To Vote Or Not To Vote—There Really Isn’t Any Question by Tracy Marisa

Suggesting to SCOPE members that they turn out to vote in the general election is preaching to the choir.  That’s true; at least I hope it is.

But a famous writer said several decades ago that “in a sort of ghastly simplicity” we humans tend to “…remove the organ and demand the function...We laugh at honour and are shocked to find traitors in our midst. We castrate and bid the geldings be fruitful.” In other words, and in our American instance, given how little emphasis there has been on civic engagement in those same decades, it would not be surprising if our voting muscles have atrophied. 

Whether you need some encouragement yourself to get out and vote or whether you would never miss an opportunity to vote but you know people who would have to be dragged to a polling place kicking and screaming, it may be worth spending a few minutes looking at some of the reasons why folks don’t turn out to vote in November and what the rest of us can do about it.

One reason for not voting is that voting requires some planning ahead.

You can’t vote if you are not registered.

This year the deadline for registering to vote is October 26th.

Keep in mind that if you’ve changed your address, you need to re-register to vote. You can register online at https://www.elections.ny.gov/VotingRegister.html. 

For those who have access to a printer, it would be a kindness to your unregistered friends and neighbors, who might not have internet access, if you printed a few of the forms that are available on that same webpage and had them handy for them to fill out.  (See the menu at the top of the page to find the link to the printable registration form.)

A SCOPE e-mail that went out on September 9th that was written by Stephen Dallas (thank you!) had a lot of helpful info which might have seemed very early at the time but now looks increasingly urgent. So, I’m reiterating much of it at the end of this email as well as listing these important deadlines and dates*.

Another excuse reason I’ve personally heard gun owners give for not registering to vote is that they don’t want to be called to be on a jury.

First…folks, we need people to sit on juries who know that the Constitution and the Bill of Rights have not been tossed out the window! There are more than enough of the other sort of potential jurors out there, and we don’t need to cede more territory to the other side, in court, by simply not being there.

Secondly, these are the ways NYS puts together its list of potential jurors (from the state website): “Potential jurors are randomly selected from lists of registered voters, holders of drivers’ licenses or ID’s issued by the Division of Motor Vehicles, New York State income tax filers, recipients of unemployment insurance or family assistance, and from volunteers.”

Not registering to vote is NOT going to “save” someone from their civic duty of sitting on a jury. People should register to vote and then perform another one of the relatively few civic duties we actually have—turn out and vote.

A third reason is the feeling that their vote doesn’t count

As we know, 2024 is a presidential election year and while that generates a lot of interest, in NYS it may also lead people to the feeling that their vote doesn’t count. If you know about the Electoral College and how that system works (and why it exists), that feeling is not without merit. But that only applies to the presidential election. All other lines on the ballot are totally up for grabs and the winner will be the candidate who can get the greatest number of people to turn out and vote for him or her. (In the interests of encouraging turnout, the county board of elections where I used to live put together a list of local elections that had been won by very few votes, usually a half-dozen or fewer and in some cases only one vote. It happens more often than you think.)

Which leads us to a list of reasons why your vote will count

For those elections that are literally closest to where you live—town, village, city, county—people’s individual votes absolutely do matter. Some of those people running for local office are on the same page that we’re on (re: the Second Amendment) and some are definitely not. You want to know which are which.

This year, offices that are up for grabs in addition to POTUS/VP are:

 U.S. Senator (Gillibrand is up this year, but not Schumer, and her opponent, as you know, is Mike Sapraicone – who just spoke at the SCOPE Banquet);

U.S. Member of Congress, State Senator, State Assemblymember, with those three varying with your specific location in NYS;

There may be other, more local offices, on the front of the ballot;

The reverse will have Proposal 1 statewide (known by many as the Parent Replacement Act) and there may be other propositions on the reverse as well, specific to the voter’s election district.

This seems like a lot to keep track of.  But there really is no reason, anymore, why people shouldn’t already know whose name will appear on various lines—town council, village mayor, district attorney, judge, sheriff, county legislator, whatever—before they ever cross the threshold of their polling place.  By the time early voting starts, county boards of elections often publish sample ballots online that represent exactly the ballots that voters will be handed at their individual polling places. Any counties that don’t put up a PDF of election district ballots will still have a list of all the offices and proposals that are due to appear on county ballots.

