinct honor and privilege of meeting and talking with you at the 2014 annual convention of the NRA, in Indianapolis, and, once again, a year later, at the Grand Hyatt Hotel in New York City, where you were a guest speaker at the New York Meeting. This coming April 2019, I will be attending the NRA Convention that will be held once again in Indianapolis.I am aware that a central plank of the Democratic Party leadership is directed to destruction of the Second Amendment-the surest path to tyranny if the Democratic Party succeeds. So, the best way to derail the Democratic Party's efforts is to strengthen the Second Amendment. It is essentially for this reason that I am writing to you, and I am doing so out of a sense of urgency, as time is of the essence.Almost one year ago, the Republican controlled House voted for passage of 115 H.R. 38, "Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act of 2017. "The House passed the bill on December 6, 2017, and it was immediately sent to the Senate for action. If Senate Majority Leader, Mitch McConnell, had pushed for passage of the bill, I feel certain it would have passed in the Republican controlled Senate. But, inexplicably, and disturbingly, the bill has lied dormant in the Senate Judiciary Committee, for almost a year.A Democratic Party controlled House will likely not allow for passage of a bill for national concealed handgun carry reciprocity. So, any attempt by Senate Republicans to resurrect the bill in a Republican controlled Senate, when the new Congress commences business, on January 3, 2019, will be futile. We therefore have only a small window of opportunity remaining before the Senate recess. This is why the Senate must pass this measure without delay and present it to President Trump for his signature, before the Senate adjourns on December 14, 2018.On our website, the Arbalest Quarrel, have discussed the importance of moving this bill through the Senate, while Republicans control both Houses of Congress. The link to our article is: We invite both you and President Trump to review our article and to act on this.Nothing has more importance to me than the sacred rights and liberties set forth in our Constitution, and the preservation of our way of life, grounded in the Judea-Christian ethic. Both are under constant assault by Leftist elements inside our Country and outside it, and by our purported "free" Press.As President Trump has made support of the Second Amendment an important part of his campaign, national handgun carry reciprocity would stand as his most important achievement in safeguarding the individual's natural right of self-defense with a firearm. And, too, defending the Second Amendment through passage of this bill will demonstrate to millions of American citizens the veracity of the President ' s promises, the value of his word, and the strength of the President's will to complete what he sets out to do.I respectfully request you urge President Trump to call upon Senator McConnell to hold a Senate floor roll-call vote on national handgun carry reciprocity before the Senate adjourns on December 14, 2018.I welcome the opportunity to assist further in this matter. Please do not hesitate to contact me if I may be of help. Thank you very much.Respectfully submitted, _______________________________________________________________Time is of the essence. The fight is not over. Right-To-Carry nationwide is still possible. Keep in mind what the late Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr. said: “A right delayed is a right denied.” And, many of you may recall the profound witticism of the late, great New York Yankees baseball catcher, Yogi Berra: “It ain’t over till it’s over.”Please do your part, if you haven't already acted, to help make National Concealed Handgun Carry Reciprocity the Law of the Land.  Whether it's one or two phone calls or a quick text message, doing something is better than doing nothing. The fate of national handgun carry reciprocity and the fate of our fundamental, natural right, etched in stone in the Second Amendment, is ultimately in your hands._________________________________________________Copyright © 2018 Roger J Katz (Towne Criour), Stephen L. D’Andrilli (Publius) All Rights Reserved.

SECOND AMENDMENT HANDGUN CARRY RECIPROCITY AMONG THE SEVERAL STATES—A RIGHT DENIED!

PLACE BLAME WHERE BLAME IS DUE—ON THE REPUBLICAN PARTY LEADERSHIP!

