if i was invited here to -- drafted to represent the national rifle association, i would have to take conscientious objector status. i am not here to represent the nra and they do not edit my point of view, i often disagree with the national rifle association with gun policy. i was here as a substitute speaker for mr. don case. he is a mentor of mine, who you can find that article in the michigan law review. the fact is, if i can leave you with one impression tonight i hope that it will be that the second amendment, and the entire bill of rights are public policy. freedom and liberty and the ancillary responsibilities have been debated during the drafting and ratification of our amendment. that does not mean that there is not room for regulations of firearms. the problem is, at least from professor donahue's perspective, we must overcome the constitutional barriers for fundamental rights. it may be easier when it comes to regulating guns to meet the government's burden, maybe even a compelling government interest. because we are talking about the instruments that are used to inflict d

the number one lobbying victory that you list is -- the national rifle association and the national association for gun rights being one of the top lobbying winners of 2013. guest: essentially, after the tragedy in newtown connecticut -- newtown, connecticut, president obama really took the village -- bully pulpit and tried to advance gun legislation. there was talk of a ban on high- capacity magazines, on assault weapons ban -- an assault weapons ban, and a big push behind universal background checks for gun sales. there was a lot of pressure from the media. there was a bipartisan deal worked out in the senate. it seemed like it was going to happen. the let -- the nra is known as one of the pack -- most powerful lobbying groups in town, and it really earned its stripes last year. it failed in the senate. it wasn't going to go anywhere in the house if they did move in the senate. that is a prime example of defense that was -- achieved in 2013. host: we are talking to kevin bogardus of "the hill" newspaper, talking about top lobbying victories of 2013. we are taking your calls and comments for a

to --as invited here drafted to represent the national rifle association, i would have to take conscientious objector status. i am not here to represent the nra and they do not edit my point of view, i often disagree with the national rifle association with gun policy. i was here as a substitute speaker for mr. don case. mine, whontor of wrote the article that kicked off the modern debate on gun control. it is called handgun prohibition. you can find that article in the michigan law review. is, if i can leave you with one impression tonight i hope that it will be that the second amendment, and the entire bill of rights are public policy. freedom and liberty and the ancillary responsibilities have been debated during the drafting and ratification of our amendment. that does not mean that there is not room for regulations of firearms. donahue'sssor perspective, we must overcome the constitutional barriers for fundamental rights. it may be easier when it comes to regulating guns to meet the government's burden, maybe even a compelling government interest. because we are talking about the instru

. >> reporter: but the national rifle association also swung into action. >> she celebrated this anniversarykydiving. this was tweeted by her husband, mark kelly, the astronaut. gabrielle giffords proving no matter what you go through in it matters what you do today. >> she said be bold. i don't know if we've seen bold. david shuster, thank you. >>> the baseball hall of fame announced it's newest members of class of 2014 is impressive, but it is the names not included, well, those names are making news. >>> and we're going back to the consumer electronic show for a look at a gadget that takes the guesswork out of sun exposure. we're back in a moment. >> an exclusive "america tonight" investigative series >> we traveled here to japan to find out what's really happening at fukushima daiich >> three years after the nucular disaster, the hidden truth about the ongoing cleanup efforts and how the fallout could effect the safety of americans >> are dangerous amounts of radioactive water, leaking into the pacific eververyday? >> join america tonight's michael okwu for an exclusive four part series,

the national rifle association says they oppose any expansion of gun laws. >>> the f.b.i. will review the case of two believes in southern california acquitted of killing a homeless man. a jury found the police officers not guilty. there were protests outside the courthouse following the verdict. the f.b.i. opened an investigation to see if the victims civil rights were violated. >>> no injuries or damage reported from two small earthquakes that rattled the bay area at 2.9 earthquake that many people felt centered a mile south of downtown vallejo described as "quick and violent." a short time later a second earthquake at 3.2 struck in milpitas. >> a new effort to establish legal medical marijuana distribution in san jose. medical marijuana supporters are collecting signatures for a ballot measure to go on the november ballot establishing a minimum of 50 dispensaries and would prevent if you shops from opening within a thousand' of school. the san jose mercury news reports it is an effort to get voters to legalize the medical marijuana stores before a restrictive proposal i

