Listen to the blockbuster gun case

The US Supreme Court will today hear oral arguments in the most highly anticipated case of the year, District of Columbia v. Heller .
It’s a challenge to the handgun ban here in Washington, DC, but it could completely rewrite the interpretation of the constitutional right to bear arms. It’s being called the Roe v. Wade of gun control.

Basically, the court could say that the Second Amendment protects not only a collective right of armed militias, but an individual right to own guns — making it much harder to regulate. The Bush administration has upset some of its political base by filing its own brief in the case asking the court to take a middle road in order to keep in tact laws such as the federal ban on assault rifles. But famed hunter Vice President Cheney raised eyebrows by signing onto aseparate legal brief filed by members of congress that argues for a much stronger interpretation of the right to bear arms.

Extensive coverage of the case here, and an audio link will be available later today here. All the legal briefs are posted here.