Category: Politics

Since Joe Is Faltering – Jill Biden Is Now Assigned to Promote the Massive COVID ‘Stimulus’ Bill

We reported earlier today that after falling three times going up the stairs to Airforce One, Joe Biden is taking the weekend off:

Is Joe Biden Losing His Grip? Aging President Takes Another Weekend Off After Friday Triple Fall

Now it’s being reported that his wife, Jill Biden, is hitting the road in his place as the key messenger of the trillion-dollar COVID ‘stimulus’ which gives billions to Democrat pet projects but less than a few thousand dollars to Americans whose jobs and livelihoods were destroyed by political mandates after the China coronavirus hit:

 

There is No Biden Administration.

In the final months of the Trump administration, House Democrats universally voted to demand the unconstitutional use of the 25th Amendment to remove President Trump from office.

The 25th Amendment was meant to remove presidents who were unable to discharge their duties. President Trump was clearly able to do so, but Biden may be exactly the disastrous scenario that the 25th Amendment was created to avoid. And he may be its worst test case.

A basic problem with the Biden administration is that there really isn’t one. Like most journalists I use the term as a formality, but the White House site calls it the Biden-Harris Administration. It’s not unheard of for younger presidents like George W. Bush to lean on more experienced vice presidents, but a politician who spent 46 years in public office letting a newbie like Kamala Harris handle most of the phone calls with foreign leaders is the opposite of that scenario.

The Biden campaign has been open about Kamala Harris being trained to step into Biden’s shoes because it doesn’t expect him to run for reelection or even make it through one term.

Except that presidents aren’t supposed to run for office as figureheads or stalking horses.

Kamala Harris isn’t talking to foreign leaders because she has more experience, but because the guy whose job it is to do it isn’t up to anything challenging beyond some photo ops, stumbling through a teleprompter speech, and then a trip back home over the weekend.

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BLUF:
The battle over America’s future–or, rather, whether it has one–is being fought at all levels of government. But under our federal system, leaders of states with above-average voters like Florida and South Dakota are best positioned to carry the banner of conservatism. Which explains why Ron DeSantis and Kristi Noem are early front-runners for the 2024 presidential nomination.

Battle Lines Being Drawn

The conflict in which we are now engaged is stark. The Left hates America and wants to destroy (or “fundamentally transform”) it. The Democratic Party, having drunk the Critical Race Theory kool-aid, is now openly anti-American. So those are the battle lines: on one side, those who love our country and want to preserve it. On the other, those who hate our country and want to destroy it.

Unfortunately, our public education system is almost 100% in the hands of the haters, organized and mobilized by the teachers’ unions. Our children are steadily being indoctrinated in anti-Americanism. But here and there, a few politicians stick up for our country.

Not surprisingly, Ron DeSantis is one of them. He is resisting the infiltration of Florida’s school system by Critical Race Theory, which is simply a long way of saying “racism.”

Critical Race Theory will be explicitly excluded from Florida’s new statewide civics education, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said while unveiling the program.

The Republican governor addressed the academic study while discussing his proposed $106 million initiative to support a new civics curriculum for students at a press conference Wednesday afternoon.
…
“Florida civics curriculum will incorporate foundational concepts with the best materials, and it will expressly exclude unsanctioned narratives like critical race theory and other unsubstantiated theories.”

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Tennessee Senate advances ‘permitless carry’

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — The Tennessee Senate on Thursday advanced legislation that would allow most adults 21 and older to carry firearms — concealed or openly — without a license that now requires a background check and training.

After sailing through the Senate on a 23-9 vote, the proposal must now pass the House, which is likely in the GOP-dominant chamber. GOP Gov. Bill Lee has backed the bill and is expected to sign it into law.

Republican senators tweaked the original bill to ban those who had been convicted of stalking or driving under the influence from being able to carry a firearm. Those who had been hospitalized or judicially committed in a mental institution would also be banned.

The bill carries an estimated $17.7 million price tag because it increases penalties on gun-related crimes and anticipates more incarcerations as a result. The bill also increases penalties for anyone who is convicted of unlawful possession of a firearm. This would include unlawful possession of a handgun by a convicted felon.

