Senate President pro tem Eric Johnson (R-Savannah) just put out a statement saying he likes a new Virginia law, which goes into effect this summer, that bans agents of New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg from targeting gun buyers with undercover sting operations.

Here is the Washington Post article on the topic.

Said Johnson: “New York shouldn’t be sending undercover agents into any other state. If our state or any other state is violating federal gun laws, then ATF should be enforcing the law and prosecuting the violators.

“If we think illegal drugs, organized crime or prostitution is being exported to our state from New York, we should notify New York’s law enforcement community or catch them within our state’s jursidiction.

“Anybody want to bet whether Georgia contributes to more crime in New York or whether New York exports more crime to Georgia? I didn’t think so. I like Virginia’s new law and think Georgia should adopt one like it.”

In December, the AJC reported on New York City’s announcement that it was suing 11 gun dealers in five states for illegal sales of firearms. Three of shops were in Georgia — one in Marietta, one in Toccoa, and another in Norcross.

Here are excerpts from the article:

“New York says the shops each sold a gun to a team of undercover investigators who wore hidden cameras during a sting. Teams of two investigators entered the stores and tried to make so-called ‘straw purchases.’

“In such transactions, one investigator asked all the questions about the gun, and then the other, who had not been involved in the process, came forward to fill out forms for the mandatory federal background check.

“Federal law prohibits licensed dealers from selling guns to persons if they reasonably believe the gun is not being sold to the person who purports to be the buyer.

“In May, New York filed a similar lawsuit against 15 other dealers, including two in metro Atlanta.

“New York said some of the illegally purchased guns end up being used in crimes committed in the city. It has been seeking settlements with those dealers, calling for more supervision of their operations. City officials said six of the 15 have agreed to terms so far.

“One that has not is Adventure Outdoors of Smyrna. In July, the store responded by filing a $400 million libel suit against New York. Former Rep. Bob Barr, an attorney representing Adventure Outdoors, said that case has not been resolved.”

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Perdue on Iraq: Solve the problem yourself, or ‘keep your mouth shut’

Friday, May 11, 2007, 08:51 AM

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Gov. Sonny Perdue just finished up his talk-radio session with former U.S. secretary of education Bill Bennett on WGKA (920AM), held at the state Capitol.

On his “Morning in America” show, Bennett mentioned that Perdue has been talked about as vice-presidential fodder in ‘08, and asked if the governor agreed with other Republicans who think it might be time to put some air between themselves and President Bush — specifically on the topic of Iraq.

Perdue said he did not. In fact, in Spiro Agnew-like fashion, the governor encouraged nattering nabobs of negatism to put a lid on the loose talk.

Perdue acknowledged that the going in Iraq has been tough. But, he said, “until you’ve got a better idea, keep your mouth shut.”

“This president did not choose war. He chose to protect the United States of America, and I’m thankful that he did,” Perdue said.

Here’s some rough audio from the interview.

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