“Don’t they care what this does to the rest of us? Do they ever bother to look down from their ivory towers to see the real people that they are impacting with the anti-gun choices they are making?”

This is what an angry father wanted to know a few months ago when the House Public Safety Committee REFUSED to advance an amendment from Rep. Tom Shaw that would eliminate the current Iowa law that makes you a criminal for teaching your own child how to shoot a handgun for self-defense.

That’s right, under Iowa code 724.22(5), you are  committing a criminal act if you teach your child or grandchild to shoot a defensive handgun unless that child was 14 or above.

Nevermind the fact that you know your children better than the State of Iowa or that you are responsible for providing for their safety and teaching them how to be responsible for theirs – the State of Iowa believes that they know better.

This arrogant, elitist nonsense is exactly why we tried to strip this language out of the code. But the amendment was blocked from even coming up for a vote by Public Safety Committee Chairman Clel Baudler.

At that time, many in the Capitol scoffed and laughed at those of us who said that children under the age of 14 should have the ability to defend themselves once the parents decide that their child is responsible enough to learn to shoot a firearm.

The events in Merced, California are a horrific example of why children need to be taught how to shoot defensive firearms.

However, there is a pair of sisters from Johnston who aren’t laughing.

That’s because when 8 year old Natalie Gibson was out shooting with her father at the Polk City gun range last Saturday, both she and her father were kicked off the range because the range officials, citing Iowa code, said she was too young to shoot the Walther .22 she was being trained on.

When he called us on the phone, Natalie’s father Nathan told us:

It’s really hard to believe. My wife and I have been training our daughters to shoot for years and these days, when we go to the range, my two girls will fire almost 1,000 .22’s through the Walther that I’ve trained them on. We go shooting virtually every other weekend all summer long and have been for 5 years!

Mr. Gibson’s daughter was in tears after being told she couldn’t shoot anymore – and she wanted answers – which is why her father ended up calling Iowa Gun Owners last Saturday morning.

We explained to him what had happened this year and how we worked diligently to get rid of this high handed portion of Iowa code.

We also explained that it was Clel Baudler and ultimately the Speaker of the House Kraig Paulsen who were to blame for killing this legislation.

We also explained how they tried to offer a “cover bill” to change the minimum age from 14 to 12.

“Big deal,” was the reply, “That won’t do anything for my two daughters, will it!”

I’m sure that many of you can relate to the anger that such elitism elicits as we all have children, grandchildren, or other family members that we’d like to teach the basics of firearms safety to and can’t because some bureaucrat in Des Moines says that that would be illegal!

Mr. Gibson explained that in addition to enjoying their 2nd Amendment rights, his daughters also are already showing an aptitude for learning all about the political process in Iowa, saying that his girls recently toured the Iowa Capitol.

“We already spoke to our State Representative this morning,” said Mr. Gibson when we spoke. “My girls want to find a way to speak to the legislature – and they want to make a YouTube video to do it.”

We assured Mr. Gibson that we would help get the word out if his daughters wanted to get a message to Rep. Baudler and his cronies at the Capitol.

So please watch this amazing video below from the Gibson sisters from Johnston as they call out Clel Baudler!

Wow.

Aren’t these exactly the kind of girls that we want Iowa parents to be raising?

Polite, respectful, intelligent – these young ladies obviously have parents who invest enormous amounts of time in their lives.

However,  because of a “decision you (Clel Baudler) made” these parents will be criminals if they teach their girls to shoot a handgun!

That is, as long as Chairman Baudler and Speaker Paulsen refuse to take action on this problem.

We hope, and the Gibson sisters hope, that you’ll help us get the attention of the legislature by doing 3 things right away:

1. Contact Clel Baudler and tell him that he owes an apology to the Gibson sisters and every other Iowa child who is unable to shoot a defensive handgun thanks to his arrogant actions. You can contact him at 641-431-3309 or [email protected].

2. Contact the Speaker of the House, Kraig Paulsen, and let him know that, as he appoints the committee chairmen, he’s responsible for their actions.

Tell him that it’s within his power to run “leadership bills” any time he wants to and that you expect him to do that here. You can contact him at 319-981-3097 or [email protected].

3. Contact your own Representative right away. Insist that he/she work with House leadership to correct this problem before adjournment.

I hope you’ll make your calls and send your emails right away. For the legislators in Des Moines it’s very easy for them to forget that their actions effect real people!

The Gibson sisters found out the hard way how silly Iowa code is and they are taking action! Please take a moment to add your voice to theirs by calling and emailing your legislator TODAY.

For Freedom,

Aaron Dorr
Executive Director

P.S. Just last weekend a pair of sisters in Iowa found out that their father can’t continue teaching them how to shoot the .22 handgun that they’ve shot for years because of an anti-gun state law!

When they learned that the reason they can’t shoot with their father is because Chairman Clel Baudler, who holds himself out as pro-gun, killed the bill in his committee that would change this section of Iowa code, they were devastated.

They then got involved and have sent this message to Rep. Clel Baudler:

They are looking for your help! Please call Clel Baudler, Speaker Kraig Paulsen, and your own legislator using the information above TODAY and demand that the legislature fix this issue before they go home for the year.