US: Terror suspects should be allowed to buy guns

The American National Rifle Association is urging the Bush administration to withdraw its support of a US bill that would prohibit suspected terrorists from buying firearms. Backed by the Justice Department, the measure would give the attorney general the discretion to block gun sales, licenses or permits to terror suspects. In a letter this week to Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, NRA executive director Chris Cox said the bill, offered last week by Sen. Frank Lautenberg, "would allow arbitrary denial of Second Amendment rights based on mere 'suspicions' of a terrorist threat." "As many of our friends in law enforcement have rightly pointed out, the word 'suspect' has no legal meaning, particularly when it comes to denying constitutional liberties," Cox wrote.