William Brewster: “I rise in opposition to this gun ban. This legislation is misguided; it is not about crime control. This is not about…”

“I rise in opposition to this gun ban. This legislation is misguided; it is not about crime control. This is not about taking guns out the hands of criminals. This is about limiting the freedom and choices for law abiding Americans. This argument over banning guns cheats the American people out of the real issue: that our criminal justice system is broken. We must take a hard look at the conditions that breed disrespect for the law and disrespect for the rights of others. This false debate over gun control gives Congress an easy out and lets us abdicate our responsibility. As a society we must find alternatives to crime for young people. When we waste our energy and resources fighting over a simple, but wrong, solution to a complex problem, we cheat our constituents out of an honest debate over real solutions to our crime problem. Sheriff Don Hass, the president of the Oklahoma Sheriffs' Association, faxed me a letter that clearly defines the crime problem in our country and the real solution. From his vantage point on the front line against crime, Sheriff Hass tells me that 'a ban on weapons will not solve the crime problem.' If we can put criminals away and keep them away we will reduce crime. We must provide our law enforcement officers with the tools to ensure that criminals will be brought to justice. That is the only effective deterrent to crime.”