The push in Tennessee came after Republicans in the General Assembly relaxed the state’s handgun law in 2020 by allowing people to obtain a concealed-carry-only handgun permit that didn’t require them to demonstrate the ability to fire a weapon.

Fifteen states already allow concealed carry without a permit, and lawmakers in nine others have proposed allowing or expanding the practice. Most states require people to do things like get weapons training and undergo a background check to get a permit to carry a gun hidden by a jacket or inside a purse.

Iowa House passes bill allowing Iowans to carry, buy guns without permits

The Iowa House has passed a bill allowing Iowans to carry and purchase firearms without a permit, sending the measure to the Senate for consideration.

It’s the first time that a full chamber of the Iowa Legislature has passed such a measure, although gun rights advocates have pushed for years to remove the state’s gun permit requirements.

The House passed the measure, House File 756, on a 60-37 vote Wednesday night after several hours of debate. Every Republican representative, as well as Democratic Rep. Wes Breckenridge, supported the bill, while all other Democrats were opposed. Similar legislation has passed through committee in the Iowa Senate but has not received a floor vote……….

South Carolina: Open Carry Bill Passes Critical Vote

[March 17th], the House voted 82-33 to advance House Bill 3094 after second reading. HB 3094 still faces a third reading before the House can vote to pass it. The progress so far has been made possible by Rep. Bobby Cox showing his strong leadership and unwavering commitment to the Second Amendment by guiding this bill. Substantial amendments were unnecessary, as a standalone constitutional carry bill is also working its way through the legislative process and, in a press conference today, pro-gun lawmakers affirmed their commitment to pass it.

House Bill 3094 allows citizens who hold a concealed weapons permit, to carry a handgun in the manner they choose. Currently, South Carolina is one of just five states that does not explicitly allow open carry, among them Illinois, New York, and California. Self-defense situations are difficult to predict and everyone has different circumstances. It is unreasonable for the law to impose a one-size-fits-all method of carrying a handgun for self-defense.

 

The usual crap-for-brains congresscritter suspects at work.
Some states never have had a ‘permit’ system beyond federal requirements.
Missouri got rid of its permit system years ago, much to the relief of the county sheriffs who administered the system and increasingly had to take more personnel time and budget money away from patrol and service functions.

DEMS PUSH TO REQUIRE PERMITS BEFORE ALLOWING HANDGUN PURCHASES

Preaching at the pulpit of gun violence with the support of all the large anti-gun groups, Democrats in Congress on Tuesday announced a plan to expand permit-to-purchase laws nationwide.

U.S. Sen. Chris Van Hollen and Congressman Jamie Raskin, both of Maryland, along with U.S. Sens. Richard Blumenthal and Chris Murphy and Congresswoman Jahana Hayes, all of Connecticut, this week introduced the Handgun Purchaser Licensing Act. The measure aims to grow the practice of requiring a would-be gun owner to first apply for and be granted a state-controlled permit before they can legally buy a firearm. So-called permit-to-purchase laws are only in effect in nine states – to include both Connecticut and Maryland. Continue reading “”

Call your senators and representatives at 202-224-3121 and let them know that you won’t abide by any vote for gun control, no matter how “reasonable” they think it might be.

Tell Weak Republican Legislators to Just Say NO to Biden’s Gun Control!

As the Biden administration and the new, Democratic-controlled Congress settle into their respective roles, discussions about gun control laws are shifting from theory to reality, and GunVoters need to be aware and prepared, and they need to keep holding the feet of their elected servants to the fire on these issues.

As I have said previously, it’s very likely that President Biden will use Executive Orders to limit and restrict firearms and firearm accessories in various ways, but it’s likely that he’ll wait until he gets his attorney general pick in place first.

That pick is Judge Merrick Garland. Republicans and supposed “pro-gun” Democrats, should strongly oppose his confirmation, if for no other reason than Garland’s disingenuous and evasive answers during Senate hearings regarding his thoughts on possible gun control laws and their enforcement.

On the legislative front, we’ve all heard about the outrageous, blatantly unconstitutional gun control proposals put forward by Rep. Shiela Jackson Lee (D-TX), Bobby Rush (D-IL), Rep. Carolyn McCarthy (D-NY), and others.

