Gun Owners of Vermont Questionnaire

Dear Candidate,
The state-wide primaries are coming up fast and we would like to give you the opportunity to express your positions on numerous topics related to firearms in Vermont.
Each election cycle The Gun Owners of Vermont publish a Candidate Report that includes as much information about each candidate as we can find. Many items are found in the news media and campaign websites. The results of this questionnaire will be made available online.
Our membership and the general public will be able to view all of the candidate responses.
We hope you will take a few moments to fill out this firearm rights questionnaire. You may print a copy of this PDF and return by mail, or select “Fill & Sign” to complete electronically and return by email.

For postal mailing please address to:
The Gun Owners of Vermont, Inc.
P.O. Box 753
Bellows Falls, Vt. 05101
To return via email, attach the completed PDF file to an email and send to: GunOwnersOfVermont@gmail.com
We look forward to your response.
Ed Cutler,
President, Gun Owners of Vermont

2016 Gun Owners of Vermont Questionnaire

Do you support the right of Vermonters to “keep and bear arms in defense of themselves and the State” (Vermont Constitution, Ch. I Art 16)?

(My insertion here) Article 16. [Right to bear arms; standing armies; military power subordinate to civil] That the people have a right to bear arms for the defense of themselves and the State--and as standing armies in time of peace are dangerous to liberty, they ought not to be kept up; and that the military should be kept under strict subordination to and governed by the civil power.
X YES

Additional Comment: Article 16 is a bit antiquated, as is the musket above. That being said, I do believe in the right to own firearms. I’ve petitioned my FB friends to let me know if any of them have ever had to use their guns for protections. Not one of them has ever had the need.___________________________

2. Would you vote for extending the present Federal background check system (or creating a comparable State system) to control all private exchanges and sales of firearms (i.e. Universal Background Checks)?
x YES

Additional Comment: _This is such a debated agenda lately but let me try and clarify my stance. I think background checks are a good thing and don’t infringe on anyone, law abiding or otherwise. Before a criminal is a criminal he probably fits into the law abiding category. However, there were probably red flags, such as the Orlando shooter, that should have prevented him from getting a gun. Another situation to be avoided would be having someone intimidated into buying their cousin Billy, who we all know is a wack job, a gun. There is still a lot of room for discussion on this tough subject, but, hopefully we all recognize the need to keep guns away from the bad guys Somehow!__

3. Would you vote to prohibit sale and possession of semi-automatic firearms?
X NO

Additional Comment: Probably not as stated here. I see no problem with the semis for hunting, but I also see some problems with military styled guns in the hands of people now completely stable. Again, a lot of room for discussion. I know my stepson, after watching karate kid far too many times, tried to become the main character. I’d hate for someone to be influenced into using an AR15 as if they were Rambo._____________________

4. Would you vote to prohibit the sale and possession of semi- automatic rifles that are styled to resemble military “assault rifles”, such as the AR-15?
X YES… Maybe…

Additional Comment: _See my previous answer. ________

5. Would you vote to prohibit ammunition feeding devices (magazines) that hold more than 10 rounds?
X YES

Additional Comment: _Where is the 10 rounds coming from? Shotguns tend to be limited to six shells. If you can’t kill a deer with six shells you probably shouldn’t be hunting. That being said, I’m not sure how to actually keep magazines of high capacity off the market. 50 would be too many for sure. ____________

6. Would you vote to prohibit the sale and use of lead ammunition?
X NO

Additional Comment: _I don’t know what difference lead would make. Armor piercing rounds should not be on the streets though.

7. Would you vote for mandatory state licensing for persons to possess firearms?
X YES

Additional Comment: Sure, why not. We want responsible owners, let’s let them be responsible owners._____

8. Would you vote for mandatory state registration of all firearms?
X YES

Additional Comment: I don’t see the harm of this. When one goes missing we would sure like to know why it ended up in the hands of gangster Magee.

