Illinois AG, Buried In Lawsuits, Has Bad Day At Gun Ban Court Date.

Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul finds himself in the unpleasant position of defending the indefensible.  It falls upon him to defend Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s new gun and magazine ban in the courts.  At a court hearing yesterday, Raoul got off to a rocky start.  Despite 450 attorneys working for him, Illinois’ top lawyer couldn’t even muster enough juris doctors to defend each of four named defendants in the first court hearing.

I know. You’re probably like me, reaching for a tissue at the news.

Just kidding.

Many if not most of Raoul’s crew of attorneys work in Chicago. Those city slickers try to avoid going south of Interstate 80, which in the minds of more than a few Chicagoans represents the demarcation between their idea of civilization and the cornfields, hicks, and bumpkins that could star in Deliverance 2.

As an Illinois resident from south of the I-80 demarcation line, I can just imagine the reaction of Raoul’s attorneys being asked to travel four hours downstate to defend the Senate President and the Speaker of the Illinois House. “You want me to go where? That’s way down there in hillbilly country! Besides, they probably don’t even have running water there.”

Anyway, it didn’t go well for AG Raoul.  First he tried to delay by asking for a new judge to hear the case. The chief judge assigned a new jurist, but kept the hearing time at 11a.m. on Wednesday.

Frustrated on the first request, Raoul’s office then asked for a week-long delay in the hearing. Bzzt.

In the end, the hearing happened and only the named defendants of the Governor and Attorney General had legal representation. The Attorney General’s office left the Senate President and the House Speaker without any legal counsel.

That’s right, AG Raoul has 450 attorneys and he couldn’t get four of them to show up in Effingham for an emergency hearing. Meanwhile, Attorney Tom Devore moved forward, asking for a temporary restraining order to block enforcement of HB-5471, the Draconian new gun and magazine bans that outlaw the hottest-selling firearms for personal defense in the Land of Lincoln. And a whole lot more.

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SHOT Show: FBI NICS Update

SHOT Show: FBI NICS Update

At SHOT Show University, the FBI provided an update on the Nation Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS). What they shared was staggering and sure to make the anti-gunners throw up their hands in frustration.

For those unfamiliar with NICS, it is a system used by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to conduct background checks on individuals who want to purchase firearms from a licensed firearms dealer in the United States.

The NICS system was created in response to the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act of 1993, which required background checks for all firearms sales made through licensed dealers. The NICS check is done by a firearms dealer when a customer wants to purchase a firearm. The dealer will contact the FBI or a state point of contact through a toll-free telephone number or an online system and provide the customer’s information. The FBI or the state point of contact will then check the provided information against records in the NICS database and inform the dealer whether the sale can proceed or not. If the check is delayed for more than three business days, the dealer can proceed with the sale but is required to keep records of the transaction.

While many of these numbers were released previously, it’s helpful to look at the growth in background checks and firearms purchases over the past 20 years. For example, in 2020 and 2021, the FBI conducted almost 39 million NICS background checks each year. The most checks were conducted in 2020, with over 39.7 million, a record high, which the FBI attributed to pandemic buying, but we all remember the social unrest during the Summer of Love – a more likely explanation for the record number of firearms purchases.

As you can see from the chart shared by the FBI, the number of checks has been increasing since the implementation of the background check system in 1998 (chart shows 2003-2022) and has seen a marked increase in recent years. Although 2022 numbers are down from 2020 and 2021, it’s following the trend line and is up from 2019.

Can you guess which months of the year are the most popular for NICS checks – at least over the past couple of years? Well, if you guessed March and November, you’re right. The FBI shared the top 10 days for NICS checks between 1998 and 2022. The volume of NICS checks in March 2021 is staggering. Six of the top 10 days over the past 24 years occurred in March 2021.

Overall, the NICS system has processed over 443 million (443,172,700) requests since its inception. Almost 74 million of those NICS checks were done via the NICS E-Check system. And that number will only grow as the online system is much faster than making a call to the NICS contact center.

Not every state participates in the FBI NICS system. A Point of Contact (POC) state is a state that has agreed to conduct background checks for firearms purchases on behalf of the FBI through the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS). POC states can access the NICS database and have additional state-specific information available to them, allowing them to conduct more comprehensive background checks. In a POC state, when a firearms dealer initiates a NICS check, the dealer contacts the state point of contact (POC) instead of the FBI. The POC conducts the check using the NICS database as well as any additional state-specific databases and records that the state has access to and informs the dealer whether the sale can proceed or not.

