Supreme Court from a gun owner's point of view

Also cross posted at the Liberty Zone.

Supreme Court batle begins as Justice O'Connor retires

Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor announced her resignation Friday, setting off a long-anticipated ideological battle surrounding the Bush administration's choice for her replacement. The last Supreme Court opening was 11 years ago.

O'Connor, 75, appointed by President Ronald Reagan in 1981, was the first woman on the court and in recent years has been a crucial
swing vote on several landmark decisions. Her retirement was not unexpected, but Chief Justice William Rehnquist, who has thyroid cancer, had been the primary focus of speculation.

So how many are expecting Bush to actually appoint a strict constitutionalist to the Supreme Court? Raise your hands!

It ain't gonna happen, folks! From a gun owner's perspective, this is frightening. Remember, the current Bush appointed Reggie B. Walton as a United States District Judge for the District of Columbia! Why does this upset me? This is why.

A federal judge upheld the District's 28-year-old gun-control law yesterday, rejecting a legal challenge from a group of citizens backed by the National Rifle Association.

U.S. District Judge Reggie B. Walton dismissed a lawsuit in which the plaintiffs had contended that the law violated their Second Amendment right to own guns. The D.C. law prohibits ownership or possession of handguns and requires that other arms, such as shotguns, be kept unloaded, disassembled or equipped with trigger locks.


In a 64-page opinion, Judge Walton ruled that the Second Amendment is not a broad-based right of gun ownership.


"The Second Amendment does not confer an individual a right to possess firearms. Rather, the Amendment's objective is to ensure the vitality of state militias," Judge Walton wrote.

How about Bush's appointment of a certified gun-grabber to the post of Attorney General?

Testifying before the U.S. Senate last week, Alberto Gonzales announced he supports President Bush's position on the semi-auto ban.

"The president has made it clear that he stands ready to sign a reauthorization of the federal assault weapons ban if it is sent to him by Congress," Gonzales said. "I, of course, support the president on this issue.

"While some might be tempted to give Gonzales a "pass" since he was parroting his boss' position, Gonzales went even further, indicating that gun control was a heart-felt position of his own.

He spoke of his brother, who is a Houston SWAT officer, and said, "I worry about his safety and the types of weapons he will confront on the street." Hence, he supports a prohibition on semi-automatics that, in truth, only amounts to a ban on ugly guns.

Now, I ask AGAIN: Does ANYONE actually believe that Bush will appoint a constitutionalist to the Supreme Court?

(*insert cricket chirping sound effect here*)