Category: RKBA

Gaetz: Second Amendment about waging ‘armed rebellion’ if necessary

Rep. Matt Gaetz told an audience in Georgia on Thursday that the purpose of the Second Amendment is to “maintain an armed rebellion against the government if that becomes necessary.”

“We have a Second Amendment in this country, and I think we have an obligation to use it,” Gaetz (R-Fla.) said at a rally with Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) in Dalton, located in Greene’s home district.

“The Second Amendment – this is a little history lesson for all the fake news media. The Second Amendment is not about, it’s not about hunting, it’s not about recreation, it’s not about sports,” the 39-year-old went on. “The Second Amendment is about maintaining, within the citizenry, the ability to maintain an armed rebellion against the government if that becomes necessary. I hope it never does, but it sure is important to recognize the founding principles of this nation, and to make sure that they are fully understood.”

Gaetz and Greene have been holding a series of rallies around the Sun Belt this spring in an effort to broaden their name recognition among former President Donald Trump’s supporters.

The lawmakers have both come under fire in recent weeks, with Gaetz being investigated for potential sex trafficking of a minor and Greene being heavily criticized for recent statements in which she compared House rules about wearing masks to anti-Jewish laws in Nazi Germany.

Earlier in the rally, Gaetz railed against big tech companies, pointing to their censorship of conservative views on their platform.

“The internet’s hall monitors out in Silicon Valley, they think they can suppress us, discourage us — maybe if you’re just a little less patriotic, maybe if you just conform to their way of thinking a little more, you’ll be allowed to participate in the digital world,” he said. “Well, you know what? Silicon Valley can’t cancel this movement or this rally or this congressman.”

A clip of those remarks, which also included Gaetz’s statement that “we have a Second Amendment in this country, and I think we have an obligation to use it,” drew a rebuke from Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.), who tweeted: “This is not speech protected by the first amendment. This is beyond yelling fire in a theater” — an incorrect paraphrase of a now-overturned 1919 Supreme Court ruling that held that opposing the military draft was not protected speech.

After his Second Amendment remarks, Gaetz joked, “That’ll be the part that gets me kicked off YouTube, talking about our rights and our freedoms.”

A spokesperson for Gaetz did not immediately respond to a request for comment, while a spokesperson for Kinzinger did not immediately respond to a Post email asking whether he thought Gaetz should face legal action over the comments.

It’s a demoncrap viewpoint, but knowledge is power.

How the Democrats Tried to Water Down the Permitless Carry Bill

House Bill 1927, which would do away with the need for Texans to have a license to carry a gun in public, is on its way to Governor Greg Abbott’s desk. The governor said during his State of the State address that making Texas Second Amendment sanctuary was one of his top priorities, despite the fact that polls show the majority of Texans want more gun control, not less.

However, the bill came very close to not making it through the Senate, and there were 50 amendments that came and went in the process. As it heads to becoming a law, it’s worth looking at the refining process, particularly the amendments that Democrats pushed to try and mitigate the damage of the law.

One of the most contentious issues with the bill was its general opposition from law enforcement. Cops feel that the bill makes it much harder for an officer to act when it comes to determining if an armed person has ill intent.

“Every police officer in Texas supports the right of our citizens to arm themselves for sport, hunting and protection,” said Mike Mata, the president of the Dallas Police Association, “But as with any Constitutional right there comes great responsibility. For the safety of Texas residents, we want to make sure everyone who carries a firearm is well trained, follow basic gun safety measures and understand the importance of responsible gun usage.”

For a while, it looked like this opposition might sink the bill entirely, but compromises were made. However, it wasn’t without a fight. State Rep. Ana-Marie Ramos (D-Dallas) filed an amendment that would allow peace officers to disarm people entering government buildings provided that the buildings offer secure weapon lockers for storage. The idea is particularly germane following multiple instances of armed right-wing mobs storming state capitols, but the amendment failed.

