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By Andrew Scott
Pocono Record Writer
September 25, 2009
Editor's Note: Pennsylvania residents do not need licenses to buy guns, but need permits to carry guns on their persons or in their vehicles. By law, those looking to buy guns must first undergo background checks. Those not permitted to own guns include people charged with or convicted of crimes and people with protection-from-abuse orders filed against them.
Most Americans probably are familiar with the philosophy, "If guns were outlawed, then only outlaws would have guns."
Stroudsburg Mayor Charlie Baughman has come under fire from the National Rifle Association and Pennsylvania Firearm Owners Association for recently joining the Mayors Against Illegal Guns Coalition. That's because both associations believe MAIG wants to take away Americans' right, guaranteed by the Second Amendment of the Constitution, to legally bear arms.
"It's not about taking away any law-abiding citizen's legal right," Baughman said this week. "I legally own a gun myself and I wouldn't like it if someone told me I didn't have the right to own it. This is about working to keep guns out of the hands of those not permitted to own them."
Founded in 2006 by New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Boston Mayor Thomas Menino and funded primarily by Bloomberg, MAIG works with law enforcement agencies and advocacy groups and operates by the following principles:
* Punish, to the maximum extent of the law, criminals who possess, use and traffic in illegal guns.
* Target and hold accountable irresponsible gun dealers who break the law by knowingly selling guns to straw purchasers.
* Oppose all federal efforts to restrict cities' right to access, use and share trace data essential to effective enforcement, or interfere with the ability of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives to combat illegal gun trafficking.
* Develop and use technologies that aid in the detection and tracing of illegal guns.
* Support all local state and federal legislation that targets illegal guns; coordinate legislative, enforcement and litigation strategies; and share information and best practices.
* Invite other cities to join in this new national effort.
Since joining MAIG earlier this year, Baughman has received a notice from the NRA to its Stroudsburg members, asking them to "urge him to quit" MAIG, which the NRA refers to as "the Bloomberg Coalition."
"Bloomberg created MAIG as a front group to lobby Congress to oppose important pro-gun reforms and support new federal gun control restrictions," the notice states. "And Mayor Baughman has joined this anti-gun Bloomberg crusade. It is critical that your mayor dissociate himself from this anti-gun group and you can do your part by contacting his office and urging him to withdraw his MAIG membership."
The notice goes on to say that several mayors already have withdrawn their memberships.
Baughman also received a letter from PFOA founder and president Daniel Pehrson, asking Baughman to follow some other mayors' examples and dissociate from MAIG.
Pehrson in his letter said Bloomberg signed the names of Baughman and other MAIG members to advertisements run nationwide, "condemning lawful gun ownership and gun owners," as well as "claiming that Pennsylvania's lawful concealed-carry-permit holders 'threaten the safety of police officers.'" Pehrson went on to say Bloomberg sent a letter, signed by Baughman and other MAIG members, to Democrats in Congress, "urging them to vote against the rights of gun owners."
"Bloomberg's letter was worded to imply that the law-abiding residents of your borough who hold gun permits are trafficking guns to New York City and other high-crime areas," Pehrson said. "Surely, you do not endorse such attacks on Pennsylvania's nearly 600,000 permit holders."
Pehrson then quoted one mayor who has left MAIG and opposes promoting lawsuits that blame gun dealers and manufacturers for common street criminals' actions.
"I can understand why the NRA and PFOA feel the way they do, but I don't agree with their perception that MAIG is trying to harm law-abiding gun owners in any way," Baughman said. "If you look closely at what MAIG stands for and what we're trying to achieve, the only people we're going after are those who don't abide by the law."
MAIG on its Web site corrects some misperceptions others have of the coalition:
* MAIG is not against all guns and supports the Second Amendment, as well as practical, constitutional policies to keep guns away from criminals.
* MAIG does not oppose concealed-carry permits allowing people to carry guns on their persons or in their vehicles.
The coalition supports the right of cities and states to adopt their own concealed-carry requirements or have no requirements at all. The coalition opposes federal legislation that would override existing state laws and force states to accept concealed-carry permits from other states with laxer standards.
MAIG has never called and will never call for prohibiting gun shows since most people who organize, sell and visit gun shows are responsible, law-abiding citizens. The coalition supports requiring all gun sales at all gun shows to involve background checks.
"If you're asking whether I'm considering quitting my membership with MAIG, the answer is no," Baughman said. "But, if I'm ever presented with factual, convincing information that the coalition truly doesn't support the best interests of those protected under the Second Amendment, then I would think differently. So far, I haven't come across or been presented with any such information."
Along with opposition from the NRA and PFOA, MAIG has received endorsements from organizations like the International Association of Police Chiefs and National Sheriffs Association, which recognize the coalition and law enforcement have the same goal in mind, Baughman said.
Stroud Area Regional Police Chief John Baujan, whose department covers Stroudsburg, East Stroudsburg and Stroud Township, said Thursday that he hasn't had the chance to talk to Baughman in more detail about MAIG and its principles, but agrees with what he hears so far. "From a law enforcement standpoint, I don't see anything wrong with what their organization is trying to do," Baujan said. "I personally would not endorse any effort to interfere with the Second Amendment right of law-abiding gun owners. But, we do have a serious problem with the amount of illegal guns out there and criminals who don't play by the rules."
