Category Archives: Second Amendment

CBS Pittsburgh / KDKA

PA Representative Holds 'Make The Second Amendment Great Again' Rally CBS Pittsburgh / KDKA A Make the Second Amendment Great Again rally, sponsored by Butler County republican Daryl Metcalfe was held in the Rotunda on Monday and brought together state lawmakers, sheriffs and gun rights enthusiasts for what has become an annual event.

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PA Representative Holds 'Make The Second Amendment Great Again' Rally - CBS Pittsburgh / KDKA

Current city ordinances in Tacoma establish penalties for stun guns or Tasers that include up to a year in jail and/or a $5,000 fine. (Photo: City of Tacoma)

A legal team retained by gun rights advocates are warning aWashington city that its prohibition on stun guns and Tasers could land them in federal court.

The Firearms Policy Coalition is holding Tacoma to task over its local ordinances against the sale, manufacturing, purchasing, possessing or carrying of any electroshock device by a law-abiding resident, visitor or traveler.

The Second Amendment to the United States Constitution protects the right to keep and bear arms not only the right to keep and bear firearms, said FPC attorney Stephen Stamboulieh in an April 3 letter to the Tacoma city attorney, citing the 2008 Heller decision as well as a 2016 Supreme Court case directly concerning stun guns.

Under current Tacoma codes, with exceptions for devices used by law enforcement, possession of an electronic weapon in the city can result in a $5,000 fine, or one year in jail, or both.

In response to the groups request that Tacoma remedy its potentially unconstitutional local ordinance within 30 days or prepare for a lawsuit, Acting City Attorney William Fosbre said his staff is reviewing the law and will brief the city council, police department and other relevant policy makers on the current enforceability of the current ban on the devices.

Noting that other cities across the nation have scrapped their bans on electronic weapons in recent months following costly legal challenges, Phillip Watson, a civil rights advocate with the FPC, warned in a follow-up letter sent this week to Mayor Marilyn Strickland that Tacoma taxpayers and residents would be well-served by an expeditious repeal of the outdated and ill-advised subject ban.

FPC President Brandon Combs told Guns.com the city manager and attorney are preparing an ordinance to change the law, and that it would probably be ready for their June 6 council meeting.

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Second Amendment group prods Tacoma to repeal Taser ban - Guns.com

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However, everything stalled as both the House and Senate appear to have largely embraced a return to status quo on gun rights.

What follows are five pro-gun moves that Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) and House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wisc.) could be making right now, but are not.

National ReciprocityNational Reciprocity legislation was introduced by Rep. Richard Hudson on January 3, 2017the first day of Congress. Breitbart News reported that Hudsons billnot only establishes national reciprocity for concealed permit holders but also national reciprocity for residents who live in states that require no permit for concealed carry. In other words, it is national right to carry for law-abiding citizens, period. Hudsons bill has since been complimented by national reciprocity legislation introduced by Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX), yet neither the House nor the Senate have taken the bills up. President Trump has already made clear that he supports national reciprocity, but he cannot unilaterally enact it. It will have to come to him via the legislative branch.

Hearing Protection ActThe Hearing Protection Act is firearm deregulation legislation which emphasizes the health benefits of suppressors. The Act has medical doctors on its side, while Gabby Giffords and other gun controllers push ear plugs and ear muffs as sufficient hearing protection.Doctors for Responsible Gun Ownership (DRGO) explain:

Hearing protection in the form of ear plugs or ear muffs, alone or in combination, can only reduce noise exposure by approximately 20-30 decibels. This limitation in noise reduction may still expose a firearms user to damaging levels of noise; 120 decibels is still louder than a car horn from three feet away. Thus, inside the canal and over the ear devices (i.e., ear plugs and ear muffs)the only current generally available protectionare inadequate for impulse noise protection, and when used together they deafen the wearer to all external sound.

At the same time, DRGO stresses that suppressors offered significantly greater noise reduction than ear-level protection, usually greater than 50% better. The Hearing Protection Act removes the cumbersome process which law-abiding citizens currently have to go through to acquire a suppressor, thus making the hearing benefits of the devices readily accessible.

The Hearing Protection Act was introduced byRepresentatives Jeff Duncan (R-SC-3) and John Carter (R-TX-31) on January 9, yet it sits. Donald Trump Jr. has made clear that his fatherour Presidentwould sign suppressor deregulation should it reach his desk.

Repeal of Gun Ban for Military VeteransThe gun ban for military veterans is structured almost identically to the Social Security gun ban which the House and Senate both voted to repeal in February, and which President Trump signed on February 28. The gun ban for military veterans opens the door forveterans receiving disability benefits to be investigated if their benefit check is sent to a third party to help manage finances. The premise behind launching an investigation is the presupposition that those who require help managing finances may be mentally unfit for gun ownership.

