March 12, 2013
By Joseph De Avila, The Wall Street Journal
HARTFORD, Conn. — Hundreds of firearm owners unhappy with the political momentum toward stricter gun control flocked to the capital Monday to convince elected officials to oppose the proposed restrictions.
Gun-right groups chartered four buses that ran in a loop between a sporting-goods store in West Hartford and Hartford, transporting scores of gun owners holding NRA signs and wearing hats with pro-gun logos.
A little after 10 a.m., the group broke into "God Bless America" as it walked through the lobby of the legislative office building.
The coordinated lobbying effort was organized by gun-rights groups such as the National Rifle Association, the National Shooting Sports Foundation, the Coalition for Connecticut Sportsmen and the Connecticut Citizens Defense League.
Democratic and Republican leaders are putting final touches on a bill that would add restrictions on guns and would also make changes to school safety and the state mental-health system. The effort began after the Dec. 14 shooting in Newtown, Conn., where authorities say a man used a military-style rifle to shoot his mother at the home they shared, then drove to nearby Sandy Hook Elementary School and fatally shot 26 people, including 20 students.
Gun owners such as Howard Lippin, 54 years old, of Danbury, Conn., said many of the plans under consideration—such as eliminating assault-style weapons—would do nothing to prevent future attacks. "Bad guys are going to get their hands on weapons just the same way during prohibition that people got their hands on liquor," he said.
Monday's event was the latest in a series of events held at the capital by gun owners and gun-control groups on the issue. Supporters of stricter gun laws plan their own mass lobbying efforts Wednesday.
Rep. Vincent Candelora, a Republican, said he had been flooded with letters and emails on the topic for weeks, including "some days where we receive up to 2,000 in a given day."
"Any type of personal touch, whether it be a letter, or a personalized email, or appearing at the Capitol, I think has an impact on most legislators," Mr. Candelora said. He said he generally doesn't support on bans on existing weapons.
Democratic Rep. Bob Godfrey has introduced a number of bills calling for stricter firearm laws and is a longtime supporter of gun-control efforts.
"No one is going to really change my mind on any major issue at this point," he said. "Mostly, I just thank them for coming up here. I appreciate that they contacted me. We don't agree on this issue."
Public opinion polls have shown that most Connecticut residents favor tighter gun restrictions. A survey released March 6 of 1,009 registered voters by the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute found that 66% of them favored stronger gun-control laws, while 30% were opposed.