While voting might have seemed like a mysterious black box in the past and we could use that very inscrutability as an excuse for not voting (or voting ignorantly), that is no longer the case. And this is yet another way that people with internet access can help those without.

And vote next Spring, too

This last thing is not directly related to the November election, but it does have to do with civic responsibility generally as well as voting, in particular.

I often hear people who bemoan the political thinking of younger Americans.  They ascribe the young people’s disregard for the Constitution and Bill of Rights to their having been to college. While many colleges and universities certainly share in the blame for this, they’re not the sole source of the problem (and there are plenty of people who haven’t been to college and are quite left-leaning, so the college theory doesn’t explain everything).

Find out what’s going on in your local K-12 schools when it comes to teaching about the U.S.A. and our history.  And then make sure you vote in your local school elections in the spring, generally in May. Those elections aren’t just about tax rates and tax levies, although those are important, but they are also about how exactly the money is being spent and, perhaps most important of all, who sits on the school board. You can have a direct impact on what’s going on in your local schools, and thus in young people’s attitudes, but one thing you have to do is vote.

Back to November 5th

Please vote, and encourage your friends, neighbors, and family members to vote. Pick them up and buy them a coffee or a soda if that helps grease the wheels a little. We can change things but we have to use the weapon at our disposal and not leave it holstered — voting.

75% of life is just showing up.

*Courtesy of Mr. Dallas:
(Location of poll site is determined by resident address.) Once you’re registered to vote, you can find your polling place for General Election Day, November 5th, by going to https://voterlookup.elections.ny.gov/ or on your county BOE website. You can only vote at your polling place—you can’t just wander in anywhere, even if you think that’s the way it should be. There are wandering wannabe voters who assume they can vote in any location labeled “polling place”—

Early Voting by Mail / Absentee Voting for General Election:

October 26 - Last day for board of elections to receive applications by mail or by online portal for an absentee ballot for the General Election .

November 4 - Last day to apply in person for absentee ballot for the General Election.

November 5 - Last day to postmark an absentee ballot for the General Election. (It must be received at the Board of Elections no later than November 14th, Military Ballots by November 20th.)

November 5 - Last day to deliver in person an absentee ballot for the General Election to the County Board or Poll Site, by the close of polls.

General Election Dates:

October 26 through November 3- Early voting days for General Election.

November 5 - General Election - 6 am to 9 pm.

(ask me how I know).

What about these other ways of voting (besides at your designated polling place on November 5th)?

“Mail-in and absentee ballots: A New York law allowing all registered voters to cast their ballots by mail was upheld in August by the state’s highest court. The decision means that the millions of New Yorkers eligible to vote in the November 5 election will be able to cast ballots by mail if they wish — something that only a handful of people could do before.

This means any registered New York voter may apply for a mail-in ballot.

They can apply either online (https://elections.ny.gov/request-ballot), or in person at their local election office, or by designating another person to deliver their application to the local election office for them.

Mail-in ballot applications are due 10 days before the election. Mail-in ballots must be postmarked by Election Day or submitted in person by 9pm on Election Day to the County Board of Elections Office or polling site.

Certain New Yorkers are eligible to apply for an absentee ballot. The form to apply is different than, but the places to apply are the same as, for mail-in ballots, and the ballot can be returned using the same methods as early mail voters.

Early voting: You can also vote in-person via early voting. Early voting is just like voting on Election Day. Early voters privately mark and scan their ballot at a polling place. Early voting results are counted, tabulated and included in election night totals. There is no requirement to apply for early voting. The process is completely walk-in.

Early voting for the general election is Saturday, October 26 through Sunday, November 3. Voters may visit any of their assigned Early Voting Centers in their county, except in New York City, where voters are assigned to one early voting site. To find each county’s early voting locations, click here: https://voterlookup.elections.ny.gov.

Early voting may be an especially attractive process in upstate New York, where even early November weather can be unpredictable, and voters may have difficulty making it to the polls on Election Day. Early voting can also be a guard against other unexpected events that might arise on Election Day, from family obligations to workplace emergencies.

Again, people with internet access and a printer can help out people who don’t have those things.

Immigration Analysis

According to the report from the Deputy Director of ICE Patrick Lechleitner sent to Congressman Tony Gonzalez, these are illegal immigrants who have been caught and released with court dates set years into the future, or, worse, those ordered deported but still residing within our borders.

Happy Anniversary!