On March 16, 2017, Breitbart News reported that the House voted to repeal this ban via the passage of the Veterans 2nd Amendment Protection Act, sponsored byHouse Committee on Veteran Affairs chairman Phil Roe (R-Tenn.). We are waiting for the Senate to follow suit so military veterans can know their Second Amendment rights are shielded like those of Social Security beneficiaries.

Repeal of Chuck Schumer gun controlGun Owners of America (GOA) is urging the House to repeal a gun control amendment originally added to legislation by then-Rep. Chuck Schumer in the late 1980s. The amendment makes it harder forpersons previously subject to a gun ban to regain their constitutional rights after paying their debt to society. GOAs Erich Pratt said, It is important for Congress to repeal the Schumer ban immediately. Too many good Americans are being prevented from exercising their Second Amendment rights. We hope that Rep. John Culberson (R-TX-7) will single-handedly remove the Schumer ban from his Commerce-Justice-State appropriations bill.

Pass Legislation to End Operation Chock PointOperation Chock Point was used by the Obama administration to drive a wedge between financial institutions and firearm/ammunition makers and sellers. The practical outworking of the operation was simply another avenue for the lefts war on the Second Amendment. For example, on January 14, 2015, Breitbart News reported thatMike Schuetz, owner of Hawkins Gunsin Hawkins, Wisconsinran his businessaccounts through Heritage Credit Union until said credit union called him in for a meeting and told him to close his account because they do not service businesses that deal in guns. Schuetz said, This is just a back door way for those wanting to infringe on your rights to keep and bear arms and is nothing more than discrimination to gun owners.

A story similar to Schuetzs was told by Scottsdale, Arizona, companyAmerican Spirit Arms, and the Washington Times reported on gun stores in Miami, Florida, and Henderson, Nevada, that faced a similar struggle.

Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer (R-MO-03) has introduced legislation tomake sure Operation Choke Point cannot be revived by rogue operators in the Department of Justice while Trump is in office.

Luetkemeyer released a statement, saying:

Last Congress, the House of Representatives took the first step in putting an end, once and for all, to Operation Choke Point by passing my legislation. Although there is a new Administration and Department of Justice in place, this legislation is necessary to ensure that no future Administration will have the opportunity to negatively impact individuals and legal businesses through this unprecedented initiative. We must continue to demand greater transparency and end the practice of allowing government bureaucrats to use personal and political motivations to block financial services to licensed, legally-operating businesses.

American gun owners voted for a pro-gun House and Senate to create a situation where a GOP trifectaHouse, Senate, White Housecould repeal gun control and pass pro-Second Amendment legislation that will positively impact American life for decades to come. It is time for McConnell and Ryan to act by passing these measures and repealing others, where apropos.

AWR Hawkins is the Second Amendment columnist for Breitbart News and host of Bullets with AWR Hawkins, a Breitbart News podcast. He is also the political analyst for Armed American Radio. Follow him on Twitter: @AWRHawkins. Reach him directly at awrhawkins@breitbart.com.

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Five Pro-Second Amendment Moves McConnell and Ryan Could be Making - Breitbart News

JF Finigan 6:35 a.m. MT May 23, 2017

A few cosmetic items does not make an AR-15 a "weapon of war," columnist Joanna Allhands says.

About 400 people gathered Wednesday, April 26, 2017, for the Michigan Second Amendment March at the State Capitol. Pro-gun and legal gun ownership activists met with legislators to discuss gun right issues, to show the political strength of Michigan's legal gun owners.(Photo: MATTHEW DAE SMITH | Lansing State Journal)

Robert Robbs Man up, Brnovich, and get Tucson's gun case out of our court on May 19 never says if Mr. Robb has a problem with Tucson (theoretically) destroying guns in the future, but reminds me of a friends question during a conversation about guns. (The friend has some nice guns and strong opinions.)

(Rephrased with multiple strong expletives deleted.) Is it possible to support the Second Amendment without being a prototypical junior jackass? I think I can answer that.

Back in the day, before the crazies were told by Wayne LaPierre and Charlton Heston that there was a Constitution and Second Amendment thereto, sportsmen owned guns, seasonally hunted birds and big game and participated in sundry activities with their guns.

There was little in the way of gun legislation issues. For example, there was no legislation (as was proposed recently) to require selling guns to the insane if they wanted one. Nope. No siree. Not a bit of it. Nor was there legislation prohibiting the destruction of guns in Tucson.

Unlike today, however, even Republican state legislators had at least an average IQ. No one was waiting for a house to house invasion by the feds to take away peoples guns.