"A right delayed is a right denied." ~ Martin Luther King, Jr.Consider the following: Every qualified individual in the United States who passes a background check and handgun safety test shall obtain a permit to carry a handgun for self-protection in every State of the Union and in all United States territories.Is this an empirically impossible situation? Of course not. The United State Supreme Court, held, in the seminal Second Amendment Heller case (District of Columbia vs. Heller, 554 U.S. 570, 128 S. Ct. 2783, 171 L. Ed. 2d 637 (2008)) that the right of the people to keep and bear arms is an individual right unconnected to service in a militia and that the right to keep and bear arms entails the right to use firearms for self-defense. The U.S. Supreme Court held, two years later, in the seminal Second Amendment McDonald case (McDonald v. Chicago, 561 U. S. 742, 780, 130 S. Ct. 3020, 177 L. Ed. 2d 894 (2010)) that the rulings of the U.S. Supreme Court in Heller apply, as well, to the States.A reasonable person would rightly conclude from these U.S. Supreme Court rulings that the States and the federal Government should now acknowledge the inherent right of qualified American citizens to have access to handguns for self-defense and should recognize, too, that this right does not stop at the doorway of one’s residence. Enactment of national handgun carry legislation would operate as a testament to the import and purport of the Second Amendment as the framers of our Constitution understood and intended it. Such though is not the case.There are forces in this Country and outside it—highly secretive, extraordinarily powerful, exorbitantly wealthy, and extremely ruthless forces—that control the Congressional leadership. These noxious elements operate in the shadows, pulling the strings of those they control in Congress. These secretive, powerful, ruthless forces, lurking in the shadows, uniformly detest the very notion of natural, fundamental rights and liberties that exist beyond their control--rights and liberties that exist inherently in the people. They particularly detest the sacred right of the people to keep and bear arms as codified in the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. Through their puppets in Congress, the forces that seek to crush the American people into submission have placed a multitude of stumbling blocks, obstacles, and snares in the path of those American citizens who would dare exercise their fundamental, natural right to keep and bear arms.Thus, Representative, Paul Ryan (R-W), current Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, and Senator Mitch McConnel (R-K), U.S. Senate Majority Leader, demonstrate disdain for the Second Amendment and perfunctorily disregard those who desire to exercise their fundamental, natural right of self-defense through access to the best means to do so—a firearm. These two individuals wield incredible power as they, alone, ultimately determine whether or not action shall proceed on a legislative bill. Representative Ryan has the audacity and perversity to assert that “the timing isn’t right” to proceed on national handgun carry reciprocity and, through that blunt assertion, dismisses out-of-hand the singular importance of one's natural right to use firearms in one's own defense--a right codified in the Second Amendment, a right preexistent in the people, as the U.S. Supreme Court majority, in Heller, has made abundantly and categorically clear, especially to those who may have harbored any doubt.What, then, does Representative Ryan's assertion,"the timing isn't right" to proceed on national handgun carry reciprocity, even mean? If the timing isn’t right now, then when? Indeed, is there ever a time that would be right for Representative Ryan to accept the imperative of the Second Amendment? Was there ever a time that the right embodied in and codified in the Second Amendment was not meant to have effect?There exists a war on the Second Amendment. The war is grounded on a difference in philosophy between those who support the strengthening of the Second Amendment and those who seek de facto repeal of it. Those who seek to strengthen the Second Amendment--to place it on the footing of a sacred, inviolable right as the framers intended--believe in the sanctity and inviolability of the individual. On the other hand, those who seek to defeat the Second Amendment, to defile it, believe not in the sanctity and inviolability of the individual, but, rather in the importance of the collective, of  "the hive." These spoilers of the Second Amendment hold to a utilitarian ethical system that subordinates the individual to the purported needs of an amorphous group. As long as the hive remains intact, the harm caused to the individual is deemed acceptable. Unfortunately, the Republican leadership, the Speaker of the House, Paul Ryan, and the Senate Majority Leader, Mitch McConnell, march in lockstep to the same drumbeat as do the majority of House and Senate Democrats. Neither the