Did you miss all the celebrations on the one year anniversary of NY State’s implementing a background check and tax on ammo?

You did!

Here’s a little refresher.

From the New York State Police (NYSP) web site

“New York State's gun laws are designed to prevent criminals and those who threaten to harm themselves or others from buying or possessing guns, cracks down on illegal guns, and bans only the most dangerous assault weapons.”

No mention of ammo.

 From the FBI’s “Firearms Checks (NICS)” page:

“When a person tries to buy a firearm, the seller, known as a Federal Firearms Licensee (FFL), contacts NICS electronically or by phone. The prospective buyer fills out the ATF form, and the FFL relays that information to the NICS. The NICS staff performs a background check on the buyer. That background check verifies the buyer does not have a criminal record or isn’t otherwise ineligible to purchase or own a firearm.”

No mention of ammunition checks by NICS.

Ammunition is not mentioned in the Department of Justice’s NICS rules for Point of Contacts.  (New York is now a “Point of Contact” state.)

Nothing about ammo in “Public Law 110–180, An Act To improve the National Instant Criminal Background Check System” also called the “Fix NICS Act”

It is reported that during an FBI/ATF Townhall at the 2024 SHOT Show, NICS Section Chief Trudy Ford explained that using the NICS system for ammunition background checks was not an approved use of the NICS system

It seems clear that NICS cannot be used for purposes for which it is not federally authorized; like background checks on ammo purchases!

But, in a court filing, Attorney Paloma Capanna wrote:

“NYSP employees are manually entering individual ammunition background check data from their new system, by hand, into the federal FBI-NICS system in violation of Title 28 Code of Federal Regulations §25.11.”  (Emphasis added.)

Capanna continued: “28 CFR §25.11(b)(2) prohibits a state, expressly, from misuse of the FBI-NICS system for any purpose outside the federally-mandated firearms background check.” 

It seems that the NYSP are violating federal regulations and the FBI are aiding and abetting them when the NYSP use the NICS system to do background checks on ammunition.  (Say it aint so, Merrick Garland and Kathy Hochul!)

How could this blatant violation of the law happen?

David Codrea tried to find out how, using the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA)  He submitted a FOIA request “to the FBI in March for documents and records to clarify authority and determine decision-making (and decision-makers) authorizing the use of NICS for New York State ammunition background checks.”

Codrea’s interpretation of the FBI’s two responses: “We’re not going to tell you. Deal with it.”

Codrea has now sent a letter requesting help to the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability.  Theoretically, they have more influence – if they choose to use it.

The FBI has delegated power to itself that was not passed by Congress and the FBI refuses to provide information about it, in violation of another law passed by Congress.  The Swamp is alive and well in D.C. under the current administration!

And Donald Trump is a threat to Democracy?

You Said What?

In an interview with Hillary Clinton, CNBC’s Rachel Maddow brought up recent actions taken by the Biden-Harris Justice and State Departments against Russians who were allegedly pushing pro-Russian propaganda.

Hillary Clinton replied: “…we are not going to let adversaries, whether it is Russia, China, Iran, or anybody else, basically try to influence Americans as to how we should vote in picking our leaders.”

Then Clinton went further.  “I also think there are Americans who are engaged in this kind of propaganda, and whether they should be civilly or even in some cases, criminally charged, is something that would be a better deterrence.” (Emphasis added.)

In 2022, federal election regulators fined Hillary Clinton’s 2016 Presidential Campaign and the Democratic National Committee for not properly disclosing the money they spent on controversial opposition research that led to the Steele Trump-Russia dossier.  The money flowed from Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign to law firm Perkins Coie LLC, to the research company Fusion GPS, and then ultimately to Christopher Steele, who got $168,000 for writing the dossier which said Trump conspired with the Kremlin to win the 2016 election.

Lock her up?

In a visit to Pittsburg, Kamala Harris said, "It's time to turn the page on the divisiveness. It's time to bring our country together, chart a new way forward…A lot of what I think is happening…is that people are exhausted about the division and the attempts to kind of divide us as Americans."

While in Pittsburg calling for an end to divisiveness, Kamala Harris made a campaign stop at Penzeys Spices - which is known to openly discriminate against Republicans. It has an “About Republicans" page on their business’ website with an 842-word essay bashing Republicans.  Some of their rhetoric: “…we’re done pretending the Republican Party’s embrace of cruelty, racism, Covid lies, climate change denial, and threats to democracy are anything other than the risks they legitimately are. If you need us to pretend you are not creating the hurt you are creating in order for you to continue to be our customer, I’m sad to say you might be happier elsewhere.”