Some states, like California, Colorado, and Oregon, are designated as POC states and are responsible for conducting background checks for firearms purchases within their state. They use the NICS system to perform the check but also have additional state-specific laws, regulations and databases that they check against before allowing a sale to proceed.

It’s worth noting that all states participate in the NICS, but not all states are POC states. Some states have chosen to use the FBI to conduct their background checks and not have a state-specific point of contact. In 13 states (in red), state law enforcement is the “point of contact” for background checks. In four states (in blue), FFLs contact the state for handguns and the FBI for long guns. Two states (in yellow), Nebraska and North Carolina, use state-issued permits in lieu of NICS for handguns.

All in all, it was a fascinating look at how the FBI conducts NICS checks and a decent reminder that just many Americans are exercising their Second Amendment rights by purchasing a firearm at retail every month.

Missouri AG prioritizing Biden social media collusion lawsuit, defending Second Amendment law

(The Center Square) – A lawsuit against President Joe Biden’s administration for alleged collusion with social media companies and defending Missouri’s Second Amendment Preservation Act are priorities for Republican Attorney General Andrew Bailey.

Litigation in both cases began while Republican U.S. Sen. Eric Schmitt was serving as Missouri’s attorney general. After the State of the State address on Wednesday, Bailey, who was appointed in November to replace Schmitt, said depositions in the social media collusion case are leading toward an injunction.

“We have documentary evidence, we have testimonial evidence and we intend to seek more evidence in the coming weeks,” Bailey said in an interview with The Center Square. “We’re on an expedited discovery timeline. At some point, we’re going to get into a procedural posture where we’re going to ask for an injunction to prevent further coercion and collusion from the federal government and prevent Biden and his team from censoring speech.”

Missouri v. Biden was filed by Schmitt and Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry in May and they were granted a motion for discovery to expedite a possible preliminary injunction in July. In addition to releasing documents in the case, they released the transcript of a deposition of Dr. Anthony Fauci, Biden’s chief medical advisor who recently retired.

Last week, Bailey released emails from White House Digital Director Robert Flaherty and other associates to major social media platforms. It included an email from Flaherty to Facebook asking why a video by Tucker Carlson on COVID-19 vaccines didn’t violate the social media platform’s standards.

“What we’ve demonstrated and what we believe is going on is censorship because it’s unelected federal bureaucrats targeting specific speech that they disfavor and asking that it be removed from big-tech social media platforms,” Bailey said. “That’s the problem. It stifles free, fair and open debate and it undermines our First Amendment. There should be marketplace of ideas that is free from government censorship.”

Bailey said defending the Missouri’s Second Amendment Preservation Act in lawsuits also will be a priority. The city of Arnold filed a lawsuit and St. Louis city and county and Jackson County filed a separate suit seeking to overturn the law. Both lawsuits claim the law restricts local police cooperating with federal law enforcement on gun violations.

“The Second Amendment is what makes all of the other (amendments) possible,” Bailey said. “It prevents enforcement of federal firearm regulations that exceed or violate the Second Amendment. We need to be going after criminals and not guns, first and foremost. I think most law enforcement officers in the state of Missouri agree with that. If we spent more time going after the criminals and not the guns, we will have safer streets.”

Bailey said the Missouri law is aligned with the principles of the authors of the U.S. Constitution.

“The founders understood that, number one, our rights come from God and not men,” Bailey said. “The federal constitution was a floor, not a ceiling, and the states could be guarantors of individual liberties. So the state legislature wants to expand upon the foundational rights codified in the Second Amendment and they have authority to do that. It’s about federalism and individual liberty.”

Analysis: Illinois Sheriffs’ Resistance to AR-15 Ban Latest Frontier for Second Amendment Sanctuary Movement

In the state often credited with kicking off the nationwide movement, so-called Second Amendment Sanctuaries are being put to their most significant test yet.

Shortly after Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker (D.) signed a bill banning “assault weapons” and certain ammunition magazines into law last week. Illinois gun owners have 300 days to register or otherwise dispose of the thousands of different models of guns affected by the ban. If they don’t, they could face serious criminal charges.

However, the actions of local officials across the state are calling that possibility into question. Many have begun to mobilize in opposition to enforcing the law. Sheriffs and State’s Attorneys of more than 80 Illinois counties have released statements decrying the law as “unconstitutional.” Most have publicly declared that they refuse to enforce it against otherwise law-abiding citizens.

“Until further direction from our courts, the Effingham County Sheriff’s Office will not expend the resources of Effingham County to ensure law-abiding gun owners are registering their firearms with the State, or arresting, otherwise law-abiding individuals, solely for their non-compliance with HB5471,” Effingham County Sheriff Paul Kuhns said in a public release.

