Former sheriff speaks out
KINGSFORD -- The new presidential administration has brought about a lot of changes, and some of them have Americans worried. One of those worries for many is President Barack Obama's stance on gun control, which was addressed Tuesday night by a former Arizona sheriff who has already won one battle with the government.
"Make no mistake, though, we will stand firm in our resolve to exercise and have respected our Constitutional freedoms that our forefathers fought and died for," said Richard Mack as he opened up his address to the public at the Kingsford High School.
Mack is no stranger to fighting for his rights--in 1994, he took on the Clinton administration at the national level because of what he felt were unconstitutional measures under the Brady Bill, which placed restrictions on guns.
Now, under the Obama administration, he feels that things are only going to get worse, particularly since Obama has a history of restricting the manufacture and sale of guns. Though there's been no confirmation, rumor has it that the Obama administration is looking at raising the price of firearm ammunition 500 percent, which has people scrambling to stock up before it's too late.
It's a measure that he proposed as a senator in 1996, but now that he's taken office, firearm sales across the United States have gone up 75 percent.
"People are so afraid of his socialist ideas and his Marxist theories that they've gone out and bought up guns like you wouldn't believe," Mack said. "You can't even get ammo in most places now."
Obama, however, has stated that his position on firearms is not to restrict Second Amendment rights. He has stipulated that he simply wants to keep them off the street by requiring more stringent registration requirements, such as a national database.
Those that gathered Tuesday night were not necessarily against the government. Their goal is to make sure that the Constitution is upheld, regardless of who's in office.
"We're just trying to get a level field and get everything appreciated the same way, gun rights being a big concern of ours," said Greg Evenson, cofounder of the Americans for Constitutional Enforcement, the group that hosted Mack's presentation.
Last year, President Obama told the media that, though he's not in favor of concealed weapons, he has every intention on protecting Americans' general right to bear arms.