In 2022, Penzeys Spices’ CEO Bill Penzey wanted to rename Martin Luther King Jr. Day as "Republicans Are Racist Weekend!"

“…turn the page on divisiveness,” didn’t last a full day!

Per the State Bar of California’s web site: “Taking the attorney's oath is not just a ritual. It is required for admission to practice law in California pursuant to California Business and Professions Code section 6067.”

The oath says: “I solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support the Constitution of the United States…”

While serving as San Francisco District Attorney in 2007, Kamala Harris spoke about a San Francisco law she sponsored that was ultimately signed into law by then San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom.  She said, “…just because you legally possess a gun in the sanctity of your locked home doesn't mean that we're not going to walk into that home and check to see if you're being responsible and safe in the way you conduct your affairs.” *

Amendment IV of the U S Constitution says: “The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers and effects against unreasonable searches and seizures shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause…”

Did Harris skip that class on the 4th Amendment in law school? 

But Donald Trump is the threat to democracy!

By the way, the presidential oath of office goes: "I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States."

Can gun owners expect Harris to follow that oath when dealing with the 2nd Amendment just as she followed the California attorney’s oath?

* ttps://www.yahoo.com/news/kamala-harris-once-said-police-133749431.html

Judgement Day – November 5^th, 2024  by Richard Rossi

This goes way beyond political affiliation.  For New York citizens, Judgement Day is November 5th. Ballot proposition 1 (ERA) is on the November ballot.

This election is critical to our Rights & Freedoms and maintaining our Second Amendment protected rights. This might seem like a small issue considering that we have a President to elect this year.  But it‘s not!

This proposition will change our NYS Constitution. If passed, the impact of this Constitutional Amendment on NYS Citizens will be felt for decades.  As gun owners, we must also be responsible Law-abiding citizens and fight to keep all our Rights under our Bill of Rights. 

Hopefully by now you have heard of the Ballot Proposition 1 to amend our New York State Constitution ("Equal Rights Amendment") which will be on the reverse side of your ballot.   The ballot wording seems harmless.  Who is not in favor of equal rights for all?  However, it is a wolf in sheep's clothing! 

First - let's clear the air on all the Abortion misinformation that is circulating. There is no truth to it, at all!  Abortion is already legal in New York, with some of the most far-reaching protections in the country and there is no significant movement to change that. Given these protections, adding abortion rights to the state constitution is redundant. The laws already ensure comprehensive access and protection for abortion services.

A more appropriate and fitting name for this proposition would be “THE PARENT'S REPLACEMENT ACT”.   If this ballot amendment is passed, will it destroy your Parental Rights?  Let’s look closer.

The 5 KEY-TAKE-AWAY points

The New York State government could have more authority than parents in making medical and other important decisions for children.
Children under the age of 18 could have the right to irreversible surgical and nonsurgical transgender procedures without parental notice or approval.
Schools could be banned from disclosing to parents that their children are becoming transgender.
Biological males could be allowed to compete against biological females in school sports without restrictions.
Protections for churches and other religious organizations and non-profits could be eroded regarding beliefs that run contrary to newly-created ‘Rights’ in Prop One.

Take a moment and ask yourself these questions about the proposition?

What does it mean to be able to “discriminate” based on things like age and gender identity and what some possible legal ramifications might be? 

Should the New York State government have more authority than parents in making medical and other important decisions for children? 

Should minors have the right to irreversible surgical and non-surgical transgender procedures without parental notice or consent? 

Should biological males be allowed to compete in female school sports without restrictions? 

Should laws that determine the legal age to purchase and/or consume alcohol or cannabis be weakened?

Should statutory rape laws that protect against sex with minors be weakened? 

Can you be accused of discrimination by voicing your "Free Speech" Rights and speaking against these gender related issues!

The future of our children hangs in the balance.

It is you - the voters – who will decide on whether Proposition 1 will be passed on election day.

For more information visit The Coalition to Protect Kids - New York.

