The 2^nd Amendment is constantly under attack from individuals and special interest groups. Thanks to the NRA, and the work and actions of millions of sportsmen and sportswomen, and gun owners across America, we as private citizens can still legally and honesty purchase and possess firearms. I believe it was no accident that the framers of the Constitution positioned The Right to Bear Arms immediately behind the right to free speech. Without the 1^st and the 2^nd Amendment, the remaining eight freedoms in the Bill of Rights would be in jeopardy. For these reasons, I have kept a watchful eye on our 2^nd Amendment rights here in Missouri. Brushfires of dissent are usually started at the local and state levels, and it is our duty to put out the flames of gun-control as soon as they begin. New leadership has turned the tide of years of anti-gun political control here in Missouri. It was just four short years ago on September 11, 2003, when then-Governor Bob Holden’s veto of the Right to Carry Concealed Weapons bill was reversed by the Missouri General Assembly.On that date, I lead the Missouri State Senate as that body’s President-Pro-Tem to overturn Governor Holden’s anti-gun actions and secure the right –to-carry for law abiding Missourians. This year, I worked to enact two major changes that protect the average citizen when they are defending themselves from an attacker. The first legal protection, know as the Castle Doctrine, gives peaceful and honest Missourians the right to protect themselves and their families in their own homes without worry of finding themselves in court to defend their actions of self-defense to a judge or jury. Sometimes, in today’s society, the most basic of rights take the most work. Secondly, I fought hard to preserve our hunting rights. With the Hunting Heritage Protection Act, there will be places to hunt for future generations of Missouri sportsmen. As with many conservation measures in the past, the true and lasting value of this Act will be realized many years from now by our grandchildren and their families.