Missouri Gun Owners Did Not forget Bob Holden's Veto, Says CCRKBA

[Bowline]

Tuesday's primary defeat of anti-gun Missouri Gov. Bob Holden should serve as an object lesson for other politicians who place political correctness ahead of the personal safety of their constituents, the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms (CCRKBA) stated.

"Show Me State gun owners showed Bob Holden the door," said CCRKBA Chairman Alan Gottlieb. "Although they tried to downplay it, both the St. Louis Post Dispatch and Kansas City Star acknowledged that Holden's veto of concealed carry legislation cost him critical votes, especially in rural Missouri. The governor and his political advisors should have seen this coming the instant that Missouri lawmakers came back to Jefferson City last year to override his arrogant veto."

CCRKBA Executive Director Joe Waldron added, "It takes examples like Bob Holden to remind anti-gun politicians that they should never underestimate the fury of gun owners, who may not even show as a blip on the political radar until they swoop to the polls. Grassroots activism in the firearms community is alive and well, as Tuesday's primary vote demonstrated."

Complete article.

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We saw the same backlash against Dems in 1994 when the Republicans took control of the House and Senate. This is why Kerry is downplaying his position on the AWB and playing up his image as pro-guns and pro-gun owner. Smart move on his part, actually.

[FatSlob]

1. Another one bites the dust.

My list of politicians who should be sent home:

Senator Mike DeWine, Senator George Voinovich, Governor Bob Taft, Senator Charles Schumer, Senator Diane Feinstein, President George W. Bush.

[thomas82]

2. Dont worry

Mcdonalds is always hiring.

[Crachet2004]

3. Electoral polls are the only ones that matter, and they consistently...

Bite anti-gun candidates. This is exactly why I have no faith in opinion polls that show any kind of support for gun control...electoral polls disagree with them!

Like any fringe issue, there are a few very loud and vocal proponents, who try to shape opinion with manipulated polls and shrill abuse for anyone who disagrees with them.

But yeah, this article is about the silent majority speaking-and we Democrats will ignore warnings like this at our peril.

[Bowline]

4. I think Kerry is taking the right path on this issue.

He's come out in favor of Second Amendment rights while maintaining his personal belief that assault weapons are unnecessary and should be banned. It appeals to a much larger group of undecided voters than does an extremist stance, regardless of which end of the spectrum the extremism lies. And THOSE are the voters he needs to win over in order to win in November. He doesn't need to convince the 40 or so percent of Americans who are gonna vote Democrat come hell or high water, and he WON'T convince the 40 or so percent of Americans who are gonna vote Republican come hell or high water. It's the undecideds who will decide this election.

I remember hearing him say, at some point earlier in the campaign, that he firmly believes the Second Amendment protects the rights of individuals to keep and bear arms but it does NOT preclude the government from enacting laws about HOW and WHERE they may bear arms.

[Crachet2004]

6. I agree with you, that all things being equal, the undecideds...

Will decide this election. That is the conventional wisdom... And we have been given an historic opportunity to recapture both Houses of Congress, as well as the Presidency-but only because a lot of people are more afraid of Ashcroft, Patriot, and One World, than they are of US.

And I agree that Kerry is doing all that can BE done to play to the center on the issue of gun control...but with any kind of luck, soon, it will not be an issue at all.

If the AWB sunsets, and we have every reason to believe it will, we will be presented with an opportunity to walk away from it forever...and we should. Then, it will be difficult for those who support control to continue their crusade, with only the gun show loophole as an issue. They will be laughed out of the country.

[MrBenchley]

11. What IS hilarious

is watching our "pro gun democrats" pretend that the folks itching to get their sweaty hands on assault weapons or jumping every time right wing loonies like the CCRKBA folks say "boo!" are "undecided."

[goju]

7. Kudos

Thats about the clearest and most consice statement Ive seen yet.

[Bowline]

9. Hear hear! n/t

[MrBenchley]

5. What a pantload....

Here's what folks without a gun fetish saw as the issues that defeated Holden:

"Holden, 54, has had a nightmarish first term, starting with a lavish, $1 million inaugural ball that he struggled to pay off. He then was forced to make millions of dollars in state budget cuts as the economy - and state revenues - plunged. "

http://www.omaha.com/index.php?u_np=0&u_pg=1673&u_sid=1166820

"He's a victim of circumstance," said St. Louis University political science professor Kenneth Warren. "He is like so many governors in the United States who went through hard times amid a budgetary collapse. The Republicans in Missouri went after this guy in the most aggressive way imaginable. They sort of beat him to a pulp."

http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/nm/20040804/pl_nm/campaign_missouri_dc_6

You might recall Missouri voters themselves rejected "pistol permits for everybody"...and got saddled with it anyway by the GOP.

[goju]

8. Well I lived in KC for a while

Hardly a right wing rag, the KC Star anyway. I wonder what the margin of defeat was.

I cant open the link.

[Wickerman]

10. And, as Bill said, "that is the rooster crowing for the dawn"

I do believe it may have been an issue, but I think the real and larger issues in Missouri are better explained in area publications, not from heavily conservative one-issue institutions.

And, Holden had been in hot water for a long time - that is why they ran someone against him. Now ya got someone who can compete against Blunt, who has strong name recognition.

All the area sources I could get into made no mention of weapons. Again, it may have been a component, but it wasn't what caused the loss. Gay marriage, gambling, and economic woes and perceived mishandling of economics had much more to do with his departure:

Columbia Daily Tribune
http://www.showmenews.com/2004/Aug/20040804News028.asp
�� A million-dollar inaugural celebration as the state economy was tanking.
�� Holden�fs flights on state planes while Missourians navigated potholes below.
�� The hiring of a contractor to run a state jobs hotline that directed calls to operators in India.
�� Withholding millions in state education funding to balance the budget, then releasing the money days after voters in scores of school districts raised local tax burdens.


Dexter Daily Statesman
http://www.dailystatesman.com/story/1073677.html
Voters shout: "No to Bob Holden, No to same-sex marriage!"

Associated Press
http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20040804/ap_on_el_gu/primary_rdp_14
With 96 percent of precincts reporting, McCaskill had 424,345 votes, or 52 percent, compared to Holden's 371,439 votes, or 45 percent.

The gubernatorial race was part of a full ballot that also included a constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage and a primary to fill the seat of retiring Rep. Dick Gephardt (news - web sites). The gay marriage ban was approved overwhelmingly.


St Louis Post-Dispatch
http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/news/stories.nsf/News/Election+2004/8CF61C38A1065B0986256EE600053FDC?OpenDocument&Headline=McCaskill+ousts+Holden+in+gov