Gun Rights group takes aim at Senate GOP
The gun rights group, The Gun Owners Civil Rights Alliance, is taking aim at Republicans in the Minnesota Senate for not taking up a bill that would change when it's legal for a person to shoot someone in self defense.
The Minnesota House already passed the bill and supporters were lobbying the Senate to pass it as well. The Gun Owners Civil Rights Alliance sent out an action alert today that says the Senate has decided to not take up the bill this session.
In a strongly worded e-mail, the group suggests that Senate Republicans "made a deliberate, political decision to refuse to put the bill on Governor Dayton's desk." The e-mail also reminds supporters to tell their Senators that "gun owners vote - and that they have very long memories.
The issue is a dicey political issue for Republicans. On the one hand, the NRA and other gun rights group align themselves more with the GOP. But law enforcement groups have lines up against the bill. Gov. Dayton has also suggested he would veto it.
Create a More Connected Minnesota
MPR News is your trusted resource for the news you need. With your support, MPR News brings accessible, courageous journalism and authentic conversation to everyone - free of paywalls and barriers. Your gift makes a difference.
I contacted spokespeople for Senate Majority Leader Amy Koch to see if GOP Senate Majority Leader Amy Koch has decided to shelve the bill for the session.
I'll post their response, if it becomes available. Senate GOP spokesman Michael Brodkorb declined to say whether the caucus is shelving the bill.
Here's part of the e-mail that The Gun Owners Civil Rights Alliance sent to supporters:
We have received word that the Republican leadership in the Minnesota Senate has decided to kill The Defense of Dwelling and Person Act by not bringing it to the Senate floor for a vote.
The Senate leadership did not sacrifice SF 1357 for other priorities. They made a deliberate, political decision to refuse to put the bill on Governor Dayton's desk.
The Senate leadership was not forced into this retreat by the DFL or anti-gun groups. They decided, unilaterally, to give up on this important civil rights legslation.
The Senate leadership did not run out of time. The Senate doesn't have to finish before Monday at midnight. They could still hear the bill if the leadership does their job.
Please call and email the Senate leadership NOW, and respectfully demand that the bill get an immediate hearing.
You might also want to email and call your own senator, especially if he/she is a Republican, with the same message.
Tell them that Minnesota gun owners vote -- and that they have very long memories.