Another failure came from State Rep. Gina Hinojosa (D-Austin). She wanted to make it a crime to wave guns around in public or otherwise parade them in a threatening manner. Since one could argue that the power of knowing someone is armed is largely the point of public carry, it’s not surprising the measure did not make it in. State Rep. Erin Zwiener (D-Kyle) had an even more reasonable amendment. She wanted it to be illegal for someone to carry while intoxicated, even if the gun was holstered. Republicans said no even though alcohol is involved in one-third of all gun violence and many suicides.

In the Senate, many more good ideas were cut down. State Sen. Borris Miles (D-Houston) wanted there to be free online safety courses for gun owners to take, but the measure didn’t pass. Sate Sen. Sarah Eckhardt (D-Austin) tried to build on a data collection section of the bill to include tracking firearm deaths, including those involving law enforcement. Good data on such incidences is still lacking, often with deliberate purpose from gun lobbyists. It did not pass either.

One of the few successes came from State Rep. Harold Dutton (D-Houston). His amendment prohibited officers from stopping and interrogating people about having a handgun. This will hopefully cut down on the harassment of non-white Texans over worries they’re armed. It’s a very small win, but it’s something. Mostly, any attempt to lessen the Wild West feel of the bill died an ignoble death, even when it came to something as sensical as disarming drunk people in public.

Hello Texans. Ring up your Stunned Tater Cornyn and tell the RINO where he gets off.

A quiet bipartisan effort on gun background checks may have a path to a deal
Democrat Chris Murphy and Republican John Cornyn believe they may have landed on a new way to beef up background checks while attracting bipartisan support.

WASHINGTON — After years of failed attempts to pass a firearms background check bill, two senators think they have a path to agreement — at least on one key component of a deal.

Sens. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., and John Cornyn, R-Texas, have been quietly negotiating a way to bolster background check rules by making a small but consequential tweak to current law, which they say would close an unintended loophole in the system that has led to preventable mass shootings.

House-passed legislation to require background checks on nearly all gun purchases has stalled in the Senate. But Murphy and Cornyn, who have been negotiating behind closed doors with little fanfare, believe they may have a formula that can attract broad support from both parties.

Specifically, they want to clarify who is required to register as a federal firearms licensee, or FFL, and thus conduct FBI checks on a buyer before selling a gun. The senators say an ambiguity in the law has enabled unlicensed sellers to transfer weapons to dangerous people who skirt the background check system.

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Lee’s signature makes Tennessee a Second Amendment sanctuary

(The Center Square) – Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee signed a bill Wednesday that makes the state a Second Amendment sanctuary.

Senate Bill 1335 prevents any “law, treaty, executive order, rule, or regulation of the United States government” that violates the Tennessee Constitution or the Second Amendment of the U.S. Constitution from being enforced in the state.

That violation would have to be determined by either the Tennessee or U.S. Supreme Court. The stipulation was added during debate of the bill in the Tennessee House, and the Senate concurred.

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So, propaganda, right?

USA Today Prepares Fact-Challenged Hit Piece On Gun Industry Ahead Of ATF Director Nomination Hearing.

A USA Today reporter who has worked directly with a Bloomberg-funded anti-gun group is preparing an attack on a major gun industry trade group ahead of hearings for Biden’s ATF nominee.

USA Today is working with an anti-gun group funded by failed Democrat presidential candidate Michael Bloomberg to attack a major gun industry trade group ahead of a Wednesday Senate hearing for President Joe Biden’s nominee to lead the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), The Federalist has learned.

Nick Penzenstadler, a USA Today reporter who has partnered with Bloomberg’s anti-gun publication The Trace, has peppered the National Shooting Sports Foundation with loaded questions and factually inaccurate assumptions about NSSF’s work, according to correspondence reviewed by The Federalist. NSSF is a Connecticut-based gun industry trade group that helps members navigate and comply with federal firearms laws and ATF rules and regulations.

The apparent premise of the still-in-progress USA Today attack is that NSSF, which works directly with ATF to advise federal firearms licensees (FFLs) on how to comply with the agency’s regulations, has never worked to help the ATF obtain the resources it needs to ensure compliance from gun manufacturers or dealers.