These proposals call for bans on certain types of guns, certain sizes of magazines, registration of guns and gun owners, and other draconian measures. Their proposals are the same warmed-over hash of gun control and prior restraint we’ve seen from that side for most of the past century. They generate a lot of noise and tend to capture a lot of attention, but the reality is that they have very little chance of being passed out of the US Senate. Democrats hold a majority based solely on Vice President Kamala Harris’s tie-breaking vote. These bills will require more than a simple majority for passage, though, so while they serve as good reminders of what Democrats would pass if they could get away with it, they don’t pose an immediate threat.

The most significant threats are those few that are seen as less extreme, such as HR 8, banning private firearm transfers, and HR 1446, extending the NICS delay period from 3 to 10 business days. Both of these bills are holding hearings as this column goes to press. HR 8 has 232 cosponsors, which includes the entirety of the Democratic contingent in the House, along with 5 Republicans. HR 1446 currently has 91 cosponsors, all Democrats.

There’s also a dangerous “Red Flag” proposal, which would help fund state efforts to institute Extreme Risk Protection Orders, confiscating firearms from people with nothing more than a pretense at due process.

The current version of this dangerous proposal was introduced by nominal Republican Senator Marco Rubio of Florida. It currently has only 3 cosponsors – 1 Republican, 1 Democrat, and 1 Independent.

These bills are not just direct threats to gun owner rights, they also constitute a serious threat to Republican hopes of ever regaining majorities in the House and Senate.

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Robert Heinlein speculated it really started in the 40s, but now the masks are off.

The revolutionary communist takeover of the US Democratic Party.

I’m obliged to The Last Refuge for an excellent analysis of what we’re seeing right now in the Democratic Party.  It’s very important reading for anyone who wants to understand why the November 2020 elections were stolen by the extreme progressive left, and what that implies for our future.

 

Throughout the first decade of this millennium there was an ideological shift, an inflection point, that became most clear in the rise of a little known state representative who was appointed to become a Senator from Illinois, his name was Barack Obama.  In the background of Obama’s rise were the people who designed the modern political left. Those Obama creationists were/are hardline revolutionary communist types.

This RevCom group was comprised of the more radical elements of the progressive movement; those who wanted to “fundamentally change” the United States, and who have a very patient and methodical plan to do so.  Those elements took control by convincing the far-left labor movement to abandon the traditional Democrat apparatus and support a more radical approach.  The SEIU, AFSCME, AFL-CIO, UAW, UFCW and others were leveraged to this position through promised financial benefit if they went along.

Those groups became the more powerful ammunition needed by the radical community activist teams, which were entirely on the side of Obama.  Hillary Clinton’s first run for the presidency was crushed under the weight of the leverage all of the radicals aligned on the Obama side.  Clinton was only left with the option to support the extremists in exchange for support in 2016.

However, the support she received was not full-throated.  The ideological hatred that was created during the earlier inflection point, when the camps were at war, left scars.  Those scars never healed; and, quite frankly the radicals were not going to support someone they just didn’t like.

Radical footsoldiers operate best on feelings and emotions. Clinton just didn’t do it for them…  One by one the traditional democrat left was wiped out by the more extreme radical leftists.  [Remember the destruction of the Bart Stupak “blue dogs”?]

Fast forward to today, very recently, and what we are seeing is the outcome of the radical-left in complete control over the internal club systems and political party apparatus.  It took some time for this takeover to matriculate.

We are there now…. and into this far-left soup of radical elements the new left-wing media is mixed.  The media are now activists for the radicals.  This is why there is a more brutally obvious bias present today that was not present before.  The bias was always present, but the scale of the ideological nature of the bias was not always as visible.  Today the ideological support is crystal clear.

The issue for the Andrew Cuomo’s of the world is inherently a matter of club selection.  Barack Obama, meaning the people behind the Obama system of radical elements, was the decision-maker in the 2020 Democrat primary race.

Team Obama selected Joe Biden specifically because he was controllable; extremely controllable and almost cognitively disconnected from any functional capabilities.  Team Obama also selected and installed Kamala Harris as the Vice President with the intent to use her as the substantive and moldable ally.