. >> the national rifle association didn't have a stairmt ready by our broadcast.nd walmart, but gene hoffman, chairman of a 30,000 member state gun advocacy group, believes it won't work. >> this is like all door locks, they keep dishonest honest, turn it back into a regular firearm. >> what could the objection being to coding the gun so the gun owner so go ahead, own your gun but it's your gun, it's specific to you. and it can't fall into the wrong hands. that would be a very good thing. >> pressure on the electronics industry made companies like apple and samsung, not the same pressure on gun makers but perhaps with the help of this $1 million prize it will some day be impossible to fire a gun that doesn't belong to you. jacob ward al jazeera, san francisco. >> just ahead, antitrafficking, cindy mccain participates up with governor chris christie. my conversation with her next. >>> plus cruel and unusual, why some states are looking to new alternatives to executions. forced to flee, many to neighboring coun >> welcome back to al jazeeraam. i'm john siegenthaler

. >> there's also a bug on the bottom that says national rifle association. >> it wasn'tint this studyt shows most restricted states had 10% lower murder rate. this is a quote from the detroit police chief, james craig. he said, basically, he said more citizens were armed, criminals would think twice about attacking them. that's pretty strong and from the detroit police chief. >> from somebody in the know, somebody who is experiences and wants people to help them help themselves. >> one thing none of the studies do is what people really react to is not just necessarily handgun violence. it's the mass murders that happen, like at sanda hook. that is still a mental health issue. it's not necessarily a gun control issue. that is something that i think the administration is giving it a shot, but that's the toughest nut to crack. >> yes. it's also the smallest -- there is a belief that these mass crime -- shooting sprees are on the increase, and they're not. >> let me ask you, just to throw this out here for all you gun supporters. if this child who was killed two weeks ago, his father was

. >> the national rifle association didn't have a statement ready for our broadcast. walmart, a retailer of the guns declined to comment if we asked if it had study for a weap weapon. >> jean haufman believes identification technology will not work >> this is like all door locks, it only keeps honest people honest. they can take the technology out and turn it into a firearm. >> can you code the gun to the owner. own your gun, it's your gun, specific to you and it can't fall into the wrong hands. that would be a good thing. >> pressure on the electronics industry made apple and samsung put in features to disable the phones remotely. there's not the same on gun, but maybe in years time it will one day be impossible to fire a gun that doesn't belong to you. >> super bowl week is more than a build-up. it provides a platform to promote charities. michael eaves is here with a cool story. >> a lot of people that attended a super bowl week, it's about the games and parties. it's more than that, especially as it comes to charity. sports and charity goes hand in hand. athletic

. >> reporter: but the national rifle association also swung into action.rtisan compromise ban limitin, andfor gaby giffords tt continues. she helps candidates who support gun control. >> in the three years since she herself was shot, gabrielle giffords has become something of a spokesperson for people who are recovering from adversity. to that extent she celebrated this anniversary today by going skydiving. gabrielle giffords went skydiving today. >> still amazing. it is still kind of amazing to me. you made note of it at the end of the piece there. some of the legislation proposed seems common sense. high capacity magazine. what is the need of that? >> yes, and it had approval sending a message to everyone saying life does not end. here is a picture of her husband, a former astronaut. this is a picture of gabrielle giffords when she's about to land when her parachute drop today. good for her and her family for moving on. and they continue to cite the polling that people want it. >> david shuster with us. coming up on al jazeera america, a high school in j

the national rifle association is fighting the bill. opponents say it will not prevent criminals from painting real weapons the same sort of color. >>> back to the breaking news we brought you at the beginning of the newscast. there's a fire burning in antioch. a helicopter water drop is happening right now. this is at the southwest dip of sherman island. it started at 4:30 this afternoon. we know that several people have been evacuated. we have watched a number of buildings burn and see evidence of that in the center of your screen. we don't know if anyone is injured. no reports of injuries. we're sending allie rasmus a scene. as soon as she gets a live signal we'll bring you to her live at 5. >>> handing over your name and number for discounts at your favorite stores. we look at what you risk to get those rewards. >>> next, a bay area woman dies at a popular tourist destination. how posing for a picture took a tragic turn. you got this, right? i do got this. from the shelf, and to your home. starting at $99. anncr: at jennie-o we hear