The short answer:People still exist who agree with the Second Amendment, who own firearms and support gun safety training and practices - without wearing cheap camo to the grocery store, without engaging in panic gun buying encouraged by Wayne LaPierre, who dont pass incredibly stupid and unnecessary gun legislation.

But, then, there are also many more of the others.

JF Finigan, San Tan Valley

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Letter: Can you support the Second Amendment without being a nut? - AZCentral.com

For the last two years, I have been on a mission to find the impossible. I have been trying to find the law that allows police chiefs to "do what they want" with firearms licensing. Those words from our city councilors, as well as their repeated claims of not knowing gun laws, rang so loudly in my ears I almost didn't hear Councilor Corey Belanger refer to our rights as "privileges." Now that I knew where they stood, my mission began.

I have asked gun rights groups, lawyers and state legislators, and haven't been cited any law. In fact, when I handed Lowell's firearm policy to a member of the Joint Committee on Public Safety, he said that there were "issues with items 5-10" which happen to be what our chief "wants to do." Another state representative and former police chief told me that chiefs were not allowed to add new requirements.

My path then led back to our City Council. They didn't provide answers before, so I decided to try again. I messaged the council twice in the past weeks -- no cited law. Well, here's a law that I did find on my mission: Title 18, U.S.C., Section 242 says, "Whoever, under color of any law, statute, ordinance, regulation, or custom, willfully subjects any person in any State, Territory, Commonwealth, Possession, or District to the deprivation of any rights, privileges, or immunities secured or protected by the Constitution or laws of the United States, ... shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than one year, or both .

So again, I ask City Council, what Massachusetts General Law allows our police chief to "do whatever he wants" with the Licensing of a Civil Right protected by the Constitution?

To see and hear Councilor Belanger refer to our rights as hobbies and privileges, watch the Jan. 19, 2016, on demand at http://www.ltc.org/watch/channel-99/city-council-on-demand/. He starts speaking around the 55-minute mark. Throughout the meeting, the council refers many times to the chief's ability to set whatever policy he wants.

DANNEL GANNON

Lowell

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Chiefs can't ignore Second Amendment - Lowell Sun

It saddens me to see the amount of gun violence in this country, and it is even worse to see there is nothing being done to stop it. After every shooting, we discuss the horrific event, and we mourn the victims, but when will anything change? Discussion about gun violence and the Second Amendment is great, but when will we take initiative?

Seeing news about shootings or acts of gun violence should never be something to which we become accustomed. These events will keep happening if the amendment is not questioned. I would rather see more regulation in the Second Amendment than feel unsafe everywhere I go. The Bill of Rights was written over 200 years ago, and maybe the Second Amendment was more applicable during that time. Currently, I feel that it's depriving me of my safety rather than giving me the ability to protect myself.

Carly Novell, Parkland

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Does the Second Amendment really keep us safe? | Letters - Sun Sentinel

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It is already legal to carry a handgun openly without a permit in Michigan. The situation is as it was in New Hampshire, where law-abiding citizens could carry their handguns openly without having to ask governments permission but were suddenly obligated to ask government before carrying if their jacket or sweatshirt hung down over the gun.

New Hampshire lawmakerspassed legislation abolishing their concealed carry permit requirement earlier this year and Gov. Chris Sununu (R) signed the bill on February 22. North Dakota followed suit and abolished their concealed permit requirement on March 24, 2017. Now Michigan lawmakers are pushing to make the same change.

The Detroit Free Press reports that Rep. Michele Hoitenga (R-Manton)a sponsor of the permitless carry billsuggested the only reason a permit exists is so the state government can collect fees for the exercise of natural rights.

Hoitenga said:

It is currently legal in the state of Michigan for a law-abiding person to openly carry a firearm on their person without any training classes, fees or state bureaucracy. It only becomes illegal when a person puts on a coat because the gun then becomes concealed. Our Second Amendment should not be used as a money grab for permit fees

Michigan Open Carry president Tom Lambert echoed Hoitenga, equating the fee for a concealed carry permit with a coat tax.

Presently, law-abiding Michigan residents have to pay about $100 to the state and take a class before being allowed to carry a concealed handgun for self-defense. This burdensome fee will be done away with if Hoitengas bill passes and is signed into law.

AWR Hawkins is the Second Amendment columnist for Breitbart News and host of Bullets with AWR Hawkins, a Breitbart News podcast. He is also the political analyst for Armed American Radio. Follow him on Twitter: @AWRHawkins. Reach him directly at awrhawkins@breitbart.com.

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Michigan House Considers Bill to Make 2nd Amendment Your ... - Breitbart News

One of my main criticisms of many in the gun rights community is that sometimes they act like anti-gunners. Name-calling. Mockery. Screaming. Unprofessionalism. Violence. These are the weapons of the left. Our main arsenal should only consist of the Constitution, the writings of the Founding Fathers, logic, reason, and respect.