When Biden is removed, willingly or by political power, the radicals are planning to use Kamala to continue their “fundamental change” priorities.  Biden is being thrown upon the spears of those who want to defend against the attack of the radicals.  The extreme policies we are seeing come from the Biden administration are being assigned to him specifically because he is disposable.  The radicals do not care about public opinion of the policies or outcomes because they have Biden in place to absorb all the negative attachments.

Kamala Harris is the key to seeing the hidden hand of the Obama control agents at work.  Harris’s associations are Obama’s associations.  Harris’s crew is Obama’s crew.  Anyone who is not Harris; and who carries a perspective of potential political influence; is now a thorn in the agenda.

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo was rising in influence, as a result he must be eliminated in order to retain the exclusive position of Kamala Harris as heir to the radical agenda.

Watch over the next several weeks, months and years and you will see prominent Democrats left with a decision…. Support Harris (meaning those behind her) and the RevCom agenda, OR be targeted for removal by the new radical system that includes a willing media taking targeting orders from the club.

That is what is going on…

 

There’s more at the link.

I urge you to click over to the Revolutionary Communist Party’s Web site and read their agenda for yourself.  It’s clearly echoed in the public statements of many progressive politicians.  Note, too, their “cult of personality” around their leader.  Does that remind you of the “light-bringer” cult that was built up around President Obama?  It should.

I’ve fought Communism in more than one country, over an extended period of time.  I’d thought that, in my old age, I could relax and hand on the fight to others.  It looks like I was wrong.  Oh, well.  A lot of Communists and their followers have tried to kill me over the years.  I’m still here, as are many other veterans of hot zones in the Cold War.  I guess the ideological descendants of those Communists are going to have another go at us, and people like us.  Well, we may be old farts now, but I think we can still pull a rabbit or two out of the hat if we have to . . .

Peter

Whenever a nation has let the military get involved in internal partisan politics, it’s never ended as a benefit for the people, no matter which side.

Sen. Cruz: Pentagon Attacks on Tucker Carlson Damage U.S. Military for Sake of Leftwing Ideology and Political Expediency

HOUSTON, Texas – In response to several military leaders’ systematic campaign attacking Fox News host Tucker Carlson, U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) today sent a letter to Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin demanding a meeting with the Commandant of the Marine Corps to account for the campaign and a plan to prevent other military units from being similarly mobilized against the speech of American citizens.

In the letter, Sen. Cruz wrote:

“I am deeply troubled that the commitments you made, and the military’s broader obligation to avoid political endorsements and controversy, are being systematically undermined for the sake of leftwing ideology and political expediency. The last week has witnessed the Pentagon mobilize systematic, public attacks against television host Tucker Carlson that in substance, tone, and political resonance are inexplicably inappropriate.”

Sen. Cruz continued, highlighting the risks of a politicized military:

“This spectacle risks politicizing the military after several centuries of efforts to keep military officials out of domestic affairs, undermining civil-military relations by having the military take a side in a contentious cultural dispute, and the perception that military leaders are happily weaponizing the institution against political critics of the sitting administration. This kind of behavior, while perhaps typical in a military-controlled Third World country, is completely unacceptable in the United States of America.“

Sen. Cruz concluded, demanding a meeting and plan to prevent further mobilization against free speech:

“I therefore request that the Commandant of the Marine Corps meet with me, in person, to discuss these issues. I also request an official response from the department and implementation of a policy that insulates other units from being similarly mobilized against the speech of American citizens or in the service of left wing political causes.“

Read the full letter here and below:

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[Virginia Goobernor] Northam Signs Concealed Carry Training Bill, Effective Immediately

U.S.A. -(AmmoLand.com)- March 11th, Governor Ralph Northam signed House Bill 2310. The measure allows individuals who completed online firearms training prior to January 1st, 2021, but were prohibited from appearing in person at their circuit court clerk’s office due to COVID restrictions, to apply for a concealed handgun permit through April 30th, 2021.

This bill went into law immediately upon Gov. Northam’s signature. Individuals who previously contacted their clerk are eligible and should keep their documentation. Again, the provisions of this bill only apply through April 30th, 2021.

