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What does the Republican Party of Virginia have in common with Gawker? More than you think.
Republican Party of Virginia in Hot Water Over Request for Gun Details
Like the New York City–based news and gossip blog, the Old Dominion branch of the GOP is under fire for requesting a list of concealed-carry-gun-permit holders. But while Gawker requested and published a list to out every permit holder in New York City, the Virginia Republicans have done so to only flesh out their voter database ahead of the coming gubernatorial election.
But pro–gun control New York City is no Virginia, where on July 1, after a concerted political effort led by Republican state Sen. Mark Obershain, the names and addresses of Virginians with a concealed-weapons permit will no longer be publicly available. By trying to mine the permit data just before the window closes, the state party is angering an awful lot of Old Dominion conservatives—even though it has gathered such information for years.
In light of recent disclosures about the NSA’s surveillance program, “this is not the time to be jeopardizing people’s privacy,” said Larry Nordvig, executive director of the Richmond Tea Party. Although he noted that he was not speaking for his organization, he called the state GOP’s action “hypocritical.” There are “a lot of Tea Party people that it definitely rubs the wrong way,” he said. “Obershain’s bill was passed for an important reason, to protect the privacy of gun owners.”
Other Virginia Tea Party leaders echoed Nordvig’s comments. Keith Freeman, chairman of the Hampton Roads Tea Party, said he thought the state party was using “a double standard.” Although the bill to seal the concealed-carry-permit records was bipartisan, it was “championed by Republicans,” he said. Chip Tarbutton, president of the Roanoke Tea Party, was slightly more charitable in his assessment, calling the state GOP’s actions counterproductive and “a little tone deaf.”
Read More: http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2013/06/11/republican-party-of-virginia-in-hot-water-over-request-for-gun-details.html
Like the New York City–based news and gossip blog, the Old Dominion branch of the GOP is under fire for requesting a list of concealed-carry-gun-permit holders. But while Gawker requested and published a list to out every permit holder in New York City, the Virginia Republicans have done so to only flesh out their voter database ahead of the coming gubernatorial election.
But pro–gun control New York City is no Virginia, where on July 1, after a concerted political effort led by Republican state Sen. Mark Obershain, the names and addresses of Virginians with a concealed-weapons permit will no longer be publicly available. By trying to mine the permit data just before the window closes, the state party is angering an awful lot of Old Dominion conservatives—even though it has gathered such information for years.
In light of recent disclosures about the NSA’s surveillance program, “this is not the time to be jeopardizing people’s privacy,” said Larry Nordvig, executive director of the Richmond Tea Party. Although he noted that he was not speaking for his organization, he called the state GOP’s action “hypocritical.” There are “a lot of Tea Party people that it definitely rubs the wrong way,” he said. “Obershain’s bill was passed for an important reason, to protect the privacy of gun owners.”
Other Virginia Tea Party leaders echoed Nordvig’s comments. Keith Freeman, chairman of the Hampton Roads Tea Party, said he thought the state party was using “a double standard.” Although the bill to seal the concealed-carry-permit records was bipartisan, it was “championed by Republicans,” he said. Chip Tarbutton, president of the Roanoke Tea Party, was slightly more charitable in his assessment, calling the state GOP’s actions counterproductive and “a little tone deaf.”
Read More: http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2013/06/11/republican-party-of-virginia-in-hot-water-over-request-for-gun-details.html
Republicans: Equal-Opportunity Tone Deafness.