To support its narrative, USA Today interviewed Richard Marianos, a former ATF official who allegedly claimed NSSF had never sought additional resources for ATF.

“[Marianos] says, in short: The NSSF is like the [National Rifle Association], [NSSF] never once has said the ATF needs more money, help support, or resources,” Penzenstadler claimed in correspondence reviewed by The Federalist.

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Below the Radar: Illegal Alien NICS Alert Act

The National Instant Background Check System (NICS) has always been a flashpoint of contention among Second Amendment supporters. “No compromise” types viewed the push for NICS in 1993 as a sellout, while those who were of the incrementalist school of thought pointed out – justifiably – that NICS prevented a permanent waiting period.

In this light, we come to S 1261, the Illegal Alien NICS Alert Act, introduced by Senator Tom Cotton, a Second Amendment champion. This bill is a narrower version of the NICS Denial Notification Act, since it is strictly aimed at those in the country illegally. This falls under the “enforce existing laws” argument that some Second Amendment supporters have successfully wielded to halt anti-Second Amendment efforts in the past – see Project Exile.

Under 18 USC 922, illegal aliens are prohibited from possessing any type of firearm.

Regardless of your opinion on whether or not illegal immigration is a threat to the Second Amendment, this is a law that should be enforced, if for no other reason than a conviction for a federal felony charge serves as grounds for deportation. But on a more important factor, this legislation could be an opening for Second Amendment supporters in places where MS-13 runs rampant.

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Dumb, Disarmed and Diseased
Dumb, Disarmed and Diseased

Have you noticed how the elite is bent on creating the perfect serf? From ensuring we are unarmed to pushing pot – yeah, America needs more of a drug that makes people lazier and less interesting – to hyping the pandemic, everything the ruling caste has been doing lately seems focused on turning us into drones. And far too many people are just letting it happen.

And now the US government will be pimping BLM to foreigners. Great. How could that go wrong? Our nonpartisan government is now fully partisan – weren’t norms important just a few months ago?

Building The Perfect Serf

With a hat-tip to Aaron, whose tweet alerted me to the painfully dumb meme of the commie gov of Pennsylvania, the campaign to change Americans from proud, industrious citizens into submissive, dependent subjects is going full-throttle. The governor, recently rebuked by the citizens who voted away his dictatorial flu powers in a welcome bit of push-back, decried the fact people can buy guns from each other without his permission but can’t have dope without a medical ID card – I guess requiring ID for getting high is as onerous as it is for voting. So, in his optimal universe, people can’t get arms to protect themselves unless he thinks it’s okay and grants them a dispensation to do so, but it should be open season at the dope dispensary. And, of course, they have to be masked while doing it, at least until they wrap their lips around the bong.

Being able to defend yourself: Bad.

Being stoned on a couch watching Scooby-Doo: Good.

Being masked all the time: Better.

Guns allow people to break the monopoly on force held by the government, creating a limit to what the government can do. No wonder liberals hate that. This right gives people the impression that the consent of the governed matters. Bunch of wicked “insurrectionists” they are, daring to think they should possess some sort of ultimate veto power over their betters!

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The Truth (And Lies) About Texas’ Constitutional Carry Bill

Texas won’t become the first state in the nation to allow legal gun owners to lawfully carry without a license when Gov. Greg Abbott signs Constitutional Carry legislation into law in the next few days, but you’d be forgiven for thinking that’s the case if you’re only reading the mainstream media or following the Left on social media. Both groups are in full Chicken Little mode at the moment, squawking about the gunpocalypse to come once the bill becomes law, even though 20 states have already adopted permitless carry without issue.

Note the framing by the Associated Press, which is based on a falsehood. The Constitutional Carry bill approved by lawmakers in Austin on Monday doesn’t allow “people” to carry without a license, background check, or training. It allows those who can legally possess a gun to also legally carry one without having to first obtain a concealed handgun license. Those prohibited from owning a firearm, either because of a previous conviction or an adjudication of mental illness, are still going to be breaking the law if they possess a gun, much less carry one, but you’d never know that from much of the reporting out there.

