Conservatives Support "Federal Overreach" In DC

For all the lip service they pay to states' rights and the Tenth Amendment, you would expect conservatives (Republicans and Democrats alike) to show restraint in tampering with the District of Columbia's laws, especially those related to public safety.  But time and time again, conservative lawmakers -- often from rural states and at the behest of the powerful gun lobby -- have tried to skirt DC's laws.   

For far too long, residents of the District have paid taxes without having a vote in Congress.  Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton, who represents DC, cannot vote.  When legislation to correct this injustice is before Congress, conservatives attach NRA-friendly language to it and DC is ultimately forced to choose between its voting rights and its safety.

This week, Sens. John McCain (R-AZ) and Jon Tester (D-MT) introduced stand-alone legislation that will repeal the District's tough gun control laws.  Their bill, the Second Amendment Enforcement Act, seeks to "restore Second Amendment rights in the District of Columbia." Reps. Mark Souder (R-IN) and Travis Childers (D-MS) have introduced similar legislation in the House. 

But it's not really about the Second Amendment.  Several years ago, the Supreme Court ruled in District of Columbia v. Heller that the city's broad gun control laws were unconstitutional.  The City Council took necessary action and rewrote language on gun registration and banned most semiautomatic weapons.  These changes were subsequently ruled legal by a federal judge.

Despite that, conservatives in the House and Senate are trying to undo what little control DC has over public safety. Far from trying to enforce the Constitution, the legislation imposes a rural understanding of public safety on a metropolitan city. It is the very definition of the "federal overreach" that conservatives often decry. 

The Washington Post reports:

Some may ask why a senator from Arizona and a senator from Montana would introduce legislation that impacts the District of Columbia," McCain said in a statement. "It's simple -- we believe that residents across this country should be able to exercise their constitutional right to have access to firearms to protect themselves."

Joshua Horwitz, executive director of the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence, called the legislation "political grandstanding" that does not take into account that the D.C. Council passed laws last year to comply with the court ruling, which were upheld in March by a federal judge.

The city has already repealed a ban on semiautomatic pistols, he said, and allows residents to keep loaded guns in their homes. Most troubling to gun-control advocates, Mayor Adrian M. Fenty (D) and members of the D.C. Council are the legislation's proposed restrictions on local control of firearms.

"This is another egregious attempt to impose their will on District residents at the risk of exposing our families to acts of gun violence," said council member Kwame R. Brown (D-At Large).