A one minute video demonstrating Kamala's views on the 2nd Amendment (Video)

Kamala on the 2nd Amendment

This Election and the Second Amendment  by Renée Barchitta

VP Kamala Harris is a leader in the Biden Administration on gun policy and oversees the White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention. Harris’s policies to reduce “Gun Violence” are supported by many of the nation’s influential anti 2nd Amendment groups  such as Giffords and Bloomberg.

 Harris stated, “We, who believe that every person should have the freedom to live safe from the terror of ‘Gun Violence,’ will finally pass red flag laws, universal background checks, and an assault weapons ban.”

“In 2008, …Harris led a group of prosecutors that unsuccessfully tried to convince the US Supreme Court to reject a broad right to gun ownership…” 

In 2010 Harris was elected California Attorney General and continued pushing for stricter gun laws.

From 2017 to 2021, U S Senator Harris co-sponsored bills: for universal background checks; to ban “assault weapons;” and increase oversight of licensed gun dealers.

VP candidate Tim Walz originally got an “A” rating from the NRA which was subsequently changed to an “F” rating, after he flip-flopped. Randy Kozuch, chairman of the NRA Political Victory Fund, said Walz is a "political chameleon — changing his positions to further his own personal agenda…In Congress, Walz purported to be a friend of gun owners to receive their support in his rural Minnesota district…Once he had his eyes set on other offices, he sold out law-abiding Minnesotans and promoted a radical gun control agenda…Kamala Harris and Tim Walz cannot be trusted to defend freedom and our constitutional rights." https://www.cbsnews.com/news/tim-walz-on-gun-control/

As Governor, Walz signed into law “…universal background checks, a red flag law, and one of the largest investments in community-based violence prevention programs of any state to date.” https://www.thetrace.org/2024/07/kamala-harris-guns-violence-election/

A good example of Kamala Harris’ ineffective ideas about the 2nd Amendment is in her response to the Parkland shooting. 

The Parkland high school shooting was a mass shooting on February 14, 2018. 19-year-old Nikolas Cruz opened fire on students and staff at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in the city of Parkland, Florida, killing 17 people and injuring 17 others.

During Harris’s visit, after the shooting, the VP announced her solution to “school gun violence;” the creation of a National Extreme Risk Protection Order (ERPO) Resource Center, funded by the DOJ and run by the Johns Hopkins Center for Gun Violence Solutions.  It would promote states’ passing Red Flag / ERPO laws, and use Bipartisan Safer Communities Act (BSCA) funding to help implement laws already enacted.  

But the Red Flag Law, if it had been enacted in Florida, would not have stopped Nicholas Cruz from killing 17 people, thanks to the federal government’s “Promise Program.”

Why? 

The ‘Promise Program,’ instituted by President Obama and Attorney General Holder, was to stop what Obama described as the school to prison pipeline for Black and Hispanic youth. “The Broward Co. School District (Majority Stoneman Douglas HS) was awarded $54 million in grants to institute the ‘Promise Program.”  The school’s discipline policy was changed to stop suspensions / expulsions and arrests.                                                                                                                                                                   

The Broward County Sheriff’s Department received 45 complaints/concerns about weapons, violent behavior and threats relating to Nicholas Cruz or his brother from 2008 to 2017 - long before the shootings at the High School. Cruz also made a suicide attempt and a video stating that he could become a school shooter. School officials, law enforcement, and the FBI had been notified about Cruz’s behavior.

Even without Red Flag laws, police officers could still remove a weapon when there was imminent danger or a court order.  But under the Promise Program, no judicial action was taken against Cruz so there was no basis for action. 

It is not a stretch to say the Promise Program caused 17 deaths, because Cruz was never arrested and he could legally purchase a firearm.

Kamala Harris proposed a law which would have been ineffective because of another federal law.

"Trading freedoms for safety promises is a risky proposition, as freedoms once surrendered are seldom returned without extensive struggle.” Jews For The Preservation of Firearms Ownership (jpfo)

What does the 2024 Presidential Election Mean for Gun Rights and Gun Control?  by John Elwood

The Republican nominee for President is former President Donald Trump.  During the run up to the 2016 presidential election, the National Rifle Association (NRA) endorsed Donald Trump on May 20, 2016.  He was endorse again in 2020 and, unsurprisingly, the NRA endorsed former President Donald Trump again on May 19, 2024, delivering Trump his third consecutive presidential endorsement.

What are former President Trump’s positions toward guns? 

