Some straight shooting on guns

The Tampa Tribune

Published: August 19, 2010

In a political season full of distortions, exaggerations and outright

lies,Republican gubernatorial candidate Rick Scott draws
distinction for the most ludicrous claim.

A recent mailer pictures a handgun with the words "Bill

McCollum: Aiming for You Rights." Inside it warns that McCollum
"is targeting gun owners."

It points out Scott received a higher ranking from the National

Rife Association than McCollum, which is true, if curious.

Marion Hammer, the state NRA lobbyist, bestowed an A rating on

Scott for being an NRA member and owning a couple of books
about Second Amendment rights.

McCollum was given only a B, but this ignored a lifetime of

defending gun owners' rights. He was penalized for engaging in
the gun-rights battle, while Scott was rewarded for having stayed
out of the fray.

When McCollum served in Congress, the NRA gave his voting

record an A. He won the Gun Rights Defender of the Year Award
from the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear
Arms.

Contrary to Hammer's claim at the time she announced the

ratings, McCollum opposed the Brady Bill on handgun control. He
did manage to eliminate a national seven-day waiting period
for handgun purchasesfrom the bill and pushed a NRA-backed
measure that would have preempted all state waiting
periods when instant criminal records checkswere online.
In 1996, he led an unsuccessful effort to repeal the ban on
assault rifles.
McCollum's reputation as a gun-rights champion was such that
Handgun Control Inc. identified him as one of Congress'
"Dangerous Dozen" and ran attack ads against him when he
challenged Bill Nelson for the U.S. Senate.

Through the years, he has had a few minor differences with the
NRA, whose interpretation of Second Amendment rights is so
strict it has defended bullets designed to penetrate bullet-proof
vests.

McCollum did favor closing a loophole that allowed handguns to

be sold at gun shows with no criminal background checks.
McCollum favored a 72-hour waiting period, while the NRA
favored a 24-hour deadline, which was unrealistic for a
background check at the time.

As Florida attorney general, he filed a brief supporting the NRA in

its successful Supreme Court challenge of Chicago's law that
prevented individuals from owning a gun in their homes. He filed
a similar brief in the successful challenge of the Washington,
D.C., handgun ban.

McCollum's record is there for all to see. In every position he has

held, he has proved himself a thoughtful guardian of gun owners'
rights. To warn gun owners McCollum is "aiming for your rights"
is an insult to voters and reality.

In contrast, citizens who put a high value on the Second

Amendment might note that Scott's record of commitment
extends to a couple of books, a membership card and campaign
literature that plays fast and loose with the truth.