“My office will exercise strict prosecutorial discretion in circumstances relating to enforcement of House Bill 5471, ensuring that the clearly-defined Second Amendment rights of our citizens remain undiminished,” Effingham County State’s Attorney Aaron Jones added. “While my office remains committed to protecting the citizens of Effingham County by prosecuting violent crimes, I have no intention of turning otherwise law-abiding citizens into convicted felons solely due to non-compliance with House Bill 5471.”

The sentiment was echoed in jurisdictions around the state with model language provided by the Illinois Sheriffs Association. Nine in 10 of the state’s sheriffs have now publicly declared their intention to disregard the law, according to the Associated Press

The sheer number of prosecutors and sheriffs who have come out against enforcing the new ban represents a new high water mark for the Second Amendment Sanctuary movement. That’s fitting for a trend that has its roots in none other than Effingham County, Illinois.

Resistance to gun control from higher up in the government has existed in some form for decades. The successful challenge of the Brady Act’s initial requirement that local law enforcement use their resources to conduct background checks on gun buyers in 1997’s Printz v. U.S. is one early success in the power struggle. Beginning in the mid-2000s and through the early 2010s, a handful of deep red states and localities around the country even passed resolutions suggesting that they wouldn’t obey gun laws they viewed as unconstitutional–though they were often primarily symbolic measures that have never been put to a significant test.

Those earlier efforts began to crystalize into the modern sanctuary movement starting with Pritzker’s 2018 election. Effingham County officials, alarmed by his win and the possibility of an assault weapons ban, passed the first resolution credited with coining the term “sanctuary” as applied to the Second Amendment. The resolution, which quickly spread to 70 additional counties across Illinois and later other states like Virginia, was a simple declaration that local officials would view any of the gun-control laws then under consideration by the legislature as unconstitutional.

“We’re just stealing the language that sanctuary cities use,” Bryan Kibler, former Effingham County State’s Attorney, told the Associated Press in reference to the immigration “sanctuary” movement at the time.

“We wanted to get across that our Second Amendment rights are slowly being stripped away.”

Now, faced with a new set of gun-control measures, a similar dynamic is at play.

But unlike those previous resolutions, which predominately surfaced ad hoc wherever new gun-control measures were a possibility, the current crop of non-compliance declarations are being announced in response to a law that has passed. That creates a new paradigm testing the mettle of officials on both sides. Without local law enforcement support and few options to force their hand, backers of the ban are left without many options. The state’s gun owners could very well decide to disregard the registration requirement, and local law enforcement may well follow through on their promise not to bother them.

That has happened before.

Following the 2013 passage of the SAFE Act in New York, the refusal of some sheriffs to enforce its ban on certain guns and magazines coincided with widespread non-compliance. The most recent data suggests only about four percent of the guns required to be registered under the SAFE Act have actually been registered.

“It’s not that they aren’t aware of the law,” Paloma Capanna, a firearms lawyer who obtained the registration data,

told Hudson Valley One in 2019. “The lack of registration is a massive act of civil disobedience by gun owners statewide.”

Since ninety percent of Illinois’ sheriffs are vowing to look the other way on this latest ban, it’s hard to see how the results don’t end up looking similar in the Land of Lincoln.

Of course, it remains to be seen how resolved the Illinois sheriffs are in refusing to enforce the gun ban and corresponding registry requirement. The rapid groundswell of opposition has already provoked a backlash from many of the state’s top Democratic lawmakers, including Governor Pritzker.

He has repeatedly suggested that the defiant sheriffs are “violating their oaths of office” and has threatened to fire  those that refuse to enforce the ban. However, it does not appear that he has the power to remove duly-elected sheriffs from office under Illinois law.

Even if he can’t directly remove the local officials, Pritzker may hope to sway or replace them by other means. Or bypass them altogether.

“It’s our state police and law enforcement across the state that will, in fact, enforce this law, and these outlier sheriffs will comply or, frankly, they’ll have to answer to the voters,” Pritzker told NBC 5.

It’s possible the political pressure could wear some sheriffs down and cause them to reverse course. Or some might have misread what their constituents want and get an earful from residents clamoring to see a gun ban enforced. Pritzer could also prioritize using state police resources to try and enforce the ban on their own, though that would be a very tall order without local support.

If not, the rapid and organized adoption of non-enforcement policies across broad swaths of Illinois in response to a gun ban and registry requirement may become the biggest success story of the Second Amendment Sanctuary movement to date.

