Tax Denier Brings Gun to Obama Town Hall

[Mr. Mephistopheles]

Here is a clip of Chris Matthews questioning William Kostric about the reason he carried a gun to an Obama Town Hall event. Mod's, feel free to relocate this thread as you see fit.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ER7TtkWA ... re=related

Pay special attention to the website noted across the bottom of his placard: Russo's Return the Republic http://www.restoretherepublic.com

[Gregg]

Okay, even idiots have rights, but demonstrating your right to stupid in public may not be a good idea.
And just as an aside, I'm kind of under the impression that where the safety of the President is concerned, the Secret Service might just not care so much about some of your rights, the old "no harm no foul" rule?
The guy was more than likely trying to get detained so he could complain about being oppressed.

[Mr. Mephistopheles]

I'm sure there is detail of his life that isn't under the scrutiny of the Secret Service and FBI. There was a similar situation yesterday in Phoenix (?) with armed protesters except one of them was carrying an AR-15. Betcha he was in a Secret Service sniper scope the whole time.

EDIT: added content:

Man carrying assault weapon attends Obama protest
By AMANDA LEE MYERS and TERRY TANG, Associated Press Writers Amanda Lee Myers And Terry Tang, Associated Press Writers Tue Aug 18, 8:53 am ET

PHOENIX – About a dozen people carrying guns, including one with a military-style rifle, milled among protesters outside the convention center where President Barack Obama was giving a speech Monday — the latest incident in which protesters have openly displayed firearms near the president.

Gun-rights advocates say they're exercising their constitutional right to bear arms and protest, while those who argue for more gun control say it could be a disaster waiting to happen.

Phoenix police said the gun-toters at Monday's event, including the man carrying an AR-15 semi-automatic rifle slung over his shoulder, didn't need permits. No crimes were committed, and no one was arrested.

The man with the rifle declined to be identified but told The Arizona Republic that he was carrying the assault weapon because he could. "In Arizona, I still have some freedoms," he said.

Phoenix police Detective J. Oliver, who monitored the man at the downtown protest, said police also wanted to make sure no one decided to harm him.

"Just by his presence and people seeing the rifle and people knowing the president was in town, it sparked a lot of emotions," Oliver said. "We were keeping peace on both ends."

Last week, during Obama's health care town hall in Portsmouth, N.H., a man carrying a sign reading "It is time to water the tree of liberty" stood outside with a pistol strapped to his leg.

"It's a political statement," he told The Boston Globe. "If you don't use your rights, then you lose your rights."

Police asked the man to move away from school property, but he was not arrested.

Fred Solop, a Northern Arizona University political scientist, said the incidents in New Hampshire and Arizona could signal the beginning of a disturbing trend.

"When you start to bring guns to political rallies, it does layer on another level of concern and significance," Solop said. "It actually becomes quite scary for many people. It creates a chilling effect in the ability of our society to carry on honest communication."

He said he's never heard of someone bringing an assault weapon near a presidential event. "The larger the gun, the more menacing the situation," he said.

Phoenix was Obama's last stop on a four-day tour of western states, including Montana and Colorado.

Authorities in Montana said they received no reports of anyone carrying firearms during Obama's health care town hall near Bozeman on Friday. About 1,000 people both for and against Obama converged at a protest area near the Gallatin Field Airport hangar where the event took place. One person accused of disorderly conduct was detained and released, according to the Gallatin Airport Authority.

Heather Benjamin of Denver's Mesa County sheriff's department, the lead agency during Obama's visit there, said no one was arrested.

Arizona is an "open-carry" state, which means anyone legally allowed to have a firearm can carry it in public as long as it's visible. Only someone carrying a concealed weapon is required to have a permit.

Paul Helmke, president of the Washington, D.C.-based Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, said people should not be allowed to bring guns to events where Obama is.

"To me, this is craziness," he said. "When you bring a loaded gun, particularly a loaded assault rifle, to any political event, but particularly to one where the president is appearing, you're just making the situation dangerous for everyone."

He said people who bring guns to presidential events are distracting the Secret Service and law enforcement from protecting the president. "The more guns we see at more events like this, there's more potential for something tragic happening," he said.

Secret Service spokesman Ed Donovan said armed demonstrators in open-carry states such as Arizona and New Hampshire have little impact on security plans for the president.

"In both cases, the subject was not entering our site or otherwise attempting to," Donovan said. "They were in a designated public viewing area. The main thing to know is that they would not have been allowed inside with a weapon."

Representatives of the National Rifle Association did not return calls for comment.

I'm generally in favor of individual expression, but carrying a loaded weapon to protest a presidential address is rather ominous.

[grixit]

Reagan once addressed an NRA meeting. Even though he went to denounce gun control, no one in the audience complained about the fact that they weren't allowed to bring their guns inside. And no one stood outside displaying guns either.

[Demosthenes]

There's an interesting backstory on the Phoenix event.

The gun totin' crap was a publicity stunt set up by wingnut Ernie Hancock. Hancock used to be a supporter of Arizona Viper Militia, a group that was convicted of planning to blow up federal buildings in the 1990s.

[Imalawman]

There's an interesting backstory on the Phoenix event.

The gun totin' crap was a publicity stunt set up by wingnut Ernie Hancock. Hancock used to be a supporter of Arizona Viper Militia, a group that was convicted of planning to blow up federal buildings in the 1990s.

Good to have you back.

[Joey Smith]

There's an interesting backstory on the Phoenix event.

The gun totin' crap was a publicity stunt set up by wingnut Ernie Hancock. Hancock used to be a supporter of Arizona Viper Militia, a group that was convicted of planning to blow up federal buildings in the 1990s.

I'm pretty sure that one of his followers was my cabby last Friday.

[Olsenfin]

I own many guns, am licensed to carry a handgun, and do, every day.

But I would not have carried a weapon to a political rally where the President was to appear. It was just plain STUPID. And most of my fellow "gun nuts" agree with my position.

[Demosthenes]

I own many guns, am licensed to carry a handgun, and do, every day.

But I would not have carried a weapon to a political rally where the President was to appear. It was just plain STUPID. And most of my fellow "gun nuts" agree with my position.

Welcome to Quatloos, Olsenfin.

[Pottapaug1938]

I own many guns, am licensed to carry a handgun, and do, every day.

But I would not have carried a weapon to a political rally where the President was to appear. It was just plain STUPID. And most of my fellow "gun nuts" agree with my position.

That's because most "gun nuts" are responsible firearm owners, and treat their firearms with the maximum respect. Meanwhile, they have to deal with reckless idiots who manage to grab the headlines.