 

The Pentagon’s Fight With Tucker Carlson Proves It Doesn’t Even Exist To Win Wars Anymore

Tucker Carlson may have never served in the armed forces, but he’s still decisively winning a PR war against the U.S. military. That shouldn’t surprise anyone, of course. The U.S. military loses most of the wars it fights these days.

During America’s long golden age as a country, the military typically abstained from politics and won wars. But in the decaying Globalist American Empire, the military plays a very different role. Protecting America and winning conflicts isn’t the military’s goal at all. Instead, the armed forces have become a skinsuit. This once-great institution has been repurposed into a vehicle for globalist and left-wing domestic political goals.

The clash between Carlson and the DoD began on Monday. In remarks delivered for the Communist holiday of International Women’s Day, Biden boasted of how he and President Obama had worked to make the military a fully gender-neutral body:

I’m incredibly proud that in 2015, under the Obama-Biden administration, we took the final steps to open up all positions in the military to anyone qualified to serve in them. The women who join today’s military aren’t told “no” when they apply to fly fighter jets or attack helicopters just because of their gender. They aren’t told “no” when they want to apply to Ranger School or infantry officer basic training. [White House]

Biden bragged that it is easier than ever for pregnant women, and women who care about their appearance, to serve in the armed forces.

We’re making good progress designing body armor that fits women properly; tailoring combat uniforms for women; creating maternity flight suits; updating — updating requirements for their hairstyles.

And Biden said, overtly, that his administration would be fighting to change the military to make it more feminine, a place where a woman trying to become a general is as easy to understand as a woman becoming a teacher or a nurse.

And some of it is going to take — and — you know, an intensity of purpose and mission to really change the culture and habits that cause women to leave the military: That women are — making sure more diverse candidates are considering — being considered for career-advancing opportunities at every single level. That women aren’t penalized in their careers for having children. That women aren’t just token members, but integral parts throughout all branches and all divisions.

In response, on Tuesday night, Tucker Carlson said what any American would have said 50 years ago, and what every reasonable person still believes now: That making the military more feminine makes it weaker, not stronger, and that carving out new rules so that pregnant women can serve (while keeping their hairstyles and painted nails to boot) is grotesque.

Nothing Carlson said is insane, or even particularly notable. What’s notable is the shrill, borderline ridiculous response from the once-apolitical Defense establishment.

That’s not a screencap from DNC, or Slate, or the Center for American Progress. That’s a screencap from Defense.gov, an official website of the American military. It should be disturbing to anybody who cares about the military’s overall efficacy. How can anyone feel confidence in a military that writes headlines about it “smiting” TV talking heads who “dissed” it?

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Oh, some care. Just not anyone in SloJoe’s administration.

Nancy Pelosi’s Capitol pawns

Have we really reached the point where National Guard soldiers in their third month of protecting the Capitol are poisoned with rotten food, worms and metal shavings and no one cares?

The contempt shown to these soldiers by their Washington, DC, masters is as sickening as the rancid slop they’ve been served.

Barstool Sports last week was the first to publish stomach-churning photos of raw chicken and beef, moldy bread rolls and rotten fruit, along with firsthand complaints from anonymous soldiers.

At least 50 soldiers were struck ill with “gastrointestinal complaints” after eating the meals and several required hospital treatment.

It’s not as if the troops are in a hardship posting like Afghanistan. Where is the respect?

It was bad enough when they were thrown out of the Capitol into a freezing garage in January.

These soldiers have left jobs and families to protect lawmakers in their nation’s capital, however ­politicized that duty is.

Do any lawmakers care about them? Sure a few members of Congress have huffed and puffed.

But no one will explain why they still are there, guarding a Capitol walled off by razor wire, other than as human props in a narrative concocted by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and the Dems to traduce their political opponents.

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Feinstein’s biannual regurgitation:

To regulate assault weapons, to ensure that the right to keep and bear arms is not unlimited, and for other purposes.

 

When the name of your bill directly contradicts the wording of the constitution you’ve probably made a mistake somewhere.

Let’s use this same description for any other bill dealing with any right, especially an enumerated right.

“To regulate raids, to ensure that the right against unreasonable search and seizure is not unlimited, and for other purposes.”