you know, the national rifle association is an incredible organization that infiltrates the system. i believe that what mark and gabby and mayor bloomberg and the bloomberg foundation are doing is, the fight begins now. you have to fight somebody on their own terms. you can't fight a bunch of congressmen who are being lobbied and get a lot of their election bills paid for. it's not easy to be in the congress. a lot of time you're just dialing for dollars with the way the election laws work in this country. these guys are on the phone saying, i've got to run $10 million worth of tv spots and the nra is always helpful to these guys. bloomberg foundation is also there to be helpful and other people are there to be helpful, maybe they vote their conscience, and not just dollars. obama's a hero. it's just when you face an enemy like that, that you can't move. it's like going into quick stand. but i see a light at the end of the tunnel. i saw john boehner going against the tea party, and it looked like he had a twinkle in his eye. it looked like they're realizing they're not in touch with

hollywood producer harvey weinstein plans to take game at the national rifle association tough.vie. i think he could just throw about half of the movie she has made, but he is bringing in meryl streep, howard stern yesterday, we're going to take this issue head on, and they're going tow wish they were alive after i'm done with them. a lot of bravado from hollywood. he is a character in the good guy. be sure to pick up my new book. it is called -- where is my book. there is. this is a lie like right here. you can get it online. it is great. bookstores everywhere, walmart, too. take a minute to check us out on twitter. follow us. links to everything. up next, reports that former secretary of state suggested a much more aggressive stance on iran. the "a-team" is coming right at you. stay with us. ♪ as a business owner, i'm constantly putting out fires. so i deserve a small business credit card with amazing rewards. with the spark cascard from capital one, i get 2% cash back on ery purchase, every day. i break my back around here. finally soone's recognizing me with unlimited reward

but the republicans locked arms and because the national rifle association suddenly became more conservative than it has in the past, the sides become more hardened, more polarized and president obama ran into a fierce bark lash that he wasn't expecting. >> he said $9 minimum wage. >> let's declare that in the greatest nation on earth no one should have to liver in poverty and -- live in poverty and raise the minimum wage to $9 an hour. >> if the minimum wage had gone up it would have been $15 an hour right now. there ain't no way you're going to get that through congress. >> it's a job killer if you force companies to pay more people. this is one of those promises that has to go through congress and so far republicans have said absolutely not. >> i realize tax reform and entitlement reform will not be easy. the politics will be hard for both sides. none of us will get 100% of what we want. but the alternative will cost us jobs. >> what about reforming the tax laws -- >> hadn't happened. >> tax loopholes? >> has not happened. we were grading the president on -- just on whether or not the thi

mega producer harvey weinstein revealed he has plans to take on the national rifle association, the nrah a new film on the gun issue. yesterday weinstein described what he has in mind, and he is talking big-time. >> i don't think we need guns in this country. and i hate it, and i think that the nra is a disaster area. and i'm going to actually make a movie -- i shouldn't say this, but i'll tell it to you, howard. i'm going to make a movie with meryl streep, and we're going to take this issue head-on, and they're going wish they weren't alive after i'm done with them. >> a documentary type thing? >> a big movie. >> a big movie. >> like a "mr. smith goes to washington". >> that will move people to perhaps rethink the gun situation? >> those gun stocks, i don't want to be involved in that stuff. it's going to be like crash and burn. >> really? >> we'll see how this fight between weinstein and the nra turns out. should it be a big battle. >>> up next, the right wing fog machine is doing what it does best, distorting, misrepresenting and attacking. this time they're twisting with the big sen

it was touting some strong endorsements like the national rifle association and conservative activist other groups. but there is just one little problem. many didn't actually endorse him in this race. stockman's website listed as, quote, past and present endorsement. but in this race, it turns out the nra endorsed his opponent and "the washington post" reports conservative activist phillips passed away months before stockman even entered the race. and at least seven of the 12 groups also didn't endorse him. so this is what his endorsement page looks like now. maybe they should add this guy to the site. how is that for ringing endorsement? or maybe he'll surprise us all, scrub himself from his own website. congressman stockman, did you think we wouldn't notice your texas-sized scrubbing? nice try, but put this one on your site. we got you. yes! well, i found this new thing called... [ dennis' voice ] allstate quickfoto claim. [ normal voice ] it's an app. you understand that? just take photos of the damage with your phone and upload them to allstate. really? so you get [dennis' voice]

