Dutch Ruppersburger's response to HR822

[a216vcti]

Dear Mr. A216vCTi:

Thisletter is in response to your communication regarding the National Right-to-Carry Reciprocity Act of2011. I appreciate you taking the time to share your concerns with me.

H.R.822, the National Right-to-Carry Reciprocity Act, was introduced by Representative Cliff Stearns on February18, 2011. H.R. 822 would amend the United States code to allow citizens who obtain a concealed carrypermit in one state to continue to carry their weapon in another state. H.R. 822 was passed out of the House of Representatives on November 17, 2011, and referred to the Senate,where it awaits further action.

Ibelieve there are two important and fundamental principles to the gun rights issues. The first is theConstitutional right to bear arms and I do not take that principle lightly. The second principle is publicsafety. This is just as critical and the role police officers play in protecting our citizens cannotbe ignored.

Asa Member of Congress, I support legislation that strikes a fair balance between these two very Americanprinciples. I am charged with the responsibility of representing all constituents in my district, whichincludes both gun rights and gun control advocates. I feel I can do this best by supporting the lawsthat local law enforcement officers tell me they need to protect the people of Maryland. The MarylandChiefs of Police Association has asked me to not support H.R. 822 because it would force communitiesto honor concealed weapon carry permits issued in other states. This make it very difficult for stateand local governments to enforce the fire arms regulations they feel are best for their communities.

Ivalue the input of my constituents regardless of whether we agree or disagree on the particulars of anissue. Thank you for sharing your concerns and please contact my office if you have further questions.Please do not hesitate to contact me in the future if you have any questions or comments. To receiveadditional information about issues that are facing Congress, Maryland,and the Nation that may affect you and your community, please visitmy website at www.dutch.house.govand sign up for my periodic e-mail newsletter.





Sincerely,

C.A. Dutch Ruppersberger
Member of

Anyone think I should respond or do you all think it goes to some intern and doesn't see Dutch's desk?

 

[joppaj]

That's his standard form letter for all gun related topics. He always cites "officer safety" and I'm sure that the Maryland Chiefs of Police Association is just as political as the International version. They do not represent cops, they represent the politicians that hired them.

 

[Sev]

so he wants to hear what his constituents have to say, but he's going to do as the Maryland Chiefs of Police tell him to do.

how is that representing the people?

 

[km04]

Because Dutch is a D!CK, as all politicians are. Joppaj said it best. I know what he is talking about, I had a similar letter come to me on a bill I had a question about.

I wrote the folks for my mother's district(she lives in the city). There was a bill( I forget which one, when I remember I will edit here) that seemed to read that there would be problems for people who grow their own food. My mom has gardened since we were kids, I mean real gardening. We were the only kids in our neighborhood that had a real wheel barrow. We used to walk up York rd. from Coldspring lane to Woodbourne ave pushing that damned thing full of gardening tools and a hose. She had several plots in the city garden at Dewees. Well the bill is pushed by Monsanto and the like, and was very convoluted. I emailed them and asked if I understood it correctly and if I did, what was their position on it. Got some crappy letter that had a lot of words but really didn't say anything.

F 'em all I say, F 'em with the biggest sharpest stick you can find!!!

 

[eruby]

Officer Safety

I know EVERY time I see a police officer I want to gun him or her down. In fact just yesterday I had a Carroll County Sheriff's Deputy at my house and all I could think of was how fun it would be to gun him down. Thank goodness I didn't have a gun with me. Yay Dutch!

Rupersburger, like many politicians, has a sure 'tell' that he's lying. He is speaking.

 

[1970swifty]

Sure reply to it.While you are pointing out that doing what some small group asks you to do is NOT representing your constituents the least they could do is check grammar,spelling and format of their letters.Yes probably written by some intern what a joke.

 

[Schwabe]

"I support legislation that strikes a fair balance between these two very American principles."

What balance????

YOU ARE DENYING OUR GOD GIVE RIGHT!!!!





oh yeah .... Ruppi you are a douche ...

 

[browning guy]

Dutch is a world class douche dag. A total and complete tool of the pinko party who cares nothing for the people of his district. He is a life long member of the Maryland ruling class and us and our petty rights are not his problem!!

this scum bag has his hands in every land deal ever made in Baltimore county and every kick back ever handed out for a development project in baltimore county.

God I can not wait for the revalotion to tar and feather guys like this!!!!!!!

 

[olebess]

Anyone think I should respond or do you all think it goes to some intern and doesn't see Dutch's desk?

Instead of writing back, why don't you do one of two things:
1. Call the Congressman's district office in Timonium (410.628.2701) and ask to set up a meeting with the Congressman in Timonium some time after Christmas through mid-January (before Congress comes back into session). Go in and have a conversation with him. Make your case in a reasonable way and you never know what will sink in. I think making the point about him talking to actual cops is a good one to make. Better yet, get three or four like-minded friends (who are constituents) to join you at the meeting. That will enhance the impact. Short of meeting with the Congressman, see if you can meet with the district director.