As bad as the media coverage has been, the reactions from the Left have been even worse.

Yeah, you misread Texas lawmakers, Gonzo. In fact, you’d think the Left would be thrilled with this law, given that it will lead to fewer police stops and arrests of people who might be legally eligible to obtain a concealed carry license but haven’t done so. It’s funny how the Left believes that policing is inherently racist, yet they love the idea of putting more gun control laws in place for the supposedly racist police to enforce.

No good guy with a weapon? What about this guy? Or this guy? Or this guy? I could go on, but you get the idea. There are currently more than 20-million Americans who have a concealed carry license, and in 20 states that have already adopted Constitutional Carry, millions more are lawfully carrying without a license. Re-evaluate the Second Amendment all you want. The fact remains that the number of Americans exercising their right to bear arms is growing by leaps and bounds, and there’s virtually no chance that an attempt to repeal the Second Amendment would get the required support in Congress or in the states.

 

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License Required: The Alarming New Mantra from Gun Prohibitionists

ANALYSIS: Gun control proponents have latched onto a new mantra in their effort to reduce the number of guns—and gun owners—on the U.S. landscape, reluctantly recognizing that so-called “universal background checks” are not the solution to violent crime involving firearms, nor have they prevented criminals from getting guns.

The latter fact is underscored in a recent online GUNS magazine report covering incidents in several states where suspects have been charged with “felon in possession” of firearms. The “dirty little secret” is that criminals don’t obey gun control laws, a fact that seems elusive to gun control proponents.

So there’s a new strategy gathering momentum among anti-gunners, and according to Vox, this strategy comes from perennial gun control extremist Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ), who proposed on the 2020 campaign trail to require a license before purchasing a firearm.

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Texas Legislature Passes Constitutional Carry, Bill Now Goes to Gov. Greg Abbott

It wasn’t a smooth process and — no matter what he says publicly — Lt. Governor Dan Patrick had to be brought along kicking and screaming. But after the reconstituted version of HB 1927 passed in the house last night 82-62, the Senate just passed it this evening by a margin of 17-13.

The bill now goes to Governor Greg Abbott who has said for weeks that he’ll sign it into law. We understand the Governor’s office is looking for an appropriate location here in the Live Music Capitol of the World to affix his signature.

So with that, Texas will be come the 21st, and by far the largest state in the nation to enact permitless carry. As in virtually every other state where it’s law, constitutional carry passed over the loud objections of an assortment of chiefs of police, a minority of concealed carry permit trainers, the media, and the usual suspects from the civilian disarmament industrial complex.

Will it result in fender-bender firefights and shopping line shootouts as the bill’s hysterical opponents predictably predicted? It hasn’t in any of the other 20 states with constitutional carry and there’s no reason to think it will in the Lone Star State either.

Progress marches on.

If it were, Europe would be a crime free paradise.

Lack Of Gun Control Is NOT Reason For Rise In Crime

Not enough gun control. That, according to the vaunted “experts” in the Biden basement dwelling White House, is the reason for the rise in crime we are seeing all over the United States.

Yes indeed, you heard it here first from good ole Jen ‘circle back’ Psaki.

Oh REALLY? Let’s review the past fourteen months shall we? What has happened during all that time? Well, yes. The idiotic lockdown, but that’s not what I’m talking about.

How about all those riots? How about all the looting and destruction in cities all over the United States that has caused billions in damage? How about the fact that many of those looting rioting THUGS walked out of jail scot-free thanks to Kamala and her ilk who ponied up millions for bail funds across the country.

What about Democrats and their asinine defund the police movement? Crime has skyrocketed because of that as well. Seattle is a cesspool. San Francisco is a pit of feces, discarded syringes, blatant daylight robberies, and homelessness run rampant. Chicago and St. Louis crime rates are out of control, while the mayors bloviate about how fewer police are needed. New York has de Blasio contributing to the crime rate with his grandiosely stupid ideas.

