The following was posted as a comment by Excedrine under yesterday’s post, Don’t Worry, No One Wants to Take Your Guns.

I laugh when they trot out that old, tired line. I really do. Right in their faces. Then, I point out all the people who do. Branford, Connecticut Police Officer Joseph Peterson does. “I [would] give my left nut to bang down your door and come for your gun.” Those are his exact words to a long-time “friend” of his . . .

Senator Dianne Feinstein (D – CA) does.

“Banning guns addresses a fundamental right of all Americans to feel safe.” – Associated Press, 18 November, 1993.

“If I could have gotten 51 votes in the Senate of the United States for an outright ban, picking up every one of them; “Mr. and Mrs. America, turn ‘em all in,” I would have done it.” – 60 Minutes on CBS, 5 February, 1995.

“The National Guard fulfills the militia mentioned in the Second amendment. Citizens no longer need to protect the states or themselves.”

Senator Frank Launtenberg (D – NJ) did.

“We have other legislation that all of you are aware that I have been so active on, with my colleagues here, and that is to shut down the gun shows.”

He died last year.

Fmr. Senator Howard Metzenbaum (D – OH) did.

“No, we’re not looking at how to control criminals … we’re talking about banning the AK-47 and semi-automatic guns.” – Constitution Subcommittee, 2 February, 1989

He died in 2008.

Fmr. Representative Charles Pashayan (R – CA) does.

“All of this has to be understood as part of a process leading ultimately to a treaty

that will give an international body power over our domestic laws.” – United Nations Small Arms Conference, 2001

Fmr. Senator John Chafee (R – RI) did.

“I shortly will introduce legislation banning the sale, manufacture or possession of handguns (with exceptions for law enforcement and licensed target clubs)… . It is time to act. We cannot go on like this. Ban them!” – Minneapolis Star Tribune pg. 31A, 15 June, 1992.

He died back in 1999.

Then-Senator Joe “Buckshot” Biden (D – DE) does.

“Banning guns is an idea whose time has come.” – Associated Press, 11 November, 1993

Representative Jan Schakowski (D – IL) does.

“I believe…..this is my final word……I believe that I’m supporting the Constitution of the United States which does not give the right for any individual to own a handgun….” – Recorded 25 June, 2000 by Matt Beauchamp

Fmr. Representative Major Owens (D – NY) did.

“We have to start with a ban on the manufacturing and import of handguns. From there we register the guns which are currently owned, and follow that with additional bans and acquisitions of handguns and rifles with no sporting purpose.”

He died last year.

Representative Bobby Rush (D – IL) does.

“My staff and I right now are working on a comprehensive gun-control bill. We don’t have all the details, but for instance, regulating the sale and purchase of bullets. Ultimately, I would like to see the manufacture and possession of handguns banned except for military and police use. But that’s the endgame. And in the meantime, there are some specific things that we can do with legislation.”

Vermont State Mary Ann Carlson (D) does.

“We must be able to arrest people before they commit crimes. By registering guns and knowing

who has them we can do that. If they have guns they are pretty likely to commit a crime.”

New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo (D) does.

” …confiscation could be an option…”

Sarah Brady, fmr. Chairman of Handgun Control Inc. (now The Brady Campaign) does.

“…I don’t believe gun owners have rights.” – Hearst Newspapers, October 1997

“The House passage of our bill is a victory for this country! Common sense wins out. I’m just so thrilled and excited. The sale of guns must stop. Halfway measures are not enough.” – 1 July, 1988

Fmr. Chancellor of Boston University John Silber did.

“I don’t believe anybody has a right to own any kind of a firearm. I believe in order to obtain a permit to own a firearm, that person should undergo an exhaustive criminal background check. In addition, an applicant should give up his right to privacy and submit his medical records for review to see if the person has ever had a problem with alcohol, drugs or mental illness . . . The Constitution doesn’t count!”

He died in 2012.

Fmr. United States Attorney General Janet “Waco” Reno does.

“The most effective means of fighting crime in the United States is to outlaw the possession of any type of firearm by the civilian populace.” – Written affidavit by Fred Diamond, 1984 B’nai B’rith meeting in Coral Gables, Florida

Deborah Prothrow-Stith, of the Office of Government and Community Programs and the Community Violence Prevention Project at the Harvard School of Public Health, does.

“My own view on gun control is simple: I hate guns and I cannot imagine why anybody would want to own one. If I had my way, guns for sport would be registered, and all other guns would be banned.”

Rosie O’Donnell does.

“I think there should be a law — and I know this is extreme — that no one can have a gun in the U.S. If you have a gun, you go to jail. Only the police should have guns.” – Ottawa Sun, 29 April, 1999

“I don’t care if you want to hunt, I don’t care if you think it’s your right. I say, sorry, you are not allowed to own a gun, and if you do own a gun I think you should go to prison.” – The Rosie O’Donnell Show, 19 April, 1999.

The American Civil Liberties Union does.

“We urge passage of federal legislation … to prohibit … the private ownership and possession of handguns.” – National ACLU Policy #47

I could go on literally for days and days, listing pages upon pages of people saying exactly how and why they’re coming for our guns. Not a single bit of it could ever be supported, defended, or refuted by them, either.