The good news is that Senate President Pro Tem Phil Berger and Republican leaders are now responding publicly to the massive GRNC onslaught on restaurant carry which has now reached the Associated Press and national media, even saying that a floor vote “is not a matter of if, but when.”

The bad news is that the “when” is sometime in a fictional future, after this session has adjourned. “We’re trying to be responsible about how to handle this kind of legislation,” Berger said. “I’d like to see it move forward. Whether we can do it in the short session or not, I don’t know. It may be a long-session issue.”

Understand that “We’ll do it next year,” is standard politician weasel-speak for “never.” As for HB 111 being a “long session issue” instead of a 2nd-year “short session issue,” understand that HB 111 cleared the NC House LAST year IN the long session they feel so necessary, and went to the Senate, where leadership promptly sat on the bill for a year.

Bottom line: If Berger & Co. wanted to consider the bill in a long session instead of an election year, they should have done it LAST YEAR.


PAUL VALONE ON WPTF: ‘15 MINUTES’ FROM PASSAGE

Today, GRNC President Paul Valone was featured on the Bill LuMaye Show on WPTF in Raleigh, followed shortly thereafter by Sen. Buck Newton, chair of the Senate Committee that passed HB 111 before leadership sent it to the Finance Committee to die.

Although Sen. Newton has been a friend of gun owners, he followed the leadership line on HB 111, but revealed a couple of interesting tidbits: First, the ostensible “reason” (read that “rationale”) for sending it to Finance is language Republicans added on felons with firearms which has NOTHING TO DO with what GRNC drafted for restaurant carry. Does that mean Republicans inserted a “poison pill” into the bill? You decide.

But most important, Newton relayed that it would likely take the Finance Committee only 15 MINUTES to consider the bill before sending it to the floor for a vote. Yep, you heard it right:

Phil Berger’s excuse for not dealing with HB 111 is that he refuses to waste 15 minutes of his precious time on you, the peasants.

GRNC RADIO SPOTS TARGET BERGER

Beginning at 6:00 AM tomorrow, radio spots will highlight GRNC’s “Stop Restaurant Homicide” campaign, asking listeners to contact Sen. Berger. To hear the radio spot, go to: http://grnc.org/home/about-grnc/grnc-radio-spots

• CALL SEN. PHIL BERGER TOMORROW BETWEEN 9 & 11 AM at 919.733.5708: Regardless of whether you have already called, call again and deliver these three talking points:

1. Republicans promised to hear HB 111 in the LAST long session. Trying to foist it off onto next year is nothing more than a dodge;
   
2. Berger’s office promised NOT to re-refer HB 111 to another committee with the intention of killing it; and
   
3. It would take just a 15 minute committee hearing to deliver on promises, so Republicans should deliver NOW, not in some mythical future year.
   

• EMAIL THE COPY-&-PASTE MESSAGE BELOW TO ALL SENATE REPUBLICANS.
  
  
• HELP GRNC RUN RADIO SPOTS: At $350 per spot, bringing the public into the fight isn’t cheap. Moreover, GRNC needs money for numerous runoff elections, and for the General Election in November – in a battleground state, no less. Please help us accomplish the objective and defend your rights by joining or contributing at: https://ssl4.westserver.net/grnc.org/join.html!

Austin.Allran@ncleg.net, Tom.Apodaca@ncleg.net, Phil.Berger@ncleg.net, Stan.Bingham@ncleg.net, Harris.Blake@ncleg.net, Andrew.Brock@ncleg.net, Harry.Brown@ncleg.net, Peter.Brunstetter@ncleg.net, Chris.Carney@ncleg.net, Warren.Daniel@ncleg.net, Jim.Davis@ncleg.net, Don.East@ncleg.net, Thom.Goolsby@ncleg.net, Rick.Gunn@ncleg.net, Kathy.Harrington@ncleg.net, Fletcher.Hartsell@ncleg.net, Ralph.Hise@ncleg.net, Neal.Hunt@ncleg.net, Brent.Jackson@ncleg.net, Wesley.Meredith@ncleg.net, Buck.Newton@ncleg.net, Louis.Pate@ncleg.net, Jean.Preston@ncleg.net, Bill.Rabon@ncleg.net, David.Rouzer@ncleg.net, Bob.Rucho@ncleg.net, Dan.Soucek@ncleg.net, Richard.Stevens@ncleg.net, Jerry.Tillman@ncleg.net, Tommy.Tucker@ncleg.net, Wes.Westmoreland@ncleg.net

(Suggested subject line: “Republicans: Deliver on Restaurant Carry Promises”)

North Carolina Senate Republicans:

I realize you have been a friend of gun owners in the past. Most of you have sponsored or voted for pro-gun legislation. But unfortunately, your leadership refuses to yield what one senator says is just 15 minutes of consideration in the Senate Finance Committee to send House Bill 111 to the floor.

I don’t want a fight, I just want a floor vote on HB 111 in order to protect myself and my family in North Carolina restaurants where patrons and workers alike continue to be murdered. I also don’t demand a veto-proof majority, just the 26 votes needed to pass the bill.

Arguments that “we need to wait until next year” ring hollow. In fact, that’s what Senate leadership said LAST YEAR, after HB 111 passed in the House. Gun owners were promised a vote, and were promised that HB 111 wouldn’t be re-referred to another committee to die. So far, those promises are not being met.

So let’s put all this behind us: Tell leadership to either bring HB 111 to a Finance vote with enough time to pass the Senate and go back to the House, or else send it directly to the floor.

Gun owners helped put Republicans in charge, and gun owners are looking to see their interests represented. Tell Senator Phil Berger to keep his promises and to stop stifling HB 111.

Respectfully,

A Concerned Voter

Harness the power of Social Media to defend the Second Amendment! Tweet the following message by clicking the text below:

You can't find 15 minutes for self defense @SenatorBerger? http://bit.ly/MGKeRa Pass Restaurant Carry NOW! #GRNC