The Gentleman from the Twenty Third...

Some of you may be aware that the WVCDL (of whom I'm Vice President) defeated a casino carry ban last session with the much appreciated help, and dogged determination of several of your pro Second Amendment legislators. The ban's defeat occurred in the House Judiciary Committee, in the face of some strong opposition. This was a huge win for us, and for the citizens of West Virginia. This bill, if passed in its original form, would have created a legislative precedent. It would have been the first time in state history that the legislature enacted a carry ban on private property. We felt it imperative that we fight this one tooth and nail. And we did have to fight. There was strong opposition to striking the carry ban.

This opposition came in two forms. The most difficult form to deal with is the "behind the scenes" anti-rights legislators. These are the legislators in our state who are smart enough to keep their opposition behind closed doors. And they're wise to do so, as to come out against the Second Amendment in our state can often be a career killer. For such a pro Second Amendment state, we've elected a lot of these closet antis. Over time, rest assured, the WVCDL will bring them out of the closets and into the light.

Now, while most of the the anti-rights folks in our legislature are smart enough to keep their positions behind closed doors, the same cannot be said of the Gentleman from the Twenty Third, Mr. Clif Moore. Mr. Moore made his position crystal clear in these hearings. Honestly, you really have to hear it for yourself. It truly was an amazing set of exchanges between Mr. Moore and the WVCDL. And one of the things that makes it so amazing, is that Mr. Moore has somehow secured an "A" rating from the NRA!

The WVCDL has obtained an audio copy of the hearing for your enjoyment. I'll provide you with three ways to listen to Mr. Moore's comments. If you have a lot of time on your hands, and significant bandwidth, you can listen to the full audio here (mp3).

If you would like to just get to the nitty gritty of Mr. Moores positions, we've chopped the audio down to the relevant sections. Please note, that we have not edited out any relevant context for Mr. Moore's positions. His outrageous questions and commentary, as well as the WVCDL responses from myself and Mr. Mullins (President, WVCDL) are included in their entirety.

Mr. Moore started by asking a clearly pointed question of me, displaying his forgone conclusion within the question. At least he allowed me to answer.

Clif Moore Warms UP (mp3).

Later in the hearing, he shows his true colors by asking questions containing fallacious assertions. This time, (presumably having learned his lesson) he repeatedly attempts to shut Mr. Mullins answers down.

Clif Moore Outs Himself (mp3).

I have to say, I was completely shocked by his treatment of Mr. Mullins. I can't imagine what possessed him to treat Jim in such a manner. The only thing that I can think of, is that after finding out that I was not a soft target with his warm-up question, he thought maybe Jim would stutter, stammer, and roll over. Thanks to some of our allies (and your friends in the legislature such as the Gentleman from the 32nd, Patrick Lane) and Jim's articulate responses, Mr. Moore found out differently.

The WVCDL will likely be producing a video version of this hearing soon and distributing via some more widely accessed media.