UPDATE: SEE IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT SEPT. 1 SPECIAL PRIMARY ELECTION
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We have a politician principled enough to give us what most will not: unequivocal answers on his support for the right to keep and bear arms.
Meet Chris Bunch, Republican candidate for California's 10th Congressional District, a seat vacated by (F-rated gungrabber) Ellen Tauscher, who has taken a position in the Obama administration, where I guess she figured becoming Undersecretary for State Arms Control gives her the chance to effect even more disarmament.
This has necessitated a special election, to be held in November.
Regular Gun Rights Examiner readers will recall my candidate questionnaire. Mr. Bunch has answered the questions:
1. Do you believe that the Constitution is the "supreme law of the land" and that the Bill of Rights acknowledges our birthrights?
The short answer is yes. I would expand that to say that our rights are interlinked and interdependent, that they all ultimately depend on one another for the survival of them all (i.e. We cannot defend our 2nd Amendment rights without the freedom of speech, we cannot defend our 1st Amendment rights without our 2nd Amendment rights, and so on!).
2. If so, should these rights be proactively protected from infringement by all levels of government, including city, county and state?
Yes, the Constitution is an agreement between the states, and as such, each sovereign state must agree to the terms and conditions of that agreement. Ultimately, the Bill or Rights is not where our rights flow from, rather they are innate to us by our Creator; to say say that any level of government can remove any of those rights implies that those rights are established by a government. Because this is counter to our founding, our rights must be protected from the abuse of any level of government.
3. Please give some examples of gun laws you consider constitutional.
Any law that expands (clarifies or ensures) our rights, such as laws that enable us to conceal carry.
4. Please give some examples of gun laws you consider unconstitutional.
Any law that regulates the rights of law abiding citizens of the United States.
5. Does the right to bear arms include the right for any peaceable citizen to carry them concealed without a permit, as in Vermont ?
It does. See also my comments on question #8.
6. Do you believe that Americans have a right to own, use and carry weapons of military pattern, and will you use the prestige of elected office to publicly promote that right?
Yes I do believe that people have the right to own and possess weapons of a military pattern, and yes I will use my office to fight for that right.
7. Do you support or oppose registration of weapons? Why?
OPPOSE, because registration attempts to undermine and neutralize the purpose of the 2nd Amendment, which is to ensure that the government will fear becoming tyrannical towards the population. If the government can tell what a person has, then they can use that information to neutralize their rights. We must remember the deep fear and reservations that our founders had regarding the power of a central government. Therefore, it is perfectly acceptable to view our rights as a power (check) against the powers of the government.
8. Do you support or oppose licensing requirements to own or carry firearms? Why?
I do not support licensing to own weapons. I only accept licensing requirements to carry as a point of compromise; this assumes that the licensing requirements are affordable to the population at large, that competency or training requirements are only there to ensure a standard of public safety, and lastly that any requirements enable at risk populations (women or the elderly) to have the skills necessary to use the weapons in a manner to protect themselves from a hostile agent. All that being said, you cannot regulate a right, that is why licensing must be something that enables our rights, the minute that licensing is used to prevent the free exercise of our rights it is no longer acceptable as a point of compromise.
9. What specific gun laws will you work to get repealed?
The Brady Bill, and in the generic sense, any legislation that violates the spirit of my prior answers.
10. If elected, will you back your words of support for firearms rights up with consistent actions? How?
Yes, I will back my words and I will actively push amendments to every bill possible to help ensure and expand the free exercise of our 2nd Amendment rights as our founders envisioned. I will sponsor and/or co-sponsor legislation in that same vein.
I've asked before why politicians should stick their necks out to support gun owners if gun owners will not support them back. True, the answer is "out of principle," but that works both ways.
I've already seen sentiments from naysayers concerning the makeup of the 10th District and the expenditure of resources. What this always seems to translate into is expending effort and treasure elsewhere to elect some squishy RINO who betrays as often as not, and painting that as some sort of incremental win for our side.
Enough. Don't listen to weaklings who counsel surrender before the engagement begins. Liberty was never won by such as these.
If you believe in the right to keep and bear arms, here is an honest representative for those rights. Chris Bunch's election to congress will benefit us all, so we all should help his campaign. If enough gun owners sent him a contribution and helped spread the word, if he had the chance to get his message out, who knows who he could motivate and what effect that could have? Particularly considering in the last election, at least 35% of those who voted did not support an entrenched and well-financed democrat incumbent, and over 20% of the electorate was not inspired enough to vote.