January 20

250 – Pope Fabian is martyred during the persecution of Roman emperor Decius for failing to perform sacrifices to the Roman gods.

1265 – The first English parliament to include commoner representatives of the major towns holds its first meeting in the Palace of Westminster

1567 – Portuguese forces under the command of Estácio de Sá drive the French out of Rio de Janeiro.

1649 – The trial of Charles I of England at the High Court of Justice begins

1783 – Great Britain signs preliminary articles of peace with France, setting the stage for the official end of the Revolutionary War later in the year.

1887 – The U.S. Senate ratifies a treaty allowing the U.S. Navy to lease Pearl Harbor Hawaii as a naval base.

1909 – Automaker General Motors buys into the Oakland Motor Car Company, at Pontiac, Michigan, which later becomes GM’s Pontiac division.

1929 – The first full length talking motion picture, In Old Arizona, is released.

1937 – Franklin D. Roosevelt and John Nance Garner are sworn in for their second terms as U.S. President and U.S. Vice President; the first time a Presidential Inauguration takes place on January 20

1942 – At a conference held in the Berlin suburb of Wannsee, Nazi officials discuss the implementation of the “Final Solution to the Jewish question”.

1961 – John F. Kennedy is inaugurated the 35th President of the United States of America, the youngest man to date elected to that office.

1981 – 20 minutes after Ronald Reagan is inaugurated as the 40th President of the United States of America, Iran releases 52 American hostages.

2021 – Joe Biden becomes the oldest person, at age 78, to take the oath of office of the President of the United States.

This Challenge To Illinois’ Gun Law Tees Up SCOTUS To Finally Nuke ‘Assault Weapons’ Bans

Illinois’ recently enacted ban on most semi-automatic rifles and so-called “high-capacity” magazines violates the Second Amendment, according to a lawsuit filed on Tuesday in a federal district court. The case, Harrel v. Raoul, represents one of the first challenges to so-called “assault-weapons” bans since the 2022 Supreme Court decision in New York State Rifle v. Bruen made clear that the right to bear arms is not “a second-class right.”

Here’s what you need to know about the case and current Second Amendment jurisprudence.

On Jan. 10, 2023, Illinois enacted a ban on the manufacturing, delivery, sale, purchase, or possession of so-called “assault weapons,” which is defined by statute to include any semi-automatic rifle “with the capacity to accept a magazine holding more than ten rounds of ammunition,” if the rifle possesses any one of several features, such as “a pistol grip or thumbhole stock,” a “folding, telescoping, thumbhole, or detachable stock,” or a “flash suppressor.” The Illinois statute also identifies dozens of rifles expressly banned as “assault weapons,” including all AK-type rifles, all AR-type rifles, several Barrett and Bushmaster rifles, along with a catalog of other guns.

Illinois’ recently enacted statute also makes it a crime to “manufacture, deliver, sell, purchase,” or “possess” magazines branded by the state as “large capacity ammunition” devices and referred to colloquially as “large-capacity magazines.” The statute categorizes magazines as “large capacity” if they can hold more than “10 rounds of ammunition for long guns and more than 15 rounds of ammunition for handguns.”

A group of individuals, gun businesses, and private organizations, including the Second Amendment Foundation, the Illinois State Rifle Association, and the Firearms Policy Coalition, filed suit on Tuesday against the Illinois attorney general, as well as several state prosecutors and law enforcement agents, arguing the statute violates the Second Amendment. On Wednesday, the case was assigned to federal Judge Stephen P. McGlynn, a Donald Trump appointee.

The lead attorney for the plaintiffs, David G. Sigale, told The Federalist he anticipates seeking a temporary restraining order or preliminary injunction “very soon,” noting that the statute has been in force since the governor signed the law on Jan. 10.

In seeking a temporary restraining order or a preliminary injunction, the plaintiffs will need to establish they have “a likelihood of success on the merits,” meaning they will likely prevail on their claim that the Illinois law violates the Second Amendment.

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Florida Top Court Upholds Fines for Passing Local Gun Rules

A Florida law penalizing local government officials who experiment with new city or county gun regulations was upheld by the state Supreme Court Thursday.

The high court, in a 5-1 ruling, preserved a 2011 state law imposing $5,000 fines on local officials that intentionally pass or enforce gun regulations not enacted by the state Legislature. The law allows private citizens to bring suits enforcing the law, and limits officials’ use of public funds to defend themselves in these cases.

