Buckeye Firearms endorsee attacks Columbus council for 'liberal agenda'

2005 Buckeye Firearms Association endorsee Phil Harmon is making news by pointing out that liberal politics are affecting more than just gun control in the City of Columbus:

October 23, 2005
Columbus Dispatch

In the past two years, the Columbus City Council has banned smoking in public places.

It banned assault weapons.

And couches on porches.

And it gave the green light last week to installing red-light cameras at intersections.

Columbus’ Democratic City Council members will tell you there’s no Republican or Democratic way to pick up the trash or clear snow.

But other people say these new laws show a certain philosophy, and that partisan differences do make a difference in local races.

"It’s a liberal agenda," said Phil Harmon, a Republican candidate who campaigned against the smoking and assault-weapon bans.

"Some people say it’s a good thing. Government needs to help people, take a proactive role," Harmon said. But he said the bans and cameras go beyond the mandate of a council member’s job. "Let’s balance the do-gooder aspect of government with the idea of personal responsibility."

Again, from the story:

Council members voted for the weapons ban in part because Columbus police said they needed it, Hudson said. Residents in the University District asked for the couch ban, she said.

But those are issues the council shouldn’t get involved in, Republican City Council candidates Eddie Pauline and Alisia Clark said.

"Their way of solving problems is like a big brother watching down: ‘Just do whatever I say, because I’m in a position to make this legislation,’ " Clark said.

Raising the issues gets the Democratic council members a lot of publicity, Pauline said, but doesn’t solve anything.

"In Columbus, we have issues that are much more pressing: i.e. the economy, the crime rate, there is a litany of stuff we could be dealing with," he said.

A ban on assault weapons won’t solve crime, Clark added.

The current crop of council persons cost the City of Columbus upwards of $20 million in economic impact when it passed the ridiculous assault weapons (or "Mentel) Ban", because the move resulted in the NRA pulling its convention out of the city.

Will the citizens of Columbus send them a message? We'll find out together on Election Day, Nov. 8.

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2005 Buckeye Firearms Association Endorsements!

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