“To regulate detentions, to ensure the right against cruel and unusual punishment is not unlimited, and for other purposes.”

Plug in any other right and it sounds insane but there are people that view the description of this bill as a positive. That should be hair raising to anyone that knows history and appreciates their rights.

He’s just another (and I quote):
“I firmly believe in the right to keep and bear arms…But”
RINO hypocrite

GOP Congressman Tries To Explain Vote In Favor Of Gun Control

Rep. Adam Kinzinger of Illinois was one of eight Republicans in the U.S. House to vote in favor of H.R. 8 on Thursday, leading to calls from some Second Amendment organizations and activists to primary the GOP congressman when and if he runs for re-election next year. After casting his vote in favor of so-called universal background checks, Kinzinger issued a press release characterizing his vote as a “change for the greater good.”

“I firmly believe in the right to keep and bear arms, legally. I’m also a strong advocate for conceal carry, and have permits myself to do so. But we have a violence problem in this country and it cannot be ignored. Following the shootings in Dayton, Ohio and El Paso, Texas in August 2019, I said publicly that should the H.R. 8 legislation come before the House again, I would vote in its favor. And today, I did just that.

It’s important to address some of the misinformation about this bill. The language stipulates that it will not, in fact, authorize the creation of a national firearms registry. The requirement for transfers of firearms through a licensed dealer does not apply to law enforcement agencies and officers on duty, to family loaning or gifting to members of their family, if loaned for use at a shooting range or hunting, or in the case of an imminent threat (including domestic violence). I say this because I know my vote today will undoubtedly cause some anguish.

Speaking of misinformation, Kinzinger is actually spreading, rather than dispelling, some bad info about the bill. Take his claim that the requirement does not apply to “family loaning or gifting to members of their family,” for example. It’s true that under H.R. 8, a father could give a gun to his daughter without going through a background check. It’s even possible for a nephew to sell a gun to his aunt without having to go to a gun store. If, on the other hand, he were to sell that same gun to his aunt’s daughter, the background check requirement would kick in. Why? Because reasons, that’s why.

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Why More Gun Control Laws Will Not Produce More Positive Results

Our Gun Control Laws Are Already Producing The Maximum Positive Effect Possible, More Laws Aimed At Law Abiding Buyers Will Not Help – And Will Actually Hurt!

The law of diminishing returns applies to almost everything.  Taking twice as much medication will not always produce twice the effect.  Doubling the number of employees will not always result in twice as much production or sales.  In fact, in both examples, there is a point at which adding more medication or employees will not produce any increase at all.  The medication increase may fail because the body can only be stimulated to a certain point at which it reaches the maximum possible effect.  Increasing the number of employees will only increase production as long as there is space and equipment for the additional employees to work.  The law of diminishing returns not only says that returns will reduce as the “solution” is increased – it says that at a certain point, increasing what was a positive action in the beginning will produce no effect at all or even make things worse.

We have reached that point with gun control laws in the United States.  The reason is simple: The most that regulation of the legal market in guns can do is push criminals into the illegal market and we are already at this point.  Consider this study done by the US Department of Justice and released in January 2019:

When a criminal, or an otherwise law abiding citizen, is unable to obtain a gun through legal channels, they face a choice: Decide not to buy a gun, or find a black market dealer or other illegal source.  That’s why regulation of the legal gun market reaches a point where more laws will produce no more effect.

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Bill expanding New Mexico’s ‘red-flag’ gun law fizzles

A controversial bill to expand New Mexico’s so-called red-flag gun law appears to be a victim of more pressing priorities in this year’s 60-day legislative session.

“For all intents and purposes, it’s gone, unless something really radical changes,” one of the sponsors, Rep. Daymon Ely, D-Corrales, said Wednesday. “But there are just too many other priorities this time.”

Ely said he hopes to bring the measure back during the Legislature’s 30-day legislative session next year.

“It’s a calendar management problem,” he said of the bill’s likely demise this year.

House Bill 193 sought to amend New Mexico’s Extreme Risk Firearm Protection Order Act by adding law enforcement officers to the list of people who could seek a court order to temporarily take firearms from a person considered a threat, among other changes.