national association. >> everybody knows about the national rifle association is a limit the national broadcasting associationism or fear some lobby. >> because the head of the sec head under clinton william canard went around the country friday unanimous support to have local commercial broadcasters give free time to candidates to draw people into the elections he was told in so many terms come i interviewed him that if he continued this it would end his political career and sec could lose funding from congress. that was in the 1990's nelson said the revenue has increased dramatically about what is striking is these are not mom and pop stations you think mr. and mrs. mcgillicuddy but they're owned by age or 10 of the largest companies in the country disney, comcast, news corporation and what has happened this is where it gets cenacle and shameless. they get the of broadcast licenses and there is something of the public-interest they just would not do to make as much money as possible that is why they get the license to have the monopoly. and the sec has to find the highest form of public service for the bow wer

been exposed for not having a grass-roots base on like the most powerful lobby like the national rifle association. all they seem to have in its fighting retreat is a whole lot of money and i want to see that they have failed to shut me down on the book tour. they have acted and attempted to stop the events that have already been held on the book tour and the have utterly failed and there's been an attempt to suppress my talks and the discussion that we are having here and it's a discussion on the ground and this has failed so we should welcome this failure as a victory for free speech. [applause] there's an interesting new developments related to the deal in israel and it is where my book takes place i don't get into the geopolitics and i don't deal with washington. my book is an intimate on the ground portrait and a single state under the discriminatory regime. during the culmination of the transition phase that began after the crushing of the second with the rise of what the planners call hebrew for subornation and bears the residence of the term apartheid which simply means separateness this i

policy that the american legislative exchange council came up with at the behest of the national rifle association and pushed through a whole bunch of states including florida stand your ground shoot first policies which is a fine thing he's in a theater guy in front of him is texting on his phone he yells at the guy the guy throws some popcorn at him he pulls out a gun and shoots the guy debt the guy's got a two year old child out of it's a son or daughter his wife is sitting next to him she tries to protecting blitzer and i mean a person is the first time he's threatened somebody in the theater over tech right and he's using the stand your ground shoot first defense is what is the time for which the prosecution has already said is probably not going to hold any weight so that's probably what is the time to evaluate all over the country and all kinds of time to take it was you know it's not time to repeal those mountains with the fact of the matter is this guy here he clearly overstepped his bounds is a movie for crying out loud if if you have a problem like that leave the theater get a refund go

strong, the commercial broadcast lobby -- >> the national association of broadcasters, no one knows about it, but everyone knows about the national rifle association. the national association of broadcasters is treated as the more fearsome lobby. >> unquestionably. the head of the fcc then, bill clinton, had better communication system, and william, found around the country support across the political step trouble for commercial broadcast, you know, air time for candidates, draw people into the election of the community, and back in washington, told in so many terms, interviewed him in the book that if he continued this in the political career and go to the fcc, loses funding from congress. it was not an issue you could talk to in washington, and that was in the 1990, and now, since then, the revenues that have gone to the stations increase the dramatically, and what's striking is that these are not ma and pa -- you say local commercial broadcasters, you think of the station, but, no, these are owned by eight to ten of the largest media companies in the country including disney, comcast, news corporation. excuse me. what happens is th

. >> the national association of broadcasters, which no one knows about. everyone knows about the national rifle association. the national association of broadcasters is treated by politicians in washington as the more fearsome lobby. >> unquestionably. the second head of the fcc commission, william canard, went around the country and found there was of unanimous support to have local broadcasters give free air time to candidates, really draw people into the elections in their community. and he went back to washington, and he was told in so many terms -- i interviewed him on this, it's in the book -- that if he continued, it would ruin his career. it was simply not an issue you could touch in washington. that was in the 1990s. now since then the revenues has increased dramatically, and what's striking about this increase is that these are not ma and pa stations. you say local commercial broadcasters you think mr. and mrs. mcgillicuddy on the station. no, these are owned by about eight to ten of the largest media companies in the country including disney, comcast, news corporation, excuse me. and

from the national rifle association. >> let me bring you back in for just one second before we head outot these nationally sort of focused on cases, jordan davis and marissa alexander, and now, undoubtedly, the mogley case, whether or not that does start to move folks in the state of florida. >> first i should say, florida, to its credit or discredit, the stand your ground really came from the legislature, alec then adopted it and spread it around the country. but so far we just haven't seen that. we've done, my paper has done a big package on stand your the ground. we compiled a database of nearly 200 stand your ground cases and found all kinds of consequences and it still hasn't moved the needle in terms of political or public opinion. >> i have to remind folks that gun culture tends to cross ideological boundaries, cross racial boundaries, cross class boundaries, for folks who don't live in the south and don't live in places where guns are sort of an ordinary part of life, it can seem odd, right, to recognize how much that is part of it. so thank you so much for joining us, adam smit

