Former NY Assembly speaker and key player in the anti-gun NY SAFE Act gets SEVEN years in federal prison for corruption

In yet another example of a politician making the case that term limits are the best safeguard against corruption and erosion of civil and constitutional rights, former speaker of the New York Assembly, Sheldon Silver, has been sentenced to seven years in prison on federal corruption charges.

And gun rights groups and pro-gun New Yorkers are no doubt saying things like, “Sooner or later, Karma will catch up to you.”

As Guns.com reports, Silver, a Democrat, played a key role in the passage of the NY SAFE Act, which was signed into law by another Democrat, Gov. Andrew Cuomo, in January 2013. Written in response to the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in Newtown, Conn., at the time he signed it, Cuomo described it as the toughest gun control law in the U.S.

The act:

— Dramatically broadened the legal definition of a so-called “assault rifle” to include any semi-automatic rifle, pistol, or shotgun manufactured with one or more “military-style features” like a telescoping stock and flash suppressor, among other characteristics.

— Limited to seven the number of rounds that could be loaded into magazines (how the Democratic lunatics running New York arrived at seven bullets and only seven is anyone’s guess). The law makes it illegal to sell anything more than a seven-round magazine in the state, and while the law allowed 10-round magazines purchased before it went into effect, it became illegal to load more than seven rounds in them. Fortunately, a federal appeals court overturned the seven-rounds-in-a-10-round-magazine provision, giving back to gun owners the right to load a 10-round mag with 10 rounds.

— Required gun dealers and anyone who sold ammunition to conduct a background check on the buyer before a sale could be made. Also, universal background checks on all gun purchases became mandatory.

— Required “mental health professionals” to report to NY government nannies if they “reasonably” believed a patient might hurt themselves or others (what could go wrong here?).

And so on. (Related: Why isn’t the American Medical Association fighting for lower medical costs instead of stumping for more GUN CONTROL?)

Lining his pockets

Sheldon Silver was responsible for shepherding this authoritarian legislation through the Assembly and onto Cuomo’s desk — when he wasn’t ripping off constituents and robbing his state.

According to Guns.com:

For the second time since 2015, Silver, a Manhattan Democrat, was unanimously found guilty after a jury trial in May of making millions off private schemes conducted in part through his public office. The ruling came following a retrial after his first conviction was overturned by an appeals court. In all, Silver is believed to have taken $4 million in bribes as well as pocketing another $1 million through money laundering the proceeds.

What a guy. And no doubt much of this illegal behavior took place while he was being protected by men and women with guns who were exempt from the NY SAFE Act’s provisions.

“When he assumed his powerful position at the top of New York State government, Sheldon Silver took an oath to do the work of the people,” U.S. Attorney Geoffrey S. Berman said in a statement this week. “Instead, he leveraged his tremendous political influence to pad his bank account and line his pockets.”

Silver was first elected to New York’s 63^rdDistrict representing much of Lower Manhattan which includes, coincidentally, Wall Street. He was reelected 11 times and became Assembly Speaker in 1994. He was largely responsible for charting legislation in New York’s lower legislative chamber for 20 years. He introduced the NY SAFE Act and then assisted in rushing the legislation through in record time, Guns.com reported.

He is preparing to enter prison at the age of 74. Again, Karma.

Besides being a living, breathing argument for term limits, Silver represents the Democratic Party well: Anti-gun and corrupt.

Read more Left-wing corruption at Corruption.news.

Sources include:

Justice.gov

Guns.com

NaturalNews.com