Donald Trump has generally been aligned with pro-Second Amendment views.  During his political career, he has supported the rights of individuals to own and carry firearms, often emphasizing the importance of the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution. 

Some key positions of his stance include opposition to gun control measures such as universal background checks.  Former President Trump believes there would be fewer casualties of mass shootings if potential victims had guns. Trump suggested addressing gun violence through improving mental health services rather than implementing more restrictive gun laws.  Finally, Trump promoted the idea of arming teachers and enhancing school security to prevent school shootings, rather than imposing stricter gun control measures. 

In a speech to the NRA, Trump vowed to protect gun owners’ rights saying, “we need it for safety because the bad guys aren’t giving up their guns.“  Also claiming Biden “is coming for your guns.” 

The Democratic nominee for President of the United States is Vice President Kamala Harris.  Harris was nominated after President Biden dropped out of the 2024 race against former President Donald Trump.  Harris is an extension of Biden when it comes to gun rights. 

Prior to serving as President Biden’s Vice President, Kamala Harris was a Senator from California from 2017-2021.  In 2017, Harris was rated the third most liberal senator after Senators Elizabeth Warren and New York’s Kirsten Gillibrand.  In 2018 Harris was rated the second most liberal senator behind Senator Warren, from Massachusetts. In 2019, Senator Harris was labeled the most liberal senator in the United State Senate.  You may notice a pattern!

What is Kamala’s policy toward guns?   Harris advocates for a ban on assault weapons and high-capacity magazines.  She believes that limiting the size of magazines can help reduce the lethality of guns and decrease the potential for mass shootings.  Harris supports requiring universal background checks for all gun sales including private transactions and those at gun shows.  Harris also believes implementing red flag laws, which allow for the temporary removal, without due process, of firearms from individuals deemed a threat to themselves and others, is a good idea.

The two political parties could not be farther apart from their positions on guns, making the choice easy for those that are pro or anti 2nd Amendment. 

If you value the Second Amendment, the choice is clearly Donald Trump. 

If you favor losing your Second Amendment protected rights, the choice is Kamala Harris!

To all gun owners, please get out and VOTE during the presidential election.  Support the Second Amendment and YOUR right to keep and bear arms.

Getting Gun Owners to vote:  Five simple things  by Stephen M. Dallas

How often, after yet-another gun control law passes or an anti-gun politician gets elected, do we hear “There’s more than enough gun owners in our state to defeat the gun-grabbers at the polls if they would just vote”?  More often than we’d like.

This problem isn’t limited to gun owners. In a typical presidential election year, no more than 60 percent of the voting-eligible population chooses to participate. Only about 40 percent vote during the midterms. And turnout in local elections tends to be even lower than in federal and statewide elections.

“Get Out the Vote,” or GOTV efforts can increase gun owner turnout during elections.  A nonprofit educational organization, such as SCOPE, may engage in GOTV efforts so long as it is nonpartisan in nature. According to the IRS, if a voter registration drive or a GOTV effort is done in an educational manner without favoring or opposing a candidate or having the effect of favoring or opposing a candidate, a nonprofit can conduct GOTV activities.

Here are five simple things that SCOPE members can do to encourage more gun owners to vote.

1.          Register Voters.    Get gun owners on the voter lists.

A study from Vote4America has revealed that there are 10 million gun owners and hunters in the United States who are not registered to vote.

Gun owners can’t vote if they aren’t registered.   Non-partisan groups can go out and register new voters.  

Finding new pro-2A voters depends on where you look. For example, in Bucks County, PA, for the first time since 2007, there are now more registered Republicans than Democrats.  This is the result of conservative activist Scott Presler.   Presler and his Early Vote Action went to gun shows in the state.  They registered brand new voters, new citizens, young voters and others.   What worked with Pennsylvania gun owners can work in New York!

Other places where 2A-voters might be located are sportsmen’s clubs, gun stores, American Legion posts and VFWs.   Bring voter registration forms, ask if you can leave them for the patrons.  Be respectful but don’t assume these organizations won’t encourage GOTV.  For example, the American Legion's "Get Out the Vote" program encourages all Americans to register and vote in all elections. “Legionnaires, posts, districts and departments are encouraged to fully involve themselves in the electoral process by serving as poll volunteers, poll workers and by encouraging and assisting others to register and vote” (https://www.legion.org/vote/about).   Don’t forget churches either.   The First Liberty Institute provides tips on how to successfully host a successful church-voter registration drive (https://downloads.frc.org/EF/EF10H53.pdf).  Many of their steps could be easily adapted for other locations where gun owners may be found.