Those who follow my Facebook.com/2ndAmendmentUSA page have seen me criticize inappropriate behavior and remove those using harsh profanities against others. I also get upset by irrational claims and outright lies that hurt the firearms community, but I always try to take a breath, collect my thoughts and reply respectfully with logic (The Liberal Bane Cocktail).

Believe it or not, merely acting in a calm professional manner will win more undecideds to our side than all the homicide statistics or constitutional arguments that you can quote.

Last week, the Second Amendment supporting community lost a huge advocate. Bob Owens, founder and editor of BearingArms.com took his own life. Many of his friends, fans and followers were shocked to hear the news. It appears that some on the left celebrated the tragedy.

Jake Tapper of CNN, tweeted For family and friends of @bob_owens so sorry for your loss. Horrible news. For an anchor at a liberal 24-hour news network, this was very professional and respectful. However, his simple thoughtful tweet drew the ire of some of his cohorts. Here are some of the mean-spirited tweets:

Yes Jake, this is indeed a terrible loss. (Followed by a link to a story where Ownes called Trayvon Martin a thug)

-@willmenaker (podcaster/blogger)

Youre making a lot of fun new white supremacists friends Jake! Great place to plant your flag.

-@jacobtierney79 (Writer and director)

When Mr. Tapper tried to stop the spiteful trend, it only got worse.

Jake is crying because were being mean to his dead racist friend

-@leyawn (Internet artist)

Mr. Tapper eventually relented the argument with I didnt know him. Im just an adult. Again, this didnt stop the attacks, insults or mockery.

It seems Jake Tapper may have gotten a small realization of the attitude and hatred of those with his political leanings. Hopefully, he has the guts to stand up to it and possibly even decry it to try to make a change, but its doubtful that will ever happen.

I do not want to give any indication that I think conservatism has won a convert in Jake Tapper. I merely wanted to use an example of why we should be professional and respectful in our demeanor when discussing gun rights with others. Any behavior that is on par with the disrespectfulness mentioned above will surely drive away people who may be on the fence about Second Amendment rights.

Our arguments should not even be arguments. They should be discussions or informative facts. Dont drive away potential converts or supporters by acting like a jerk. You will drive them straight into the arms of Every Town for Gun Safety.

The old saying goes that you can catch more flies with honey than with vinegar. In your 2A advocacy, be sweet and smooth. Let the leftists be salty and bitter.

John Cylc is an eight year U.S. Army veteran. He is also a contributor to LifeZette. To read more of his reports Click Here Now.

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Acting Appropriately Is Key to Second Amendment Advocacy - Newsmax

Mec-Gar USA announced the introduction of its latest eight-round 1911 magazine, designed to offer support to Second Amendment organizations.

"We have always been strong supporters of the right of people to own and possess firearms," said David Larson, Mec-Gar USA national sales manager. "We are offering this magazine because we see the 1911 as America's gun and are donating a portion of the proceeds to ensure Second Amendment rights are protected."

The magazine is designed for .45 ACP-chambered guns only and features the full text of the Second Amendment engraved on the body of the magazine. The magazine is constructed using carbon steel and features heat treatment for added strength, as well as a blued finish to prevent corrosion.

The magazine spring is made using Type D music wire, and the magazine's construction is finished of with a polymer baseplate that is designed to withstand high-impact treatment. The baseplate is also easily removable for cleaning.

Mec-Gar is donating 10 percent of the profits from the sale of each of these Second Amendment 1911 pistol magazines to organizations that fight for the right to bear arms. The suggested retail price on the new magazines is $29.20.

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Mec-Gar Introduces Second Amendment 1911 Magazines - Shooting Illustrated (press release) (blog)

By Steve Kurtz, Georeen Tanner | Fox News

The Second Amendment is only 27 words, but Americans have used millions of words arguing over what it means. It guarantees the right of the people to keep and bear arms. But which people, what arms, and under what circumstances?

Two milestone cases involving the Second Amendment that reached the Supreme Court are District of Columbia v. Heller (2008), declaring an individual has a right to own a firearm, and McDonald v. City of Chicago (2010), affirming the Second Amendment applies to state law.

Now, if the Supreme Court decides to hear it, there may be a third major case in a decade: Peruta v. California.

At issue is the right to keep and bear arms outside the home. The Heller case specifically applies to situations within the home. Those who have petitioned the Supreme Court to hear the case are hoping the justices will see it as a logical extension of their earlier opinions.

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Second Amendment Case Peruta vs. California May Be Heading to ... - Fox News