May
24, 2005--After suffering a defeat in April on legislation to
ban so-called "assault weapons" and .50 caliber rifles
(see Illinois Legislature
Shoots Down Gun Control Bills), Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich
and Chicago Mayor Richard Daley were handed yet another defeat.
The Illinois House defeated by a narrow
58 to 57 vote margin an amendment to an existing bill that would
have banned military-style semiautomatic firearms, as well as
.50 caliber rifles.
Governor Blagojevich and Mayor Daley had
lobbied intensely for the amendment, going so far as to call lawmakers
personally. They also distributed videos purported to demonstrate
the firepower of so-called "assault weapons."
The amendment--Amendment 5 to House Bill
HB2414--was offered by Represenatative Edward Acevedo (D-Chicago).
A representative for the National Rifle
Association said that the amendment was so broad that it would
ban firearms commonly used by hunters, target shooters and collectors.
Representative Acevedo denied that the
amendment was too broad. Acevedo also said that promised support
from other lawmakers didn't materialize.
Representative Lovana Jones (D-Chicago)
was among the lawmakers not voting on the amendment.
She said the ban would do little to help
with the problems that plague her district: drugs, poor schools,
and other issues.
"That's a wasted vote as far as I'm
concerned because nothing's going to stop them from making"
assault weapons, Representative Jones told the Associated Press,
"and as long as they make them, people are going to buy them."
Despite two defeats in a bit more than
one month, both Governor Blagojevich and Mayor Daley promised
to continue to press for the bans.
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