BELLEVUE, WA—Wisconsin Gov. Jim Doyle’s veto Tuesday of a reasonable concealed carry bill was an act of political demagoguery that should be answered with a legislative override, the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms (CCRKBA) said today.

“Gov. Doyle’s veto is an insult to every law-abiding Wisconsin gun owner who believes in the right of self-defense,” said CCRKBA Executive Director Joe Waldron. “At a time when Democrats nationwide are laboring to present themselves and their party as more friendly to firearms civil rights, along comes Jim Doyle to strip away the façade and demonstrate once again that the Democrat philosophy is still one locked in paranoia about guns and mistrust for gun owners.

“The governor,” Waldron continued, “offered lip service about the state’s ‘proud tradition of responsible gun ownership and use,’ yet his veto message included remarks suggesting that he doesn’t believe that. Instead, he worried about guns falling into the wrong hands, and the possibility that violent criminal acts might be committed by people with no criminal history. What he was really saying is that he thinks Wisconsin gun owners are simply all criminals waiting for the right opportunity. He obviously does not trust his neighbors and fellow citizens to act responsibly in their own defense.”

Waldron urged Wisconsin lawmakers to return to the capitol Dec. 1 and override the governor’s veto. In the meantime, he predicted gun owners will be organizing at the grassroots level to tell lawmakers to support their right of self-defense.

“Gov. Doyle should have followed the example of fellow Democrat Gov. Bill Richardson of New Mexico,” Waldron observed. “Unlike Doyle, Gov. Richardson earlier this year demonstrated his trust in the citizens of his state by helping to push through a concealed carry law.

“By killing this legislation, Jim Doyle has, at least for now, sent a message to Wisconsin thugs that they have essentially a low-risk, target-rich environment,” Waldron stated. “At the same time, he’s told law-abiding, responsible Wisconsin residents that he considers their safety less important than his personal anti-self-defense philosophy.”