“When de Blasio and his police commissioner, Dermot Shea, dismantled the city’s hugely successful anti-gun street crime units, when the City Council embraced the defund rhetoric, and when Gov. Cuomo and the Legislature bought into the anti-cop zeitgeist and obnoxiously did away with most bail, the message to law-abiding New Yorkers became clear: You’re on your own, chumps.

What has happened since then? Crime is up, WAY up, and the anti-Semitism hate crimes have risen exponentially. 

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Louisiana Legislature Votes Overwhelmingly for Constitutional Carry in 2021

HB 596 was passed on 5 May, 2021. It is fairly good Constitutional Carry bill with a 21 year old age limit and a requirement to reveal to peace officers your condition of being armed.

Voting was 73 to 26 for final passage.  From the advocate.com:

A bill that would allow citizens 21 and older to carry a concealed handgun without a permit breezed through the Louisiana House on Wednesday.

The measure, House Bill 596, won approval 72-28 after a short but spirited debate.

It next faces action in the state Senate, which approved a similar bill last week by an equally lopsided margin.

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Greg Abbott Urges Texas Legislators to Get Constitutional Carry Bill to His Desk

Gov. Greg Abbott (R) is urging lawmakers to finish the work regarding constitutional carry and get the bill to his desk as the Texas legislative session nears its close.

On May 21, Abbott tweeted, “Constitutional carry is moving in the Texas legislature. The strongest Second Amendment legislation in Texas history. Let’s get it to my desk for signing.”

Abbott’s tweet followed news that the Texas House and Senate had reached an agreement on the legislation. KXAN reported that “negotiators” in both chambers had come to an agreement on Thursday. Now all that remains is for the full House and full Senate to vote to accept the bill that emerged from negotiations. 

The constitutional carry legislation, HB 1927, is sponsored by State Rep. Matt Schaefer (R-Tyler). 

Schaefer commented after House and Senate negotiators came to an agreement, “The House and Senate conferees have reached an agreement on House Bill 1927, a critical benchmark before this bill reaches Gov. (Greg) Abbott’s desk. By working together, the House and Senate will send Gov. Abbott the strongest Second Amendment legislation in Texas history, and protect the right of law-abiding Texans to carry a handgun as they exercise their God-given right to self-defense and the defense of their families.”

The Texas Tribune reports that constitutional carry’s Senate sponsor is State Sen. Charles Schwertner (R-Georgetown).

On April 28, 2021, Breitbart News pointed out Gov. Abbott’s pledge to sign constitutional carry legislation if it reaches his desk. Signing the bill would make Texas the twenty-first constitutional carry state in the union.

 

Gun control lacks common sense
Estimates of the number of incidents annually where guns are used for defensive purposes overwhelmingly outweighs how often they are used for crime.

The Biden administration has proposed a myriad of “commonsense gun safety laws” which have little to do with common sense. While there is little evidence that supports a correlation between gun control legislation and a decrease in violent crime (in many cases, the opposite is true), Biden has falsely characterized gun violence as a “public health epidemic” and is using this caricature as a springboard to enact new policies that will do little to solve violent crime. Solving gun violence is a complex issue, and putting in place more gun control is not the answer.

Many arbitrary and overreaching gun control measures have already been enacted at the federal and state levels and do not historically improve violent crime rates. The number of murders and the overall violent crime rate nationally have declined substantially for decades, and although the rate of gun-owning households has declined, the number of guns owned by private citizens has steadily increased to roughly 120 per 100 people. The United States clearly does not have a “gun problem,” only a crime problem.

A study conducted by Gallup showed that opinion polls on gun control over the years varied dramatically depending on how the questions were worded. Anti-gun activists frequently portrayed in the media are well-aware that crime data shows no correlation between violent crime and gun ownership rates, however it has become all-too-common for them to blame all gun owners and guns in general whenever a mass shooting occurs.

