Who's taking that swan dive into the political rocks below? Lisa Madigan, that's who.

I wonder if the term "political suicide" means anything to Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan? It should as she seems to be taking a high dive off of the Cliffs of Most Idiotic Decisions by Public Officials. Madigan, for those of you who haven't heard, has endorsed the FOIA request from a Associated Press reporter demanding that the Illinois State Police turnover the list of gun owners in the state and a list of the weapons those owners are allowed to own.

To their credit, the Illinois State Police have said, "No." Madigan appears to think she has the authority to force the issue though I understand the State Police actually answer to the governor.

The Freedom Of Information Act compels government bodies to provide copies of government records to citizens upon appropriate request and at a reasonable cost for duplication. Of course, the way things work in this country, Madigan would probably try to enforce an FOIA on the Illinois National Guard if it was submitted by Al Qaeda.

What some may not realize is that an FOIA request does not absolutely force the government to turn over documents. The government body has a certain amount of time to consider the request. The government body can also say, "No." If the government body does say, "No" the requester has a right to go before a judge to ask that the government body be forced to comply.

At that time, the judge will consider the argument of the government body for withholding the information. In the case of the AP's request for a list of those with permits to own guns, the FOIA request runs roughshod over individual rights to privacy. It also illuminates one of the greatest concerns raised by gun owners over the years who have argued that gun-ownership permits create lists that defy the goal of the 2nd Amendment in establishing a safeguard against a takeover of the government in opposition to the Constitution.

With the release of this information, should such a government takeover occur, the enemies of Constitutional government would know just where to go to collect all the 'legally owned' guns and their owners. Of course, that's merely a hypothetical situation at this point. But, as shown in the FOXNews story linked above, Illinois Representative Ron Stephens has pointed out that turning over such a list not only identifies who owns a gun but who doesn't.

Once published, criminals who don't want to worry about breaking into the home of someone who could shoot back would be able to quickly identify which homes are easy pickings.

I suppose, if Madigan has considered the political implications of this situation at all, she's banking on the support of all the anti-gun Liberals in the state to maintain her future electability. I think this is a pipe dream. Once those who don't own guns realize that 'everyone' knows they don't own guns, even the anti-gun crowd may find their continued support for her problematic. And, for the gun owners in the state, this is a galvanizing moment.

I wonder what Madigan was planning after public office. She might just want to dust off that resume. I think she's going to need it.