Democratic Party nor the leadership of the Republican Party can abide by and countenance a strong Second Amendment. For these particular members of Congress an armed citizenry is an anathema for the right exercised is considered inconsistent with and a threat to the national order. For those who happen to doubt the truth of this assertion, they ought to take a close look at what Congress has wrought: decades of restrictive firearms legislation.Since Republicans control both Houses of Congress, it ultimately devolves to Representative Paul Ryan and Senator Mitch McConnell to loosen the stranglehold that existing restrictive federal legislation has on the free exercise of our citizenry’s natural, fundamental right of self-defense that only a firearm can truly provide. But they will have nothing of it.Thus, it is that the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives and the United States Senate Majority Leader, alone, determine what bills proceed to a full public hearing, Congressional debate, and Floor vote, and what bills do not. Obviously, Representative Ryan and Senator McConnell do not wish for open and definitive Congressional consideration of bills that serve to strengthen the Second Amendment.But, what possible rational basis would the Speaker of the House and the Senate Majority Leader have for refusing to allow open and fervent and critical debate on a matter that overrides every other concern: preserving and strengthening the basic, fundamental rights and liberties of the American people. Clearly, they have none, and in their inaction do the American people bear witness to the Republican Party leadership's rancor and disdain toward those citizens who seek to exercise their sacred right under the Second Amendment. This, we know. The National Firearms Act of 1934 (NFA) and the Gun Control Act of 1968 (GCA) stand, together, in the forefront, as the two pieces of federal legislation that have done more to diminish the right embodied in and codified in the Second Amendment than any other State or Federal legislation to date. Federal antigun legislation proceeds as amendments to and refinements to these two major antigun Acts; and those amendments do nothing but further restrict the citizen’s exercise of his or her unalienable right of self-defense. Enactment of national handgun carry reciprocity would be the first major piece of firearms legislation since the NFA and GCA, to restore balance. Instead of chipping away at the citizen’s right to keep and bear arms, national handgun carry reciprocity legislation would operate to repair the damage caused by the NFA and GCA.From 2011 to date, we have counted 13 bills on national handgun carry reciprocity.Senator John Cornyn has been the most persistent, but none of the bills that he sponsored or bills that other Republicans have sponsored has gained traction. Of note, one Senate Democrat, Senator Mark Begich (D-AK), sponsored a bill on national handgun carry reciprocity and several other Democrats have added their names as cosponsors on a few of the bills sponsored by Republican Senators and Representatives. But, it is really Republicans who have the most interest in this and the most ability to accomplish this. As the Republicans control both Houses of Congress, it is now that action should be taken—must be taken—to strengthen the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution.The Arbalest Quarrel has provided, below, in tabular format, details on national handgun carry bills introduced in the House and the Senate, in recent years.What the table at once illustrates—through repeated efforts to get a bill passed—is frustration borne by those Congressmen who obviously do wish to strengthen the right of the people to keep and bear arms. But insurmountable obstacles, created by Republican Party leadership, and, perhaps, through a failure of spirit of rank and file Congressmen to stand up to the Party leadership, prevents effective follow-through. Here, then, are the dismal results of failed attempts, to date, to strengthen the Second Amendment:

TABLE OF NATIONAL HANDGUN CARRY RECIPROCITY BILLS OFFERED BY BOTH THE HOUSE AND SENATE

Short Title	Bill Number And Date Introduced	Name of Sponsor AndNumber of Cosponsors and Party Affiliation	Present Status
National Right-to-Carry Reciprocity Act of 2011	H.R. 82202/18/2011	SPONSOR: Clifford B. Stearns (R-FL) COSPONSORS: 35 Democrats 211 Republicans246 Total	Amendments Offered and Rejected in November 2011;NO FURTHER ACTION as of November 29, 2011
National Right-to-Carry Reciprocity Act of 2011	H.R. 354312/01/2011	SPONSOR: Tim Johnson (R-IL)COSPONSORS: None	Referred to Committee; NO ACTION
National Right-to-Carry Reciprocity Act of 2012	S. 218803/13/2012	SPONSOR: Senator Mark Begich (D-AK) COSPONSORS: 3 Democrats 0 Republicans 3 Total	Referred to Committee; NO ACTION
Respecting States' Rights and Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act of 2012	S. 221303/20/2012	SPONSOR Senator John Thune (R-SD) COSPONSORS: 35 Republicans 0 Democrats 35 Total	Referred to Committee; NO ACTION