These activists regularly cite mass shooting events as being indicative of a problem of gun violence that can only be solved with stricter gun control, while conveniently ignoring events where guns are used in self-defense. “Defensive gun uses by victims are at least as common as offensive uses by criminals, with estimates of annual [defensive] uses ranging from about 500,000 to more than 3 million,” according to a study conducted by the National Academies’ Institute of Medicine and National Research Council. Although defensive gun use is not uniformly tracked, even the lowest estimates significantly outweigh the number of times when guns are used in homicides and crime in general.

Chicago, which has some of the strictest gun control laws in the country, is already on pace to exceed last year’s homicide numbers with 227 homicides so far in 2021, according to the Chicago Tribune. Shootings are attributed to a substantial amount of violent crime in the Windy City and are unforgivably common, despite already having many of the “common sense” reforms regularly pitched as federal policy proposals. If strict gun control laws prevented crime, or even shootings, Chicago would be one of the safest places in the world. But Chicago is largely regarded as one of the most dangerous cities in the nation and certainly has not even come close to eradicating its problem of violent crime.

The reason for this is simple: criminals, by definition, do not follow the law. It is entirely illogical to conclude that establishing prohibitive laws on gun ownership will prevent violent criminals from obtaining and using guns in violent crime, the same way drug prohibition doesn’t prevent addicts from obtaining and using heroin.

Of course, while we all want to keep guns out of the hands of criminals, any new gun control measures will inevitably have widespread effects on law-abiding gun owners who use guns strictly for self-defensive purposes.

It is critically important to defend the Second Amendment, as the right to self-defense is one of the most basic and fundamental human rights that also serves to protect all of the other rights we hold dearly. We should all reject Biden’s gun control scheme and any other new gun control legislation and leave law-abiding gun owners alone.

The Texas Legislature Reaches an Agreement on Constitutional Carry

AUSTIN (WBAP/KLIF) – The Texas House and Senate conferees reached an agreement on House Bill 1927, better known as constitutional carry.

The measure would do away with the need to have a license to carry a gun in Texas.

“By working together, the House and Senate will send Governor Abbott the strongest Second Amendment legislation in Texas history, and protect the right of law-abiding Texans to carry a handgun as they exercise their God-given right to self defense and the defense of their families,” said the bill’s author, Rep. Matt Schaefer Speaker Dade Phelan has been rock-solid every step of the way as House Bill 1927 has progressed, and I am grateful for his leadership and the bipartisan coalition who supported House Bill 1927.”

Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick congratulated Rep. Matt Schaefer and Sen. Charles Schwertner for reaching a full agreement on permitless carry.

“This legislation restores our Second Amendment rights and upholds every Texan’s right to self-defense,” Patrick told WBAP on Friday. “HB 1927 is a historic bill and a national model. It includes the thinking of national gun rights advocates and many in Texas law enforcement and affirms our commitment to protect the rights of gun owners and the safety of those in law enforcement.”

According to Lt. Gov. Patrick, the bill will become eligible for a final vote early next week.

“Those who said HB 1927 would never pass and who perpetuated stories of a ‘poison pill’ and other conspiracies willfully misled many Second Amendment supporters in Texas,” said Patrick. “They also underestimated how hard members of the House and Senate were working to pass this bill.”

Governor Abbott told WBAP earlier this month that he will sign the bill into law when it makes it to his desk.

Louisiana Legislature Votes Overwhelmingly for Constitutional Carry in 2021

U.S.A. –-(AmmoLand.com)- HB 596 was passed on 5 May 2021. It is a fairly good Constitutional Carry bill with a 21-year-old age limit and a requirement to reveal to peace officers your condition of being armed.

Voting was 73 to 26 for final passage.  From the advocate.com:

A bill that would allow citizens 21 and older to carry a concealed handgun without a permit breezed through the Louisiana House on Wednesday.

The measure, House Bill 596, won approval 72-28 after a short but spirited debate.

It next faces action in the state Senate, which approved a similar bill last week by an equally lopsided margin.

Eight Democrats voted for the bill, with 64 Republicans. 70 votes are needed to override a veto……..