9. Would you vote to prohibit citizens from exercising concealed and/or open carry of firearms without a license?
X YES

Additional Comment: _I have nothing against CWP or Open Carry, but I do think they should prove worthy. Again, I don’t want Wacko Majacko walking down my street with his RPG. __________

10. Would you vote for a mandatory waiting period before the transfer of a firearm can be completed?
X YES

Additional Comment: Orlando, Orlando, Orlando, are three reasons for a waiting period. Then there is crazy Bob who just decided he wanted to off his girlfriend. Give him a gun today and he’ll do it. Make him wait three days and he might just come to his senses. It would be worth the wait if she was my daughter for sure. ______

11. Would you vote for a mandatory “safe storage” law that requires privately owned firearms to be kept locked in a cabinet, separate from ammunition, or partially disassembled?
X NO

Additional Comment: That’s a little too specific. I do think keeping them out of the hands of kids in the home is a great idea.

12. Would you vote to make it illegal to possess firearms in a place that has a liquor license?
X YES

Additional Comment: I’m sorry to offend anyone, but I think Liquor is a bad idea alone. Let’s not add the possibility of throwing fuel on the fire when a drunk hot head decides someone looked at his girlfriend. There is more of a possibility of that happening then having a terrorist walk into a bar and start shooting. I think there would be a lot more gunshot wounds if we allowed guns in bars.

13. Would you vote to allow the state or its municipalities to designate “gun free zones” in which citizens may not lawfully carry a firearm?
X NO

Additional Comment: I certainly wouldn’t want those areas advertised as such. That being said, I do believe there are places where guns need not be carried. Court houses would be one place I can think of.

14. Would you vote to repeal or allow municipalities to create exceptions to the Sportsmens’ Bill of Rights (1988) which prohibits municipalities from regulating hunting and firearm possession and use (other than discharging)?

Additional Comment: I don’t know about this bill so I really can’t comment.

15. Would you vote to allow a person to possess, carry, or use a gun suppressor while taking game with a firearm?

Additional Comment: _I don’t know what a gun suppressor is used for. Are you talking about a silencer? If so then I sure don’t see the need for one. If I’m walking my 10 acres I want to hear where the shots are coming from.

16. Do you support prohibiting convicted non-violent felons from possessing firearms?
X YES

Additional Comment: If you made the mistake of becoming a felon I’m not so sure “violent” isn’t that far out of your reach.

17. Would you vote to allow persons prohibited from possessing firearms to recover their right, if they have demonstrated good behavior and responsibility for a number of years?
X NO

Additional Comment: Once infected is not immunized in my view. The potential is always there, just as it is for an alcoholic or other addict.

18. Would you vote to allow firearm safety training in public schools?
X YES

Additional Comment: This would have to be the most highly regulated training ever given in schools, and, it would have to be in areas that are not prone to gun violence. I have grandkids who have taken the courses and I don’t consider them the least bit safe. Age MUST be factored into this equation.

19. Would you support decisions to have armed faculty or staff in public schools and colleges?
X YES

Additional Comment: _Highly trained.

20. Would you vote to prohibit transfers to and possession of firearms by persons whose names appear on a government-generated list of persons deemed ineligible to possess firearms? If so, using what criteria?X YES

Additional Comment: If they are deemed ineligible to possess firearms they are so deemed ineligible. I think that is pretty simple language. _
In conclusion, I may not be your ideal gun advocate. I’m a gun owner, but I’m also someone who has been in areas of high crime, someone who has had crime encroach my world, someone who has had family members in the police, and someone who has kids and grandkids. I want to find a way to reduce the deaths we have seen. So far I haven’t heard THE SOLUTION presented by anyone. Too much is too much, and Too little is too little. It’s a game of us against them that needs to stop. We need to get together and find a reasonable reducing solution. We all know it won’t go away completely, but we MUST find a way to reduce it._____

Candidate Name: _Ron Horton
Office running for: State Senator
District: __Essex/Orleans Counties