Act quickly!  New York’s voter registration deadlines this year are between October 21 and October 26.  For more information, check with your local Board of Elections or the NYS Board of Elections website (https://elections.ny.gov/registration-and-voting-deadlines).

2.          Bank the vote.  Encourage (legal) mail-in voting, absentee voting and early voting.    

Mail-in and absentee ballots. A New York law allowing all registered voters to cast their ballots by mail was upheld in August by the state’s highest court.  The decision means that the millions of New Yorkers (including gun owners) eligible to vote in the November 5 election will be able to cast ballots by mail if they wish — something that only a handful of people could do before.

This means any registered New York voter may apply for a mail-in ballot. They can apply online (https://elections.ny.gov/request-ballot), in person at their local election office, or by designating another person to deliver their application to the local election office for them.

Mail-in ballot applications are due 10 days before the election. Mail-in ballots must be postmarked by Election Day or submitted in person by 9pm on Election Day to the County Board of Elections Office or polling site.

Certain New Yorkers are eligible to apply for an absentee ballot. The form to apply is different than, but the places to apply are the same as for mail-in ballots, and the ballot can be returned using the same methods as early mail voters.

Early voting.  Gun owners can also be encouraged to vote in-person via early voting.   Early voting is just like voting on Election Day. Early voters privately mark and scan their ballot at a polling place. Early voting results are counted, tabulated and included in election night totals.  There is no requirement to apply for early voting.  The process is completely walk-in.

Early voting for the general election is Saturday, October 26 through Sunday, November 3. Voters may visit any of their assigned Early Voting Centers in their county, except in New York City, where voters are assigned to one early voting site.  To find each county’s early voting locations, click here: https://voterlookup.elections.ny.gov.  Early voting may be an especially attractive process in upstate New York, where even early November weather can be unpredictable, and voters may have difficulty making it to the polls on Election Day.   Early voting can also be a guard against other unexpected events that might arise on Election Day, from family obligations to workplace emergencies.

3.          Get voters to the polls.   Make that final push. 

Whether it’s absentee, mail-in, early voting or Election Day voting, there are various ways that non-profits can help get gun owners to polls, often through local sportsmen’s clubs, veterans or churches or similar 2A-friendly groups:

• Networking.  Use existing phone lists, email, mail, and newsletter distribution lists to share a final reminder about Election Day with gun-friendly groups’ members and make a push for them to get out and vote.  The message can be as simple as:

• “Remember, November 5 is Election Day! Do not forget to vote!”

• Become a  poll worker.  Poll workers sign in and process voters, demonstrate voting procedures to voters and assist voters if requested. In order to be eligible to serve as a poll worker, you must be a New York State registered voter.  Poll workers get paid for training and each day they work.  Sign up with your local board of election here: https://elections.ny.gov/form/become-a-poll-worker.

• Provide Rides to the Polls. Helping gun owners get to the polls is a great way to ensure that they vote.  We can do this on our own or in conjunction with others. Here are some things to do to create a successful strategy:

• Before Election Day, tell people that you will be offering rides to the polls on Election Day, and let them know that sign-ups are required. (Note that there will probably still be last minute requests and changes, especially if the weather conditions are poor.)

• Determine whether you will lead the effort or work with others.

• Establish how many cars, vans, and people will be involved/available.

• Train volunteers to ensure they remain nonpartisan during their interaction with the voters they transport (such as not asking them whom they are going to vote for).

• Divide Election Day into two-hour blocks of time (or more, depending on capacity).

• Have someone act as “dispatcher” to organize drivers and the requests for transportation that come in from voters.

“Today is Election Day! If you have questions about your polling place or the hours for voting, call 1-866-Our-Vote (1-866-687-8683) or visit www.vote411.org for information.”

“Your vote counts. Your vote matters. Support your rights as a gun owner and vote today!”

4.          Fight voter fraud with increased turn out.  There’s strength in numbers.

It is important to guard against voter fraud.   But we can’t let concerns about it depress pro-2A voter turnout. As explained by Charles ‘Kip’ Kiplinger, the vice president of the North Central Alabama Republican Assembly:

Continually emphasizing a rigged system and the potential for manipulated votes risks conveying the message that individual votes don't matter. This narrative plays into the hands of the opposition, who capitalize on disillusionment to drive down voter turnout for the other side.  