Shortly after the vote on Constitutional Carry, the House voted unanimously for HB 124.  HB 124 removed the ban on carrying knives from people who have a concealed carry permit.  It passed 94 – 0.  It did not make sense for people to have the right to carry pistols, but not knives.

Constitutional Carry is a reasonable approximation of the state of law when the Second Amendment was ratified, in 1791. At that time, no permit was required to carry weapons, openly or concealed.

Governor John Bel Edwards has promised he would veto a Constitutional Carry bill. Then the Senate passed SB118, which is similar to HB596. It passed with a strong majority, 27 for and 11 against.

Both House and Senate votes are enough to override a governor’s veto. An override would require a 2/3 majority, 70 votes in the House, and 26in the Senate.

For a number of reasons, veto overrides are often more difficult to obtain than the original votes suggest. Legislators may wish to go on record as voting for something, knowing the governor will veto it. Then they vote to uphold the veto.  There is also party loyalty involved. Many are unwilling to override a veto of a governor of their party.

It is still a good strategy to attempt a veto override of a governor of the opposite party. It shows the base you are serious; it shows principle on the part of the legislators.

For Democrats, it might show a willingness to go against the party, when their voters are more conservative. While an override may be a long shot, it may be work in this case.

Texas is a strong contender to pass Constitutional Carry in 2021.

Utah, Iowa, Tennessee, and Wyoming have all restored Constitutional carry this year. There are now 20 states with Constitutional Carry.

People in red states want to send a message to President Biden: Do not mess with the Bill of Rights! They also want to be ready for societal unrest.  Gun sales continue to break records. Ammunition is difficult to find, even though it is being produced as fast as possible

BLUF:
Seems that Mike Bloomberg, Kevin Sheekey, Everytown and the Chinese Communist Party all share a common goal, don’t you think? I mean, judge for yourselves.

Everytown’s Chinese Communist Party Connection

On May 17, Breitbart News published an exclusive article detailing Mike Bloomberg and his buddies working hand in hand with the Chinese Communist Government. Over at Mom-At-Arms, we published our own article after researching those involved in Breitbart’s, and as it turns out, someone very important within Everytown‘s ranks is among the individuals pinpointed. You could say Everytown might not exist without him.
It‘s no secret the Chinese government is not a fan of the 2nd Amendment. In fact in 2012 (and to this day), they say that civilian gun ownership in the US is a “human rights violation“ (thank you, David, for the link). So where does Everytown fit in? Per the Breitbart Exclusive, focus on Kevin Sheekey:
  • December 21, 2015: Bloomberg LP global executive vice president Kevin Sheekey met with Jiang as well as Zhang Fuhai and Zhang Hongbin, respectively the director general and deputy director general of the SCIO Internet Affairs Bureau. They run an arm of the Chinese regime that deals with Internet censorship. Sheekey would become Michael Bloomberg’s campaign manager for his 2020 presidential run.
  • June 7, 2017: Kevin Sheekey, who was then vice president of government relations at Bloomberg LP, again met with communist propaganda minister Jiang. According to the Chinese government, “they talked about China-U.S. media exchanges and cooperation, the introduction of Chinese stories to the world, and efforts to promote healthy and stable relations between the two countries.”
Kevin Sheekey, as named in Breitbart’s article along with many more, is friendly with the Chinese Communist Government and has been working closely with those that deal with censorship, as well as promoting pro-Chinese stories here in the US.

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No, Republicans Don’t Need To “Come To The Table” On Background Checks

Do Republicans in Congress really need to sit down and collaborate with their Democratic counterparts on a background check bill? I certainly don’t think so, and the vast majority of GOP congresscritters seem to be opposed to the idea as well, but former Fayetteville, North Carolina city councilman Bobby Hurst has penned an entire column fleshing out his extraordinarily bad idea, arguing that if Republicans don’t give in now, Democrats may pass something even worse.

