Tom Barrett, the Mayor of Milwaukee, and perhaps candidate for Governor in 2010, is waging a holy jihad against guns.
Among the things he is proposing is a 1,000-foot sex offender-like barrier around firearms dealers and expositions for those who have been convicted of a felony. You know how that goes, stop in the name of the law, or I’ll yell stop again!
His other big crusade is the straw purchase tempest in a tea pot. There, he might be stepping all over toes attached to important feet that will need to pound the pavement for him in any statewide race.
WTMJ-NBC-4 Milwaukee:
Barrett “Going To Raise The Stakes” on Guns
(snip)
The Mayor, Police Chief Edward Flynn and District Attorney John Chisholm aren’t mincing words about a gun store that is responsible for selling a third of the guns that are used in violent crime in Milwaukee.
During a news conference Wednesday afternoon, Police Chief Edward Flynn accused Badger Guns of having a business plan that depends on selling to criminals.
Just last week, the store’s owner accused Milwaukee Police of racially profiling his customers.
The store’s owner put up a sign that read, “Racist Milwaukee Police Dep. is pulling over African Americans leaving this store sorry for the inconvenience.”
Milwaukee’s Mayor responded to the sign Wednesday.
“I’m calling on that gun store owner to put up a sign to thank the men and women of the Milwaukee Police Department, that’s what this community should be demanding right off the bat from this store owner. Don’t stick your fingers in their eye for trying to make this a safer city,” the Mayor said.
Not only does this put Barrett in a racial Catch-22, it also does the same for people like me. I’m not a lawyer, but the lawyer in me thinks that whatever straw purchasing that’s going on (and I don’t happen to think it’s that much) might as well not be talked about, because it’s virtually impossible to prove in court. Then again, I’m not a white liberal Democrat pandering politician thinking about greener grass. Barrett just might piss off enough black politicos in Milwaukee to end his chances of winning the Democrat nomination much less Governor. From what I can see, Wisconsin’s Democrat Lieutenant Governor, Barbara Lawton, is the only major announced Democrat, and potential Republicans (no major ones have announced) are former Governor and Bush Administration HHS Secretary Tommy Thompson, and Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen. JBVH would be my choice because of his immigration courage. Thompson may not have ticked me off during his years at HHS, but his links to amnestyaire Bush are too strong, Miss Lawton would have a field day. Plus Thompson is old news.
[...] Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett — Barrett might not be able to mount much of a campaign, because the only enemy he has ever known in life is a gun, and since Scott Walker is a human being and not a gun, Barrett can’t work up the [...]