Phoenix, Arizona – About a dozen people carried guns outside the Phoenix Convention Center while President Barack Obama was speaking to veterans, police said.
Phoenix Police Detective J. Oliver, one of three officers assigned to monitor a man carrying a semi-automatic weapon, told The Arizona Republic the man was not breaking any laws.
“We’re here to keep the peace,” he said. “If we need to intervene, we will intervene at that time.”
The man, who also carried a pistol and identified himself only as Chris, debated Obama’s healthcare policy with others in the crowd while the president addressed the Veterans of Foreign Wars national conference.
“It is extremely disturbing that you have that kind of weapon in close proximity to where the president is,” Ruben Gallego, a military veteran and state Democratic Party official, said. “He was demonstrating his Second Amendment rights, but he was clearly there to intimidate people who were there exercising their First Amendment rights.”
Arizona law allows people to carry weapons openly but a permit is required to carry a concealed weapon.
Protesters have carried guns in recent days at town hall meetings, including one the president attended last week in New Hampshire.
Sounds like the secret service is trying to “brace us” for the worst so that if anything happens we will not blame them when they claim “nothing we can do” nebech they are so “helpless” (when they want to be).
Whenever government wants to arrest anyone they lack no excuses to find to be able to do whatever they want.
But when they would rather “blink”, they claim to be helpless “nebech”.
Republicans no doubt. They are being egged on by their leaders on talkradio.
Guns don’t kill, people do.
The president can also carry his gun if he likes to, matter of fact i think police or secret service are also intimidating. Tobad Mr. President that is the constitution and its for a good reson. It make sense to be aloud to carry a gun, wht if the goverment decides to do to people lke they did to jews by second world war. Imagine the jews would have guns on themselves it wouldnt happen!
Read this paragraph again: “Arizona law allows people to carry weapons openly but a permit is required to carry a concealed weapon.” In other words: Nothing happened.
I can’t believe people here aren’t horrified by this! All it takes is one nutcase to lose control. Do people here REALLY not care if the president was assassinated or for others to be hurt in an attempt? This is NOT what Yiddishkeit is about! There is NO excuse for guns or other firearms at a political rally. You want to protest? Fine, protest, but with words only!
This is just a story put out by the Obama administration, in order to make people who disagree with Obama’s policy as radicals. The same reason why the protests at town hall meetings, were labled as “mobs”. During the Bush administration, there were thousands of left-wing protests concerning the military operations in Iraq. Not once were any of these left-wing people who were exercising their right to free speech, labled as a radical mob.
Poster number 4 remarks on how Jews might have been able to defend themselves had they had guns in Europe in the 1930s and 1940s. How many Jews today have guns and are trained in their use? In some communities, some Jews do own guns legally, but I doubt that in most Jewish homes there are guns nor anyone who knows how to use one. Hence, we must rely on the police to defend us. Whether this will prove a wise strategy eg during a disaster is arguable.
On the other hand, most kids shot in a home are shot accidentally by a gun of a parent.
Overall, those trained and responsible in the use of guns could be of benefit to our communities.
Whats the big deal? We have a constitutional right to bear arms.
Sam – but is it a good idea to allow weapons everwhere ? Would you like someone you don’t know coming into shule or school with a gun ?
We yidden are not a nation that rules bt sword. There is no reason why we should associate with the people walking with guns. Sometimes we forget who we are and what we stand for. I don’t like Obama either and I think that it was a BIG mistake to vote him in, however we don’t need to accept or tolerate violent or aggrasive behavior. It needs to be condemmed.
I responded last night, but it did not get posted for some reason. I did not write comment #2 . I fully support an individual’s right to lawfully carry an exposed firearm in public or concealed firearm with proper permitting in public.
This is is not a Repub vs. Dem vs. Libertarian issue. It is a Constitutional issue.