Jan Brewer Defends Arizona Firearms Laws Following Undercover Gun Show Video

Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer (R) is standing by her state's firearms laws following an undercover investigation that showed just how easy it was to purchase guns there.

"We believe our laws are fair and just in the state of Arizona,'' Brewer said Monday, according to the Arizona Daily Sun. Her comment followed the dissemination of a video exposé contracted by New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg that showed investigators purchasing firearms unimpeded at a gun show without first submitting to a background check.

HuffPost's Elise Foley reported Monday on the examination:

The investigators also purchased a Glock 9mm -- similar to the gun alleged Tucson shooter Jared Loughner used -- without a background check from a private seller at the gun show, which is legal under a loophole in federal firearms laws. Although federally-licensed gun-dealers are required to make background checks before selling guns, private and supposedly "occasional" dealers are not required to conduct such checks.

Bloomberg on Monday used this evidence as a launching pad to argue for a renewed legislative push by Congress to enact stricter national gun-control laws.

According to the Daily Sun, Brewer admitted later that she had not seen the videos, nor listened to Bloomberg's response to the findings. Instead, she maintained her absolute support for Second Amendment rights and suggested that firearms laws are "something that the Legislature and I decide," not independent monitors sent by the mayor of New York City.

The Daily Sun reports that Brewer also opened the door to further loosening gun-law restrictions, already some of the nation's most lenient:

Last year Brewer signed legislation making Arizona only the third state in the nation to let anyone carry a concealed weapon without a state permit, training and a background check. But Brewer said Monday she remains open to further liberalizing of the state's gun laws.

Comments

[peterz]

08:34 PM on 03/09/2011

zombie overlord

[Shtzulu95]

03:06 PM on 03/07/2011

Go fishing with Sarah and Michelle. Three of you have about the same mentality as a fish.

[outraged in Alabama]

12:39 PM on 03/06/2011

Welcome to the Wild West. How many people need to die in Arizona before they wake up.

[BARRY08]

09:40 AM on 03/01/2011

This woman should resign on the grounds that she is scaring all of us !! there is a reason why celebrities hibernate when they get older !!! truly - apart from been UWU out there , she makes me nervous to look at

[flamenco]

04:15 PM on 02/21/2011

I'll never visit that state. Ever. This Brewer makes Palin look highly intelligent - an impressive accomplishment.

[Lynette]

12:58 AM on 02/17/2011

She looks terrible, how old is this poor woman??? Young people in Arizona need to get involved in politics and give older folks a break.

[EqualIsForAll]

12:10 AM on 02/17/2011

Jan Brewer scares me. She scares me very much. She is the reason that I have decided to never visit Arizona.

[Andy17]

04:29 PM on 02/15/2011

I bet if somebody shoved a gun in her face,
Miss Shoot-em-up here would sing a different tune.

[spiegelp]

03:44 PM on 02/14/2011

Big surprise. How can you shoot illegal aliens without guns? She wants to amend the second amendment to read..."An UNregulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State (AZ in particular) the right to bear arms shall be required by all algo saxon individuals.

[mcmutter]

08:34 PM on 02/09/2011

Jan is the worst joke in the USA ...

[wyb]

11:03 PM on 02/08/2011

The Arizona state gun, not to be out done by Utah and the Browning, is now the Green Gun, named after the color of the infamous Glock and the surname of it's youngest victim.

[imtruthmonger]

05:13 PM on 02/08/2011

What's with the helmet hair...or is it a wig? Wonder if there's bullet-proof Kevlar fabric holding that thing together?

[irulepoker]

09:40 PM on 02/09/2011

Really.
Love to debate u

[BARRY08]

09:42 AM on 03/01/2011

ha-ha - you are all feeling like I do - Scarecrow no 4 ! ouch somebody pls take over

[I Think]

04:43 PM on 02/06/2011

If you need a gun to feel safe in the US, that is a massive problem, having more guns out there will not fix it. More guns is like a bandaid being applied to a fatal wound.

[dkinton49]

01:50 AM on 02/06/2011

Controlling or limiting guns in the hands of honest citizens doe NOT decrease gun violence. This has been proven time and again. You can't own a gun in Chicago but ... I guess the best case to read about is Australia - they outlawed guns and then went so far as to buy hundreds of thousands of guns from citizens. Google this and learn something instead of saying things that are not true about guns and gun owners.

[Rose Lannen]

10:00 PM on 02/10/2011

Requiring background checks for EVERY gun purchase, closing loopholes, and adhering to the intended spirit of the Second Amendment, "a well regulated militia", WOULD ABSOLUTELY decrease gun violence in America. Arizona and all our states reap what has been sown by the narrow minded interpretation of the Second Amendment by Republicans, the millions of dollars spent by the Republican Party, the NRA and other gun lobbies. Innocent people will continue to be gunned down with automatic weapons in schools, at political rallies, in restaurants, etc., until our broken government and our sane, law abiding, peaceful citizens speak out and demand an end to the foolish control of the gun lobbies and the pathetically weak gun laws in our country.

[Aaron Pozdol]

03:20 AM on 02/14/2011

Let's point to Great Britain or some of the Nordic countries, and then we can talk about saying things that aren't true. I own a gun, I am licensed and trained - this does NOT preclude me from rationally understanding that increased control over any commercial exchange of lethal weaponry is a benefit to me, my family, and my community. The less loopholes, the more likely there will be a paper trail on any gun used illegally, increasing the chances that criminals are caught and punished.

[PerryMason]

09:42 PM on 02/05/2011

Has Jan been out in the sun too long?
http://i1214.photobucket.com/albums/cc492/nosamyrrep/brewer.jpg?t=1296959968

[mherrera]

04:04 PM on 02/10/2011

Believe it or not, she has had a face-lift. You should have seen her before Halliburton came in and tightened her face. She made the Cryptkeeper look good.

[Beezlebub]

11:16 PM on 02/14/2011

I don't believe it - that can't be true.