Yesterday during the passage of the parking lots bill, Rep. Verne Smith (D-Chicagolandia) decided that instead of offering a principled opposition to the bill that instead he would slur the NRA on the House floor and generally act the fool. Here’s a firsthand account of his actions:
Rep. Vernon Smith (D-14) spoke against the Parking Lot bill (HB 1065). He got up and said, “If you can’t beat ’em, join ’em”. Then he put on a trucker hat backwards, said that was the closest thing he had to an NRA hat, pulled out a toy revolver and shot it a couple of times in the air, and then said he was a member of the NRA, he wanted to return to the “Wild West”, he believed in signing up babies for membership in NRA, and he thought we should all pack Colt .45s in our kids’ school lunches.
He said that when he gave his tithe at church, he thought his reward should be a gun. He said when he goes to the casinos, instead of winnings in money, he wanted his winnings in guns.
You stay classy, Verne Smith.
Update: In comments, Ashley provides a link to an article that covered the story as well as a great picture of Verne Smith staying classy. Click the link for the article, here’s the picture (credit Evansville Courier Press) with bonus Rule 3 violation!
and he can go straight to hell. the measure passed.
Should a sense of humor be, you know, funny?
This thread is useless without pix!
BTW is somebody running against this asshole come November?
I’d imagine with the massive pro-gun movement nation-wide, not to mention your state’s long-held gun culture, this could be a good foundation block for a pretty slick campaign.
he must live in a very special world.
“I’d imagine with the massive pro-gun movement nation-wide, not to mention your state’s long-held gun culture,”
The only gun culture in District 14 involves the Vice Lords and MS-13. You can throw a rock in Verne’s district and set off a car alarm in the South Side of Chicago.
Map: http://www.in.gov/legislative/house_democrats/smith_local_index.html
Sound like another case of NRA Derangement Syndrome.
Ahhh thanks for the Geography lesson. I know I’ve heard you and Caleb talking about THAT part of Indy.
Still you might note we have an NRA endorsed senator in Massachusetts now….. ; ]
Chicago machine politics is a scary bastard.
Here’s a link to a newspaper article about it, with picture of the good representative:
http://www.courierpress.com/news/2010/jan/27/gun-bills-pass-house-despite-antics-argument-for/
Ashley, that link is great, and the picture is priceless. I’m going to make an internet verb out of that guy.
What a dork!
Somebody should have dressed up as a “stereotypical black man” and acted just like this guy. Shove his BS right back at him.
I’m sure he supports Josh Sugarman’s call for disarming blacks in order to reduce “gun violence.” We really need to return to the days when laws disarming blacks was the norm…?
That picture is priceless! Verne definitely wins today’s Tooly McToolerson Award for Maximum Toolishness.
Does Indiana law allow even fake guns in the legislative chambers? Or does “Mr Scenery Chewer” get special dispensation?
Of course! Politicians are even onlier than Only Ones. 🙂
I think that gun is illegal in California. That’s why I live in Arizona. That is one lame sonofabitch.
Maybe the man had a few too many Colt .45s himself…