but unfortunately, we still get a lot out of opposition, if you will, from national rifle association to them. but i agree with you. that makes no sense. we should pass these things. we also need to do more in terms of mental health. it's hard to get treatment. the federal government has cut back on money -- >> it's hard to define what it is that denotes mental health. where that line is drawn. >> many people can't get treatment. and we should do more in that respect, as well. >> representative pallone, please stay with me. as i mentioned to all of you, we have an eyewitness on the phone who was inside that mall shopping in a jewelry store. joan harding joins me right now. joan, i understand from my producers who passed along information from you, you heard a loud noise. tell me what happened once that happened. >> well, i'm in the store, and you heard a loud sound, as if something maybe really heavy fell in the small somewhere. and then a couple seconds later, actually heard what sounded like a gunshot. and turned around and looked and saw people running. so i got down behind the reg

really won a close battle and did exceptionally well -- i think that is why we have the national rifle associationother gun rights groups. it seemed very light -- very much like we would get gun control legislation, and we did n't. they lobbied hard. they pushed lawmakers. they got out in front of cameras and made their case. they basically were able to go against the white house, ,ongress, including republicans and, frankly, a media that was very upset over what happened in newtown and thought action needed to be taken. "were lobbyists involved in the bill that happened over the holiday to prevent the government shutdown?" guest: i think that must be referring to the spending bill. on sure that lobbying spending is one of the most lobbied if not the most lobbied issue in washington. lobbyists were definitely working that bill, trying to make sure that the government programs that their clients favorite are getting funding that they need. on top of that, they are troubling -- probably trying to make sure there are no policy bill thatached to the will hurt or possibly help their clients. if congres

. >>> two national rifle association lawsuits challenging gun laws in san francisco and sunnyvale willhe cases to avoid conflicting rulings, but yesterday, a federal judge rejected the request. the nra is suing san francisco to block a ban on gun magazines that hold more than 10 bullets. the nra filed a similar case against sunnyvale. both cases will be held in february. >>> looks like summer in much of california instead of winter. the state is experiencing one of the driest winters ever recorded. the first sierra nevada snow survey shows snow pack is 20% of average. that means water supplies in 2014 could be lower than the drought year of 1976. >>> people who want to watch the annual migration of gray whales off point reyes can now take a shuttle bus from drakes beach on weekends and holidays through mid-april. shuttle bus tickets are available at the drakes beach visitors center for $5 each, for adults. children under 16 are free. gray whales start their migration this time of year for their migration. >>> rosemary, give us an update on the weather! >> i do see changes on the way, c

joining us with his take is firearm attorney representing the national rifle association in californiauch for joining us at 4:15 out there in los angeles. >> it's a bit early. thanks for having me. given that the legislature is in session as a second amendment lawyer, i don't sleep very well anyway. a pleasure to get up for you. >> i know you're snot sleeping well over this micro stamping. they're asking gun manufacturers to make sure they micro stamp a bullet. what is that and what does that do? >> micro stamping is a laser etching process that etches tiny little numbers, microscopic numbers on to parts of a firearm, most notably the firing pin so that when a semiautomatic pistol is fired, the theory is that those numbers will be transferred onto a cartridge case of ammunition and when the cartridge case is ejected from the semiautomatic pistol, those little microscopic numbers can be recovered by police at a crime scene and traced back to the gun and ultimately in theory traced back to the shooter. the problem is that the process doesn't work. never mind you would have to create all

further, weinstein has also announced plans for a new movie that will be critical of the national rifle association>> it's one of the most exciting times of the year for hollywood. everybody loves this season because it's the oscar race. >> yeah, everybody's talking about this year's nominees. the thing is there's even more buzz, it seems, about who didn't get nominated. cnn's entertainment correspondent nischelle turner has a look at this year's surprises and snubs. >> victor and christi, good morning to you. on "new day" thursday morning, barkhad abdi said he couldn't sleep before the nominations. he was so excited. i believe some of them feel the exact same way. some are happy, others not so much. let's talk best picture. there were nine films nominated, in my opinion, all of them were worth it. but, you know, there were some movies shut out and has people scratching their head this morning. let's begin with "lee daniels' the butler." when this movie came out there was positive buzz about it. we saw it shut out by the golden globes, we didn't know what would happen for oscar time, well, it was s