We need to assure voters that even if there were irregularities, the best way to counteract them is to participate in the democratic process.

It's crucial to emphasize that, with enough votes, any algorithmic interference becomes inconsequential. There is, and always will be, strength in numbers.

In other words, the best way to fight potential voter fraud is to get so many people on “our side” to vote that it becomes impossible for “the other side” to cheat in any meaningful way!

5.          Don’t delay. Start today!

GOTV is an opportunity to mobilize gun owners in support of the Second Amendment.  We have the power to make a real impact, so don’t hesitate to start planning and implementing a strategy today!

While illegal migration at the U.S.-Mexico border continues to dominate election year politics, the country's northern border with Canada is also confronting a record-breaking surge in unlawful crossings.

More than 12,200 people were apprehended crossing illegally into the U.S. from Canada in 2023, a big jump from the 3,578 arrested the previous year, The New York Times reported. Through the first four months of fiscal year 2024, the Border Patrol apprehended 4,772 people between ports of entry That’s up from 2,229 apprehensions in the first four months of fiscal year 2023.

Of course, the southern border dwarfs these numbers, where its estimated 10 million illegals (apprehensions and got aways) have crossed since Biden and Harris took office.

Anything being done to discourage this invasion?  Just the opposite in California!

The Democrat-controlled California Legislature has passed a bill which would grant undocumented immigrants access to the state’s taxpayer-funded home loan program, which provides up to $150,000 in down payment assistance for eligible first-time home buyers. 

California Republicans are urging Governor Newsom to veto the measure, arguing that the bill will incentivize illegal immigration. (Ya think!)  Newsom has until September 30th to make a decision on whether he will sign the bill into law. 

Some quotes which summarize the situation:

“I didn’t know it was possible to make the border crisis and the housing crisis worse with just one vote, but Democrats found a way…Giving taxpayer-funded housing subsidies to illegal immigrants will drive costs even higher and encourage more chaos at the border.”

Migrants crossing the border illegally “look to California’s current policies like a giant welcome sign…Welcome to California, where illegal immigrants get free healthcare, free food, and now a free home with 0% down. “This is not rocket science. If you’re giving out free stuff, more people are going to come.”

Back in February, Representative Claudia Tenney recognized the situation and pointed to data from U.S. Customs and Border Protection that showed a majority of people on the terrorist watchlist who crossed into the U.S. illegally last year did so along the northern border.  “We know there are going to be terror cells and people who are going to do harm to the American people are coming across that border," she said in an interview with Fox.

After inviting this illegal invasion and seeing the results rejected by the majority of Americans, Kamala Harris and the Democrats are now saying they will deal with illegal immigration.  Which reminds me of a story Ronald Reagan told.

A woman was getting married for the fourth time and went shopping for a wedding dress.

She picked out a white dress and the saleslady pointed out that white is usually reserved for first time brides who have not…you know…

The bride to be responded that she still qualified. 

My first husband died of a heart attack in the limo going to the reception.

My second husband and I got into a terrible fight in the limo and we immediately divorced.

My third husband was a Democrat and all he did was sit on the end of the bed and tell me how good it was going to be.

Reagan was a man for all ages and his story is as true today as in the 1980’s. 

If 1% of the 10 million illegals were criminals, that is 100,000 more criminals running loose in the U S A.

If 1/10^th of 1% are criminals, that is 10,000 more criminals running loose in the U.S.A.

10,000 criminals, equally divided, gives us 200 would be murderers / rapists / thieves in NY State.

On September 11^th 2002, nineteen aliens (19) killed 3,000 Americans.

How are we to protect ourselves?

Democrat policies in California, New York and D.C. are to take away the rights of Americans to defend themselves; those protected by the 2^nd Amendment. 

In addition to the danger posed by criminal aliens, the Democrats have also pushed defund the police policies, reformed bail laws and decriminalized certain crimes.  The ability to personally defund oneself and one’s loved ones are even more vital to us, today. 

We used to say, “When the police are minutes away, help is only 1,500 feet per second away.”

That has been amended to say, “When the police might be hours away, help is only 1,500 feet per second away.”

Remember how vital our 2^nd Amendment rights have become when you vote.