The decision forecloses Democratic leaders of Florida local governments from experimenting with gun rules in the wake of the US Supreme Court’s 2022 New York Rifle & Pistol Association Inc. v. Bruen decision which has led to expanded blue-state regulation of firearms in “sensitive places.”

Dozens of local governments and officials claimed the state’s fine and fee-shifting provisions—the losing official pays the plaintiffs’ attorney fees—violated the Florida Constitution’s powers granted to local government and immunity given to lawmakers. The majority opinion, written by Justice Ricky Polston, said the state Legislature had the power to limit local officials’ immunity.

Ruling otherwise would “frustrate the ability of the Legislature to set policies for the state,” Polston said.

In a dissent, Justice Jorge Labarga said that the ruling incorrectly places judges in the shoes of legislators and forces courts to analyze their intent, amounting to “nothing less than an impermissible judicial intrusion into the official’s legislative thought process.”

Everytown for Gun Safety advocates for background checks and other gun control measures. Michael Bloomberg, the majority owner of Bloomberg Government’s parent company, serves as a member of Everytown’s advisory board.

The cases are Fried v. Florida, Fla., No. SC21-917, 1/19/23 and City of Weston v. Florida, Fla., No. SC21-918, 1/19/23.

To be frank, there is nothing in the Constitution that gives goobermint the power to form such an bureau. In fact, from the Bruen ruling, no federal firearm law, or bureau can be Constitutional, as nothing of the sort existed at the founding, or even later when the 14th amendment was ratified. That Gaetz has to submit such a bill is an indictment of the whole goobermint.

Gaetz introduces ‘Abolish the ATF Act’ after ruling against stabilizing braces.

Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., introduced a bill to eliminate the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) following a controversial ruling that tightens regulations on pistol-stabilizing braces.

The ATF issued its final rule Friday that will treat guns with stabilizing accessories like short-barreled rifles, which require a federal license to own under the National Firearms Act.

Attorney General Merrick Garland said the ruling enhances public safety, but Gaetz said it unfairly punishes disabled gun owners and veterans who rely on stabilizing braces to be able to fire with one hand.

placeholderGaetz introduced H.R.374, the “Abolish the ATF Act,” on Tuesday morning in response to the ruling, telling Fox News Digital it was the “final straw.”
Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., walks to a closed-door GOP caucus meeting at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 10, 2023.

Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., walks to a closed-door GOP caucus meeting at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 10, 2023. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

“I have a lot of disabled veterans in my district who enjoy pistol shooting and rely on stabilizing braces to be able to engage in the activity,” he said in a phone interview Wednesday morning. “The recent actions from the ATF essentially allow them to make case-by-case determinations on whether a pistol with a stabilizing brace is legal or an unlawful, sawed-off shotgun.”

“The continued existence of the ATF is increasingly unwarranted based on the actions they’re taking to convert otherwise law-abiding people into felons,” he said. “My bill would abolish the ATF. If that doesn’t work, we’re going to try defunding the ATF. If that doesn’t work, we’re going to target the individual bureaucrats at the top of the ATF who have exceeded their authority in rulemaking. And if that doesn’t work, we’re going to take a meat cleaver to the statutes that the ATF believes broadly authorize their actions.”

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Interesting pistola. Slightly lower MSRP than the Ruger

Read all of that, then tell me the “SHOOTING ILLUSTRATED STAFF” doesn’t need some remedial training in operating systems.

First Look: Smith & Wesson M&P 5.7 Pistol.

S&W M&P 5.7

Smith & Wesson Brands, Inc. has unveiled a new M&P handgun chambered for the relatively modern 5.7×28 mm cartridge. The 5.7x28mm caliber keeps increasing in popularity across the market today and was first developed by FN during the 1980s for use in their PDW style firearms such as the P90.

This new M&P pistol has a magazine capacity of 22 rounds with a full-size 5-inch barrel and uses a gas-operated, locked-breech mechanism that supports the pressure and specifications of the 5.7mm cartridge. This system is somewhat different as opposed to the more traditional Browning inspired delayed blowback tilting mechanisms commonly seen used with standard handgun rounds that operate at lower pressures. Due to the alternative design considerations the M&P 5.7 is also slightly thinner than typical Smith and Wesson M&P Series handguns.

The M&P 5.7 includes an optics-ready cut slide ideal for micro slide-mounted, red-dot electronic sights. The 5-inch barrel on these pistols also has a threaded muzzle cut for 1/2×28 inch threads. The extremely crisp single action trigger of the pistol is enhanced by the flat face of the trigger shoe. Two 22- round magazines ship with the pistol as well.