More lop-sided battles have been won, just never by the faint of heart.
Please join me in supporting Chris Bunch for Congress. Please do something today, including forwarding a link to this column to your gun owner friends.
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"If ye love wealth greater than liberty, the tranquility of servitude greater than the animating contest for freedom, go home from us in peace. We seek not your counsel, nor your arms. Crouch down and lick the hand that feeds you; May your chains set lightly upon you, and may posterity forget that ye were our countrymen."--Samuel Adams
"If you will not fight for the right when you can easily win without bloodshed; if you will not fight when your victory will be sure and not too costly; you may come to the moment when you will have to fight with all the odds against you and only a small chance of survival. There may even be a worse case: you may have to fight when there is no hope of victory, because it is better to perish than to live as slaves."--Winston Churchill
Thanks to Dave Licht
Comments
David, thank you for passing on a nugget of good news in these disgusting times. Sadly, such an unapologetic defense of liberty is highly distinguishing in this day and age, even to those of us who would rather do away with the entire political system altogether, rather than try to repair it.
If Mr. Bunch is deserving of the respect he appears to command based on his unambiguous responses here, he might forgive those whose support may be provisional on performance. Nothing personal, strictly historical. The encouraging part is that he seems to have passed the first test--direct answers to real questions. (Again, thank you, David.)
Mr. Bunch, should you get installed in Washington, may I recommend that you make it a point to look up Ron Paul? That man, bless him, is actually trying, and could really use some help.
If you must vote, this would appear at least to be a choice that is not insane.
David, Thanks for bringing this gentleman to our attention. I wish him luck in his race. I hope he holds other rights in the same regard as the right to keep and bear arms.
The 10th does appear to have flip flopped over the years quite a bit--D to R, back to D, back to R, et al.
He's at least got a shot, or better.
Chris K--why not ask him? I gave you his website--there's a way to contact him.
But let's do more than wish him luck. That won't help him.
Do we want another committed representative who will protect the Second Amendment in Congress?
Then SUPPORT him.
If wishes were fishes and all that...
I second the motion on talking to Dr Paul. As for Mr. Bunch's views on other rights, he covered that pretty well by acknowleging the Bill of Rights protects PRE-EXISTING rights. Besides, so long as we're armed and able to speak out, we've proven for years we can deal with everything else quite nicely, thank you very much.
I just sent him a few bucks, and I don't live anywhere near his district. Fact is, we need more like him in office and to me its worth the cost of lunch to support someone who would represent my values in congress.
Hopefully if we send enough of them to Washington they can travel in a pack and not get corrupted by the place. Thanks for bringing this guy to our attention, David. I'm rather dubious of the whole political process any more, but I also believe in putting yer money where yer mouth is.
I am flabbergasted. In California, there still exist candidates for political office who possess the ability to correctly interpret the US Constitution. How did this happen?
I will forward the good news to some residents of that state that I know who are committed to the defense of their God-given rights. This news ought to cheer them up quite a bit.
David it looks like this man is a god send and a gold mine.
If he would actually support a repeal of gun controls then we need him in office.
In 1994 gun owners gave the House to the Republicans and got nothing for it.
We can NOT allow that to occur again.
I’ve been trying to get people to support the slogan “Think Repeal, Demand Repeal” as a way to keep the notion of repealing gun laws alive.
P.S. Yes I know the issue is more complex than think repeal, demand repeal but we need to plant the seed and keep the issue alive.
We can’t allow anymore un-constitutional laws to become codified into law!
“Think Repeal, Demand Repeal”
David, Thanks very much for your article. I always enjoy what you have to say. I used it on my blog today, hope that's all right.
Thanks Mikeb302000.
A link with a teaser paragraph or two are always appreciated. I do ask not to copy the entire article, because then your readers won't have incentive to visit this site.
I appreciate the kind words and support.
Bunch is currently sixth in the latest Primary Polls with just 5%, so don't hold your breath.
Also, why is it Republicans always ignore the "Well regulated" portion of the right to a "Well Regulated Militia"?
Yeah, too bad--it's a long shot in the 10th for any Repub. Which I don't call myself, by the way, because most of them will sell gun owners out if it serves their ends, but I've never been one not to talk about "well regulated":
findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0BQY/is_9_52/ai_n16547846/
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