Orrin Hatch: “I rise to introduce a very significant bill--the Right to Keep and Bear Arms Protection and Privacy Act. There is a gun…”

“I rise to introduce a very significant bill--the Right to Keep and Bear Arms Protection and Privacy Act. There is a gun control frenzy taking place in Washington. There are about 1,070 bills either regulating or dealing with firearms pending in the House and Senate. These range from imposing new Federal regulatory standards on the manufacture of firearms to those requiring background checks at gun shows. And President Clinton has written a letter informing me that he will not sign long overdue, worthwhile and comprehensive youth violence legislation unless it includes most of this gun control agenda. I have become convinced that, for conscientious and reasonable defenders of the Second Amendment, it is not enough to simply oppose the gun control communities legislative agenda. Instead, we just redouble our efforts and set out to pass an affirmative legislative agenda which safeguards the right to keep and bear arms. Many gun control advocates claim that it is not their goal to interfere with the rights of law abiding gun owners. Many question sincerity. The bill I am introducing today will afford gun control advocates the opportunity to prove their critics wrong. This important bill is a first step in what I hope will become a bipartisan campaign to safeguard the rights of law abiding gun owners.”