2. Call the Congressman's Washington, DC office (202.225.3061). Tell the person answering the phone you are a constituent and ask to speak with the legislative director about this issue. Be persistent (but not nagging), as you might not get through on the first try. When you do get through, make your case to him/her and see where it goes.

Constituents communicating with their elected officials is essential for us to effectively advocate our freedoms. It's easy for Members of Congress to hide behind letters. This is why face-to-face meetings are always more effective. Good luck!

 

[a216vcti]

Instead of writing back, why don't you do one of two things:
1. Call the Congressman's district office in Timonium (410.628.2701) and ask to set up a meeting with the Congressman in Timonium some time after Christmas through mid-January (before Congress comes back into session). Go in and have a conversation with him. Make your case in a reasonable way and you never know what will sink in. I think making the point about him talking to actual cops is a good one to make. Better yet, get three or four like-minded friends (who are constituents) to join you at the meeting. That will enhance the impact. Short of meeting with the Congressman, see if you can meet with the district director.

2. Call the Congressman's Washington, DC office (202.225.3061). Tell the person answering the phone you are a constituent and ask to speak with the legislative director about this issue. Be persistent (but not nagging), as you might not get through on the first try. When you do get through, make your case to him/her and see where it goes.

Constituents communicating with their elected officials is essential for us to effectively advocate our freedoms. It's easy for Members of Congress to hide behind letters. This is why face-to-face meetings are always more effective. Good luck!

This sounds like a good idea, but I think it's pointless now. The bill already passed the house. I guess I'm just not going to vote for him. How old do you have to be to run in the House? I'm seriously thinking about competing against him. I'd probably never win but I could say I tried.

 

[olebess]

This sounds like a good idea, but I think it's pointless now. The bill already passed the house. I guess I'm just not going to vote for him. How old do you have to be to run in the House? I'm seriously thinking about competing against him. I'd probably never win but I could say I tried.

I think it's still worthwhile to visit with and to get to know your elected representatives. You may disagree with them and not support them with a vote or financially, but forging a bit of a relationship can be helpful for future advocacy.

As for running, you have to be 25 to run for the House of Representatives and 30 to run for Senate. Get to know your political party leaders in your area. They'll be helpful in walking you through the process of launching a campaign (which will help you know if there are others lined up to run, etc. )

 

[QuebecoisWolf]

He couldatleast should you the respect of proof reading hisletter.

No, I'm pretty sure this got typedupby the lowestranking intern intheoffice.

 

[lasher9999]

Interesting. His reply says nothing. It does not say how he will vote or what he believes in (if anything).

Typical politician.

 

[LCPIWB]

This sounds like a good idea, but I think it's pointless now. The bill already passed the house. I guess I'm just not going to vote for him. How old do you have to be to run in the House? I'm seriously thinking about competing against him. I'd probably never win but I could say I tried.

Ha! I was thinking of running too, just to get that waste of space out of office.

Is that a Miniature Pinscher in your Avatar?

 

[a216vcti]

Ha! I was thinking of running too, just to get that waste of space out of office.

Is that a Miniature Pinscher in your Avatar?

I'll vote for you.

The dog is full Doberman. He was probably 75lbs. in that pic. Last time I weighed him, he was 95lbs. There's nothing miniature about him.

 

[squirrels]

I'll vote for you.

The dog is full Doberman. He was probably 75lbs. in that pic. Last time I weighed him, he was 95lbs. There's nothing miniature about him.

Something about that perspective makes him look small.

In regard to the topic, I've seen this form-letter before.

There's no better example in my mind of classic political double-speak. A few generic words supporting both sides of the position in positive language, no real comment on the issue at-hand.

You won't know what he thinks until he votes. I'll give you one guess which way that will be.

 

[LONGSHOT]

TIME FOR DUTCH TO RETIRED!

 

[Lightning]

Instead of talking to Dutch, how about talking to all your friends, neighbors, and family about this experience and the typical political double talk response you got from him. Let everyone know that Dutch and all of the other incumbents must go if we are going to fix our State and Country. Vote them all out in 2012! These bottom feeders have lived off of us for far too long!

 

[Docster]

One of the things I like to do is send them (Dutch, Mikulksi, Ben, etc), links to threads like this so they can see what voters like us are saying, and perhaps doing. Maybe, just maybe, it might cause some concern. Can't hurt.... just sayin'

 

[olebess]

Instead of talking to Dutch, how about talking to all your friends, neighbors, and family about this experience and the typical political double talk response you got from him. Let everyone know that Dutch and all of the other incumbents must go if we are going to fix our State and Country. Vote them all out in 2012! These bottom feeders have lived off of us for far too long!

This is a good strategy, too. I don't know who is running against Dutch, but it would be worthwhile to see if he/she is pro 2A. If so, I think Lightning's suggestion is on the right track. Take it to the next level by hosting a fundraiser or free meet-n-greet for the pro 2A candidate in your home. The pro 2A candidate's campaign would appreciate the exposure (esp. if you got 15-20 people to attend) and the opportunity to meet constituents (and would probably pick up the cost of the food and drink). If you raise the pro 2A candidate some money, all the better. Hosting this type of event is just the right kind of grassroots movement needed to build support for our issues.