“The M&P5.7 is an exciting new pistol from Smith & Wesson that incorporates a gas-operated Tempo Barrel System to effectively harness the 5.7x28mm round, creating a lighter recoil for an overall better shooting experience. Like all Smith & Wesson firearms, the M&P5.7 is proudly made entirely in the USA and is backed by the Smith & Wesson Limited Lifetime Service Policy. Whatever your purpose, the M&P5.7 is versatile, fun, and a must-have,” says Andrew Gore, Product Manager, Handguns.

The new M&P 5.7 has a retail price of $700. For more information on this new pistol and other firearms sold by Smith And Wesson, please visit their website at smith-wesson.com

Driver fires shots at would-be carjackers in Oak Law

OAK LAWN, Ill. — Police are looking for two suspects after a driver thwarted a carjacking in Oak Lawn on Wednesday.

The incident occurred just before 3:30 p.m. in the  6500 block of W. 89th Place. Police say the two armed suspects tried to steal a car but the driver had a gun and fired at about eight shots toward them.

The individuals took off in a black Jeep, which police later located in the 6200 block of W. 90th Street.

According to police, an unidentified getaway driver picked up the suspected carjackers in an older white Dodge Charger with damage on the rear passenger door.

The victim was not hurt.

If the devil himself can quote scripture, his minions can too.
And I know which god Clyburn worships….

Pro-Abort Leader Clyburn: ‘Matthew 25:45 Warns That We Will Be Judged by How We Treat the Least Among Us’

(CNSNews.com) – Rep. James Clyburn (D.-S.C.), the majority whip and third-ranking Democrat in the House, whose 2020 voting record received a 100-percent rating from NARAL Pro-Choice America, put out a statement last week quoting the Gospel of Matthew on how we should “treat the least among us.”

Clyburn serves as the chair of the Democratic Faith Working Group.

“I am pleased that Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries understands the significance of the Democratic Faith Working Group’s efforts to find common ground on the issues of faith and politics,” Clyburn said in his statement.

“I am honored to continue serving as Chair of the DFWG,” he said.

When the Supreme Court issued its ruling overturning Roe v. Wade last year, Clyburn sent out a tweet condemning the ruling.  “Outlawing abortion will increase the already heightened risk of death for the most vulnerable in our communities,” he said.

When he put out his statement about his chairing the Democratic Faith Working Group, Clyburn cited a passage from the Gospel of Matthew.

“Matthew 25:45 warns that we will be judged by how we treat the least among us,” said Clyburn. “I look forward to leading the House Democratic efforts to meet that expectation by using our faith-based perspectives to inform and guide our policies.”

This was a request for a temporary injunction to stop enforcement while the case makes its way through the system.

I think this is simply lawyers being lawyers and making sure that other lawyers have the opportunity to bill more hours, but it sure makes me wonder why even Justice Thomas wouldn’t even respond to the clear poke in the eye this is by the State of New York.

Supreme Court Rejects New York Gun Retailers’ Bid to Block New Concealed Carry Laws

The Supreme Court rejected a bid by New York gun retailers on Wednesday to block a slew of new gun control laws in the state, which they argued violate their Second Amendment rights and hurt their businesses.

There were no noted dissents in the order or explanations from the justices for their decision.

January 19

1810 – The temperature at Portsmouth, New Hampshire drops from 54°F to minus 12°F in one day.

1817 – An army led by General José de San Martín, crosses the Andes from Argentina to liberate Chile and then Peru.

1861 – Georgia, Florida and Mississippi declare secession from the United States.

1883 – The first city electric lighting system, built by Thomas Edison, begins service at Roselle, New Jersey.

1915 – French engineer Georges Claude patents the neon discharge tube for use in advertising.

1920 – The United States Senate votes against joining the League of Nations.

1937 – Howard Hughes, flying his H-1 Racer, sets a new air record by flying from Los Angeles to New York City in 7 hours, 28 minutes, 25 seconds.

1945 – During World War II, Soviet forces liberate the Łódź Ghetto. Of more than 200,000 inhabitants in 1940, less than 900 survive the Nazi occupation.

1946 – General Douglas MacArthur establishes the International Military Tribunal for the Far East in Tokyo to try Japanese war criminals.

1960 – Japan and the U.S. sign the US–Japan Mutual Security Treaty

1977 – President Ford pardons Iva Toguri D’Aquino a.k.a. Tokyo Rose

1981 – United States and Iranian officials sign an agreement to release 52 American hostages after 14 months of captivity.

1983 – Nazi war criminal Klaus Barbie is arrested in Bolivia.