Under current law, police officers may only seek a court order if it is requested by a family member, a school official, an employer or someone who has had a “continuing personal relationship” with a person considered a threat to themselves or others. The change would allow an officer to seek a court order based on his or her own observations, “absent receipt of credible information from a reporting party.”

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With House Passage, What’s Next For Background Check Bills?

Now that the House, as expected, has approved a pair of gun control bills dealing with background checks on firearm transfers, the measures are headed over to the Senate. On today’s Bearing Arms’ Cam & Co we delve into Wednesday’s floor debate on H.R. 8 and H.R. 1446 as well as taking a look at the prospects for passage of the gun control bills on the Senate side of the Capitol.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, wasting little time and taking advantage of the opportunity to preen in front of the cameras, said shortly after the House vote that he plans on bringing both bills to the floor of the Senate.

“In the past, when they sent it over to us last time, it went into [fomer Senate Majority Leader] Mitch McConnell’s legislative graveyard,” Schumer said during a press conference Thursday. “The legislative graveyard is over. H.R. 8 will be on the floor of the Senate, and we will see where everybody stands. No more hopes and prayers, thoughts and prayers. A vote is what we need, a vote, not thoughts and prayers.”

“Certainly hundreds of thousands — maybe millions — of people walking the streets today because we passed [the 1994 Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act] would be dead,” Schumer, who authored the Brady Act requiring background checks on all U.S. firearm buyers, said during the briefing.

He continued: “But when we passed the law, little did we know, it had some loopholes in it that we didn’t know at the time. We didn’t know there would be an internet, so we didn’t prohibit internet sales without a background check.”

That’s an incredibly dumb comment for a couple of reasons. First, the Internet was actually a thing back in 1994, though we were restricted to dial-up back then.

The issue isn’t online sales of firearms, because every retail gun sale already has to go through a background check, whether online or in-person. What Schumer is really talking about are private transfers of firearms, and those too were a thing back in the 1990s.

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Washington State: Pair of Anti-Gun Bills Fail to Pass Before Legislative Deadline

[On Tuesday], two anti-gun measures were not brought up on the floor before the official deadline to pass. Senate Bill 5078 and House Bill 1283 failed to get passed out of their chamber of origin and are considered dead for the session.

Senate Bill 5078, bans the manufacture, possession, sale, transfer, etc., of magazines that “are capable of holding”, or hold more than, 17 rounds of ammunition (the substituted bill increased the restricted count from 10 to 17). This includes conversion kits or parts from which any such magazine may be assembled. These so called “high capacity” magazines are, in fact, standard equipment for commonly-owned firearms that many Americans legally and effectively use for an entire range of legitimate purposes, such as self-defense or competition. Those who own non-compliant magazines prior to the ban are only allowed to possess them on their own property and in other limited instances, such as at licensed shooting ranges or while hunting. Prohibited magazines have to be transported unloaded and locked separately from firearms, and stored at home locked, making them unavailable for self-defense. Any violation of this measure is a gross misdemeanor punishable by a maximum of 364 days in jail and/or a fine of up to $5,000.

House Bill 1283 could cause the lawful open carry of a firearm to become a felony offense. While the substitute measure removes certain language from the original measure that triggered the felony charge if an individual “felt threatened,” the substance of the bill remains the same.

Schumer pledges Senate vote on gun bill passed by House: ‘No more … thoughts and prayers

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., on Thursday vowed that the Senate would vote on the Bipartisan Background Checks Act of 2021, which passed the House Thursday in a 227-203 vote.

A prior version of the H.R. 8 bill, which would require background checks for all U.S. firearm purchases, passed the House in 2019 but did not receive 60 votes in the Senate to clear the filibuster.

“In the past, when they sent it over to us last time, it went into [former Senate Majority Leader] Mitch McConnell’s legislative graveyard,” Schumer said during a press conference Thursday. “The legislative graveyard is over. H.R. 8 will be on the floor of the Senate, and we will see where everybody stands. No more hopes and prayers, thoughts and prayers. A vote is what we need, a vote, not thoughts and prayers.”

The House also passed H.R. 1446, the Enhanced Background Check Act, by a 219-210 vote Thursday. That bill would extend the amount of time to complete a federal background check before a gun purchase is approved.

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