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President Obama spoke in Arizona today at the 110th National Convention for the Veterans of Foreign Wars. Though the event saw approximately 13,000 in attendance, it was the man outside that drew plenty of attention. A man, wearing a pistol on his hip and carrying an AR-15 assault weapon was seen walking outside the event. The incident was reported by the Arizona Republic
The man chose not to be named, however when asked why he was bearing arms outside the event he replied, “Because I can do it. In Arizona, I still have some freedoms.” The man was telling the truth. In Arizona, it was legal for him to carry the weapons in public. Phoenix Detective J. Oliver stated, “What he is doing is perfectly legal. We are here to keep the peace. If we need to intervene, we will intervene at that time.”
CNN's Ed Henry was in Arizona and saw the man first hand. Here is his account of the incident, " I saw at least a couple weapons, including an AR-15, and it happened just across the street from where I am.
There was a large group of Obama supporters. They were supporting the president on health care. And it was peaceful, and, you know, there were some protesters across the street shouting things like socialism, et cetera, kind of typical stuff you see outside of some of these events these days.
And I happened to wade into the pro-Obama side to take some pictures, still photos, and try to interview some people. And all of a sudden, I saw this gentleman who was anti-Obama. He was shouting something about socialism with an AR-15 on his back.
And it sort of startled me because at first I thought maybe it was some sort of law enforcement officer, and I had forgotten about the open-carry law in Arizona just off the top of my head because it's kind of jarring at first to see an assault weapon in the middle of the street..."
You may view the video of the Ed Henry's report below
Comments
Okay, I'm sure everyone is wondering who the second man was, who reportedly was carrying an assault weapon. And since the event took place in Arizona, aren't you a little curious where John McCain was. Nah, it couldn't have been...
Good to see. More people should be exercising their right.
A visible firearm should be as common as a hat.
Good on them.
Whether or not these people realize, they've just sent a message to every nut in the US, how easy it is to get a weapon into an area where the president is expected. I tend to think that's exactly what these people want. They want to see that nut kill President Obama.
It isn't unusal for someone to carry a gun we see it all the time.
I do believe it is the second ammentment right they were trying to get across........more power to them.. It's their right when they use it on someone then it is not their right..
Why is Ed Henry reporting hearsay? It is also obvious that the gentleman from the clip, whom Ed Henry did not see, is pro Obama since he is surrounded by people wearing SEIU t-shirts.
First of all, unless his AR-15 had select fire for fully automatic mode, it is not - by DoD definition - an "assault" weapon. Heaven forbid that a reporter should fact check before labeling.
Secondly, the only news here is that anyone was surprised or bothered to report that someone was carrying a firearm.
Ms. Van Horn,
What the man was carrying was called a "rifle." "Assault weapon" is a made-up political term like "pro-abortion" or "anti-choice."
It would be as correct to call it what the folks on the other side of the debate do: a "sport utility rifle."
Mr. Rothman's apparent activism "spin" must have gotten ahead of either his knowledge of the issue, or his prudent judgment. A simple search of statutory definitions would have revealed, e.g., that "assault weapon" has been legally defined by the State of Minnesota since 1997 (https://www.revisor.mn.gov/statutes/?id=624&view=chapter&year=19...) (See the most current form of the MN statutory definition here -->> https://www.revisor.mn.gov/statutes?id=624) I doubt MN is the only state to define the term.:
624.712 Definitions.
Subd. 7. Semiautomatic military-style assault weapon. "Semiautomatic military-style assault weapon" means: (See website cited above.)
Gee, I wonder why the GFW media member didn't get an interview with the guy with the rifle? Someone else did. Google "Brother carries AR-15 Rifle at Obamabot Rally" for a youtube video.
Is people exercising the rights that many great Americans gave their very lives to support and defend so scary that journalists feel too threatened to even ATTEMPT to do their job?
I'm sure all the gun nuts commenting above about how it's fine and dandy for an Obama hater to bring a heavy-caliber high-capacity weapon into a crowd of fellow haters screaming about death panels and Kenyan birth certificate, would be yelling bloody murder if any of the Obama supporters had been armed.
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