1991 – Over Iraq;
USAF Cpts Rick Tuleni and Larry Pitts flying F-15s, each engage and shootdown Iraqi MiG-25 fighters.
USAF Cpts Craig Underhill and Cesar Rodriguez, flying F-15s, each engage Iraqi MiG-29 fighters, with Underhill shooting down his MiG and Rodriguez’ dogfight maneuvers resulting in the Iraqi pilot flying into the ground in an attempt to evade him
USAF Cpt David Prather and Lt David Sveden, flying F-15s, each engage and shootdown Iraqi Mirage F1 fighters
Iraq fires a second Scud missile into Israel, causing 15 injuries.

1996 – An engine fire forces the tugboat Scandia and tank barge North Cape  ashore on Moonstone Beach in South Kingstown, Rhode Island causing a massive spill of over 800,000 gallons of heating oil.

2013 – Retired Saint Louis Cardinal player, Stan Musial, dies, age 92, at his home in Ladue, Missouri.

Teen stops home invasion with mother’s handgun

MONTVILLE, Ohio (WJW) – Brayden Jarrett says he was home from school last Tuesday, looking out the living room window, when he noticed a strange car parked sideways in his driveway.

“The car stood in the driveway for a little bit, so I walked into our kitchen because we have a window in the kitchen and I looked out and I saw the dude and I’ve never seen this dude in my life,” said Jarrett.

His mother was at work, but Jarrett, who is 16 years old, knew that she kept a 9mm handgun in the house and he knew where it was stored.

He says he is familiar with guns, in part, because he has been hunting.

“I knew there was a gun in the home. My mom had a gun, I knew it. I grew up with guns, so I knew about the safety, I knew where the gun was and everything,” he told FOX 8.

“My gun is unloaded. The clip is next to it and he knows where it’s at, so he grabbed it and he held onto both pieces and he stood in this (living room) doorway,” said Ashleigh Jarrett, his mother.

Brayden said he stood there watching the door as the outside door opened. He knew if it was a delivery service dropping off a package that they would leave it there.

But when the intruder started opening the inside door, he says he loaded the gun.

“I didn’t say anything but when I cocked the gun back and pointed it at the door, he said, ‘Oh (expletive),’ and ran,” Brayden said.

He immediately called his mother at work.

“When he called me, he asked smart questions first. ‘Did you have anyone coming over?’ ‘Were you expecting any packages?’ before he then said, ‘Well, I think someone tried to break in and I had to pull your gun,’” said Ashleigh.

Brayden said the car drove past their house again, and after Ashleigh posted about the break-in on social media, neighbors helped identify it.

At the Geauga County Sheriff’s Office, Brayden says he was able to pick the suspect out of a photo lineup.

The Geauga County Sheriff’s Office has charged Zachary Stutzman, of Hartsgrove, with burglary.

Ashleigh Jarrett says she knows Stutzman only as a friend on social media, although they may have mutual real acquaintances in real life.

She believes he may have used her posts to learn her routine.

But they were only into the second day of a new routine for her son, who he may not have expected to be in the house.

She is now cautioning people about what they post on social media.

“Anyone can see your schedule. If you are posting that you are at your place of business or you are posting that you are out and about and for someone who is mostly alone, it leaves you open for vulnerability and it gives somebody just a key into your life,” she said.

Ashleigh says she now has cameras watching over the inside and outside of her house, something she never thought she would have to do.

She is grateful to have a teenage son who is now also her protector.

“He’s so laid back. I have more anxiety about this than he does for sure. I lined up the school and told them to set up a counseling meeting if he needed it and his exact words were, ‘I’m not afraid of guns. All I had to do was pick a gun up and aim it, I didn’t have to use it,’” said Ashleigh.

“I didn’t want to pull the trigger on the guy. That would have been a whole different situation, but when I knew when it first happened, I had to stay calm,” said Brayden.

Escambia County shooting deemed self-defense; Juvenile shooter won’t be charged

ESCAMBIA COUNTY, Fla. — Deputies say a juvenile who shot a 47-year-old man Monday in Escambia County will not be charged.

The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office says the shooting around noon on Saxon Street is a self-defense case.

According to the sheriff’s office, the man who was shot — 47-year-old Patrick Antoine Davison — is charged with Aggravated Battery (domestic violence). Jail records show he is also facing charges of fleeing/eluding police, resisting arrest and driving without a license.

Davison was hospitalized for his injuries Monday afternoon following the shooting.

Der apfel fält nicht weit vom baum (The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree)

Klaus Schwab’s Father Ran ‘National Socialist Model Company,’ Exploited Nazi Slave Labor.

