Gov. John Kitzhaber says he won't lead the charge on gun control legislation but will support laws he thinks will keep Oregonians safer.

Gov. John Kitzhaber says he won't lead the charge on gun control legislation but will support laws he thinks will keep Oregonians safer.
Randy Rasmussen/The Oregonian SALEM -- Gov. John Kitzhaber says he won't lead the charge on tougher gun control laws in Oregon, but he expects the Legislature to take up the issue and will support what he considers to be reasonable changes.
In an interview with The Oregonian about the upcoming session, Kitzhaber confided that he's a "big supporter of the Second Amendment" and owns a bolt-action .22 hunting rifle that belonged to his grandfather.

"It's a lovely piece," he said, and it doesn't just hang on a wall. "I go out and shoot it. Shoot at cans. A good can can see me coming a half-mile away, and they make themselves scarce."

Nonetheless, he said, he has no objections to laws aimed at restricting the kinds of weapons and ammunition used in the shootings at the Clackamas Town Center mall and the Connecticut elementary school.

"I don't know why anyone would need an assault rifle in this day and age," Kitzhaber said. "I don't know why anyone would resist a ban on guns in schools."

Although issues such as school funding, prison costs and public employee pensions will dominate much of the 2013 legislative agenda, gun control promises to be a volatile side issue when lawmakers return to Salem in February. Advocates on both sides are gearing up for a fight much like the one already under way in Congress.

"This is a national issue," said Paul Phillips, a Portland lobbyist who represents gun owners. States, including Oregon, should "step back, don't grandstand" and see what comes out of the congressional debate.

Further restrictions on guns or ammunition would be more symbolic than useful when it comes to protecting the public, Phillips said. Instead, the Legislature should concentrate on mental health problems that lead to gun violence.

"What you end up doing is limiting the rights of regular law-abiding citizens," he said. "Let's be thoughtful about this."

Sen. Ginny Burdick, D-Portland, has been doing a lot of thinking about guns in the wake of recent shootings. She's spearheading a move to pass bills that would ban or limit assault rifles, limit magazines to no more than 10 rounds, expand background checks to include private person-to-person gun sales, and do away with a provision allowing people with concealed handgun permits to bring guns into schools.

"It would be best to do this nationally, but with this Congress?" Burdick said. "We are responsible for protecting our own communities."

Volume on the gun debate increased a few notches this week when two men walked through a Southeast Portland neighborhood with assault rifles slung over their backs. The men, who had concealed carry permits and were therefore acting within the law, said they did it to "educate" residents about gun rights.

Burdick said their actions demonstrate "the reality of our weak gun laws," but said she wants to focus on her priorities rather than come up with yet another bill addressing the particulars of openly carrying a gun in a public place.

Kevin Starrett, director of the pro-gun organization Oregon Firearms Federation, criticized Burdick, Kitzhaber and other elected officials for wanting to restrict guns elsewhere while they are protected at the state Capitol by armed state police officers.

"The same people who demand that protection are the same people who want to deny it to children," Starrett said. "It's staggering hypocrisy."

Starrett and Phillips both expressed confidence they and their supporters would be able to block the kinds of gun control bills Burdick and other lawmakers are working on.

Kitzhaber, meanwhile, has assigned members of his staff to look into not just increased firearm restrictions but also the mental health issues that go along with mass shootings. He said he does not plan to introduce any gun or mental health legislation himself, but won't stand in the way.

"I believe the Legislature should take action, and everything should be on the table."

-- Harry Esteve