Respecting States' Rights and Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act of 2013	H.R. 57802/06/2013	SPONSOR: Representative Marlin A. Stutzman (R-IN) COSPONSORS: 11 Democrats 173 Republicans 184 Total	REFERRED TO COMMITTEE; NO ACTION
National Right-to-Carry Reciprocity Act of 2013	H.R. 295908/01/2013	SPONSOR: Representative Rich Nugent (R-FL) COSPONSORS: 1 Democrat 5 Republicans 6 Total	Referred to CommitteeNO ACTION
Constitutional Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act of 2014	S. 190801/09/2014	SPONSOR: Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) COSPONSORS: 1 Democrat 24 Republicans 25 Total	Read Twice and Referred to CommitteeNO ACTION
National Right-to-Carry Reciprocity Act of 2015	H.R. 40201/16/2015	SPONSOR: Representative Rich Nugent (R-FL) COSPONSORS: 3 Democrats 100 Republicans 103 Total	Submitted to Two Committees;FAILED
Constitutional Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act of 2015	H.R. 92302/12/2015	SPONSOR: Representative Marlin A. Stutzman (R-IN) COSPONSORS: 0 Democrats 119 Republicans 119 Total	Referred to Committee;FAILED
Constitutional Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act of 2015	S. 49802/12/2015	SPONSOR: Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) COSPONSORS: 1 Democrat 34 Republicans 35 Total	Read Twice and Referred to Committee;FAILED
Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act of 2015	H.R. 98602/13/2017	SPONSOR: Representative Richard Hudson (R-NC) COSPONSORS: 4 Democrats 212 Republicans 216 Total	Referred to Two Committees;FAILED
Constitutional Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act of 2017	S. 44602/27/2017	SPONSOR: Senator John Cornyn (R-TX)COSPONSORS: 0 Democrats 29 Republicans 29 Total	Read Twice and Referred to Committee; NO ACTION
Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act of 2017	H.R. 3801/03/2017	SPONSOR: Representative Richard Hudson (R-NC) COSPONSORS: 1 Democrats / 83 Republicans 84 Total	Referred to Two Committees; NO ACTION

Apart from numerous national handgun carry reciprocity bills introduced since 2011, Representative Chris Collins (R-NY) has introduced a bill, titled the Second Amendment Guarantee Act (SAGA) (115 H.R. 3576), introduced on July 28, 2017. The bill, if enacted into law, would operate in tandem with national handgun carry reciprocity legislation, to strengthen the Second Amendment.WHAT IS "SAGA"?SAGA is a bill that, according to its sponsor, Representative Collins, as set forth on his website: "Protects Second Amendment rights; limits state authority to regulate rifles and shotguns; voids much of SAFE Act." And, according to the Press Release: “Congressman Chris Collins (NY-27) has proposed new measures for protecting Second Amendment rights by introducing legislation to limit states authority when it comes to regulating rifles and shotguns, commonly used by sportsmen and sportswomen. The Second Amendment Guarantee Act (SAGA) would prevent states from implementing any regulations on these weapons that are more restrictive than what is required by federal law. Upon passage of this bill, most of the language included in New York State’s Secure Ammunition and Firearms Enforcement (SAFE) Act of 2013 signed into law by Governor Cuomo would be void."  Would Representative Collins' bill fare any better than any one of the numerous national handgun carry reciprocity bills? Well, given Representative Paul Ryan's reluctance to allow a public hearing, debate, and floor vote on previous pro-Second Amendment bills, we expect that Representative Collins' bill would suffer the same fate.Representative Collins' bill could be better drafted and the Arbalest Quarrel is in the process of doing just that. When completed, the Arbalest Quarrel will submit our proposed amendments to Representative Collins. But, given the present negative climate in Washington, D.C., such effort expended on our part, as with effort expended by Representative Collins and other Legislators, to date, may well be futile. Still, it is necessary to persevere. Given this sad state of affairs, it is, as is usually the case, up to the American people to set things right, and compel Congress to act.Congress has lost its way. Congress does not serve the interests of the American people. But, if it is not the American people whom Congress serves, then whom is it that Congress does serve? Congress must be reminded that its duty is to serve the American people. Those Legislators who fail in their duty to the American people must be voted out of Office.Let your U.S. Senator and U.S. Representative know how you feel about your Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms. Phone (202) 225-3121. It is a fast and easy process; and a critical one. Only through your active participation, can we help secure our Second Amendment. _________________________________________________Copyright © 2017 Roger J Katz (Towne Criour), Stephen L. D’Andrilli (Publius) All Rights Reserved.