While there is a lot we can disagree on regarding gun rights, we can make progress by focusing on what we do agree on, which is that we want to keep our families safe from people who should legally not be able to purchase firearms. The best way our elected officials can do this is to close any loopholes in current laws that allow felons to easily gain access to firearms.

This is where Congress comes in. A bipartisan group of Senators is looking at closing loopholes that allow strangers to sell guns to other strangers without a background check. Some might assume this is already law, but as it stands, only licensed dealers are required to conduct background checks.

While there is certainly a lot of room for error in any gun legislation, Sens. Thom Tillis and Richard Burr can fight to ensure that any agreement that is reached in the Senate closes loopholes without infringing on our Second Amendment rights. Thankfully, Sen. Pat Toomey, who is leading the negotiations on the Republican side, knows clearly that there are certain lines that cannot be crossed, such as requiring a background check when a father sells a gun to his son or daughter.

What is also clear is that if Republicans refuse to come to the table, Democrats will undoubtedly take any background check bill too far. With the filibuster under constant threat, and a Democratically controlled House, Senate and White House, it is more important than ever that Republicans stand up for our Second Amendment rights. The best way to do so is to support expanding background checks and by taking an active role in drafting any legislation on this issue.

That’s a really long way to say “I support the Second Amendment, but…”, isn’t it?

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If ‘gun control’ laws really worked, this wouldn’t happen.

Tremonton man pleads no contest in gun trafficking case

A Tremonton man who was restricted from owning firearms due to a previous violent felony conviction in the 1980s has pleaded no contest to 11 misdemeanor charges after he was caught selling guns online in a January 2020 Bureau of Criminal Investigation (BCI) sting operation.

Richard Lewis Andrew Christiansen, 67, who had been convicted in the 1980s of a felony for sending threatening communications through the mail in another state, reached a plea agreement with prosecutors in April of this year that had him plead “no contest” to five counts of Class A misdemeanor attempted transfer of a firearm by a restricted person, five counts of Class A misdemeanor attempted unlawful solicitation for a firearm transfer, and one count of Class B misdemeanor providing false information on a concealed weapons application.

In exchange for the “no contest” pleas, Box Elder County prosecutors dismissed 18 third-degree felony counts of possession of a dangerous weapon by a restricted person, and six third-degree felony counts of transaction of a firearm or dangerous weapon in violation of law.

Christiansen is scheduled to be sentenced on May 24 by 1st District Judge Spencer Walsh. He faces up to a $1,000 fine and up to 180 days in jail on the Class B misdemeanor charge, and up to a $2,400 fine and 364 days in jail for each Class B misdemeanor charge.

According to court documents, the BCI first became aware of Christiansen when he was denied a gun purchase after he answered that he was a convicted felon on a required form.

“In May 2014, Defendant attempted to purchase a firearm but was denied because he marked that he was a convicted felon on the application form,” reads the statement of probable cause. But in an application for a concealed carry permit from March 12, 2018, Christiansen answered “no” to the question asking about felony convictions.

An oversight at BCI led the agency to issue Christiansen the carry permit, which was discovered nearly two years later.

In January of 2020, agents from the BCI conducted an undercover operation targeting Christiansen and were able to purchase two guns and ammunition from him using an online auction site. Christiansen was taken into custody after meeting with the undercover agent to complete the gun sale. A search warrant executed on Christiansen’s Tremonton home turned up 23 additional guns, which Christiansen “admitted he owned.”

Christensen was able to post a $10,000 bail bond, and made an initial appearance before 1st District Judge Brandon Maynard on June 22 of 2020. A preliminary hearing held on Nov. 2 found there was enough evidence to support the charges, and Christensen was bound over for trial.

At a pre-trial conference on April 14 of this year the plea arrangement was reached, dropping the felony charges.

“Since that felony conviction back in the 80s he’s really had no other criminal involvements and has become a good, productive member of society. Due to him leading an otherwise good life and the oversight by BCI, I decided to offer a plea to misdemeanors,” said Box Elder County prosecutor Blair Wardle, when asked about the plea arrangement.