Davos frontman Klaus Schwab’s daddy, Eugen Schwab, while the Third Reich was ravaging Europe in the 1930s and 40s, served as managing director of Escher Wyss Ravensburg, an engineering firm that constructed turbines and fighter plane parts for the regime.

While the elder Schwab worked in this capacity, the Nazis awarded Escher Wyss Ravensburg the prestigious title of “National Socialist Model Company” for all of its hard work in the service of the Führer.

To achieve this recognition, Escher-Wyss Ravensburg, under Eugen Schwab’s leadership, utilized Nazi slave labor and prisoners of war in its facilities.

Ravensburg itself, aside from the slave factory, was the site of numerous Nazi crimes against humanity, such as forced sterilization for the purpose of “racial improvement.” But to Eugen Schwab, that was just the cost of doing business with the Third Reich.

You want to make an omelet, you gotta break some eggs, right?

Klaus Schwab’s sanitized Wikipedia page contains none of the gruesome details of his daddy’s wartime activities, other than to say “his parents had moved from Switzerland to Germany during the Third Reich in order for his father to assume the role of director at Escher Wyss.”

Newsweek ran a corporate “fact check” in which they cherry-picked a falsely attributed image of Eugen in a Nazi uniform as a way to seem to disprove his connection to the Third Reich entirely. But deep into the article, Newsweek subtly admits that it’s all true — which almost no one will get to, thanks to short attention spans:

The posts shared online in May, 2022, claim Klaus Schwab’s father, Eugen Schwab, was a close ally of Hitler, and include a photo of the World Economic Forum leader alongside a man in Nazi uniform… the photo shared online is not of Eugen Schwab, but of Nazi general Walter Dybilasz… Klaus Schwab’s father, on the other hand, was the managing director of a subsidiary of Zurich-based engineering firm Escher Wyss. 

The history of Eugen’s relationship with Nazism in general is complex… Eugen Schwab was a member of some National Socialist organizations, but that alone does not prove any relationship to German high command or a belief in Nazi ideology. While the Escher Wyss branch in Ravensburg, Germany, (which Eugen managed) used prisoners of war and forced laborers, it is not clear whether the company was forced to do so by the Nazis or because of a lack of workers.

So, Eugen Schwab was an avowed National Socialist, and yes, okay, his firm did use Nazi slave labor. But, you see, that doesn’t mean he was a Nazi. And maybe Escher Wyss had to use slave labor to make their products for the Nazis because of a worker shortage.

This is a common tactic in corporate media: Take a false claim that circulates on the web (in this case, an image incorrectly identified as Eugen Schwab) and use that single post to discredit the entire factual connection between Schwab and the Nazis.

Federal Lawsuit Filed Against Unconstitutional Illinois Gun Ban

BELLEVUE, WA – -(AmmoLand.com)- The Second Amendment Foundation has filed a federal lawsuit challenging the recently-signed Illinois gun ban legislation, alleging it to be unconstitutional and asserting the state has criminalized “a common and important means of self-defense.” The case is known as Harrel v. Raoul.

Joining SAF in this legal action are the Illinois State Rifle Association, Firearms Policy Coalition, C4 Gun Store LLC, Marengo Guns, Inc. and a private citizen, Dane Harrel. Named as defendants are Attorney General Kwame Raoul, Illinois State Police Director Brendan F. Kelly, and other officials in their official capacities. The lawsuit was filed in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Illinois.

“Illinois has banned the future sale, importation, purchase, delivery and manufacture of the most popular rifle in the United States, along with their standard capacity magazines,” noted SAF founder and Executive Vice President Alan M. Gottlieb. “People who already own such firearms must now register their guns with the State Police. This ban violates the constitutional rights of Illinois gun owners, and we intend to prove it in court.

“Once again,” he continued, “Illinois lawmakers are scapegoating firearms and people who own them in a transparent attempt to convince people they are doing something about the horrible violence the state has suffered in recent years, especially in Chicago. In reality, it’s an effort to distract the public from the fact that these same lawmakers have been unable or unwilling to crack down on criminals responsible for violent crime.”

Modern semiautomatic firearms banned under the new Illinois law have been deliberately mischaracterized as “assault weapons” and even “weapons of war,” Gottlieb explained. He called this patently dishonest and deceitful.

“Anti-gun politicians tout this sort of legislation,” Gottlieb observed, “while they know it really won’t accomplish anything beyond creating the false public impression they are making the community safer. No neighborhood, no city, and no state ever became safer by restricting the rights of law-abiding citizens.”