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Stockman to use blue slip to kill Manchin-Toomey scheme, deliver U-Haul gift cards to Democrats who vote in favor

‘Constitutional rights don’t require permission slips.  If you infringe upon the Second Amendment’s absolute protections, you will be removed from office’

WASHINGTON – Congressman Steve Stockman today reinforced his intentions to use a “blue slip” to kill any Senate anti-gun bill that contains expanded background checks.

Stockman will also deliver U-Haul gift cards to the offices of Mark Begich, Mark Pryor, Mary Landrieu, Kay Hagan and Max Baucus should they vote for the package, to help with move-out expenses after they are defeated by voters in 2014.

“A requirement to make citizens submit to a background check imposes a tax.  Such legislation cannot originate in the Senate.  The bill is automatically unconstitutional,” said Stockman.

“Constitutional rights don’t require permission slips.  If you infringe upon the Second Amendment’s absolute protections, you will be removed from office,” said Stockman.  “The language of the Second Amendment is perhaps the starkest and most absolute in the Constitution.  ‘The right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed.’  That means any obstacle whatsoever is strictly prohibited.  The right to keep and bear arms cannot even be approached.”

“Criminals nationwide are applauding Joe Manchin and Pat Toomey,” said Stockman. “Joe Manchin and Pat Toomey want to give the federal government the name and address of everyone who buys a gun.  They want to turn our entire country into Chicago.”

“Of the 1.5 million background checks conducted in 2010, only 13 criminals were caught and jailed but hundreds of thousands of law-abiding citizens were denied self-protection because of administrative errors and false matches,” said Stockman. “Background checks lead to confiscation from law-abiding citizens and more crime from criminals. ”

The Manchin-Toomey anti-gun compromise reportedly would mandate background for gun sales at gun shows and over the Internet, despite the well-documented fact criminals don’t look to gun shows or Internet sales for guns.

A “blue slip” is a resolution that automatically returns to the Senate any bill that violates the “origination clause” of the United States Constitution.  The origination clause states “All Bills for raising Revenue shall originate in the House of Representatives.” 

Blue slip resolutions are immediately considered as a matter of constitutional privilege, are debatable for an hour and are not subject to amendment.

According to The Heritage Foundation, background check mandates imposes a new tax by forcing individuals to pay for background checks when selling or giving away a firearm.  The mandate to use the National Instant Criminal Background Check System does not provide a service to the buyer or seller but to the government, making it a tax. 

Additionally, the Supreme Court ruled last year in NFIB v. Sebelius that mandating citizens to pay for a service can be construed to be a tax, with Chief Justice John Roberts writing the majority opinion expanding the federal definition of a tax.

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