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By C.A. Kip Crofts, guest columnistCrofts is a former U.S. Attorney for Wyoming
In the public policy debate in America today, probably no issues are more controversial than abortion and gun control.
Generally, views on the gun issue follow red/blue lines, with the red side believing they have a right to defend themselves and their families and businesses, while blue folks seem to hate and fear guns more than they do the people who pulled the trigger.
Although this seems to be changing with even blue folks buying guns now when they hear about riots, calls to defund the police, and news about police who fail or refuse to respond to 911 calls.
Both President-elect Biden and Vice-President elect Kamala Harris made it clear that they want more gun control. On the Joe Biden website they include fifteen pages of a plan for all the gun control laws they plan to pass.
Former U. S. Rep. Beto ORourke, who competed in the early primaries for President said, Hell yeah, were going to take your AR-15. If its a weapon that was designed to kill people on the battlefield, were going to buy it back. Later, when Beto dropped out of the race and endorsed Biden, Biden said to Beto, Youre going take care of the gun problem with me. Youre going to be the one who leads this effort.
Kamala Harris said over and over that, Weapons of war have no place in a civil society.
It is important to point out for these folks that the semiautomatic AR-15 type rifle that they are talking about, owned by millions of law-abiding Americans, has never been used as a weapon of war by the US Military or any other military force in the world. They seem to be talking about the M-16 military rifle that is already illegal for civilian use because it is a fully automatic (machine gun). This is a common falsehood used by gun control advocates, and even some federal judges, who either dont know the difference or are willing to lie about it to support their position.
The Biden platform proposes to reinstall the 1994 Assault Weapons Ban, which everyone agrees had no measurable effect on crime. The old law allowed continued possession of guns already owned but now he goes further and says he will also get rid of existing rifles with a buy back program. This sounds friendly enough, but it is clear the owner would not have a choice in the matter, and it also does not explain how the government can buy back something it never owned.
There are a number of other proposals in the platform that are less well-known but equally concerning to the millions of law-abiding gun owners in America.
I have written a book entitled, A Few Commonsense Gun Laws Is There Such a Thing and Can They Work? This is based on a lifetime of experience with guns and gun laws as an Army officer with service in two wars, a law enforcement officer, a federal prosecutor and US Attorney.
Generally, my answer to both questions is no. In that book I discuss current and proposed gun control laws, and explain why they either dont work or are unconstitutional, and usually are both. If we spent more time identifying and controlling dangerous or mentally ill people, and less time worrying about inanimate objects, such as guns, cars, hammers, knives, shoes and golf clubs, all of which can and have been used as dangerous weapons, wed be more effective, more intelligent, and more honest. If we take a gun away from a dangerous person all he has to do is get another. We arrest drunk drivers not the cars they drive.
It is futile to try to manage human behavior (violence) by trying to control inanimate objects (guns). It just doesnt work.
These laws infringe (the operative word in the Second Amendment) upon the rights of the millions of gun owners who do not commit crimes with their guns, while doing nothing to prevent criminal violence by a tiny minority of criminals who are willing to ignore all laws, including those regulating guns.
For example, does anyone think that a person planning to go to a school and kill children will be deterred by a sign announcing, Gun Free School Zone?
Or does anyone think that a violent fugitive will try to buy a gun knowing that he will have to provide a photo ID and submit to an FBI background check?
Of course, not hell steal it or pay someone to buy it for him. These laws are not only unworkable, but unjust because too often they punish people severely for mere possession of a gun when it is clear that they had no intention of doing any harm to anyone with the gun.
With a diminished majority in the House and at best a tie in the Senate, is there any likelihood President Biden will have any success in tilting this windmill? And if he does, what will happen when the laws get to the Supreme Court?
Since the landmark opinion by Justice Scalia in 2008 in theHellercase held that citizens have a right to possess guns for personal defense, the Court has been strangely silent on a host of subordinate issues deciding the limits of that right. I dont know but suspect Chief Justice Roberts, who joined Scalia in theHellerdecision, does not want to rule again in favor of gun rights, then read about a school shooting the next day. But judges do that all the time, as when they hold that a confession by a murderer was taken in violation of the Constitution and may not be used in his trial. It is their job to follow the Constitution not the opinion page of the New York Times.
It is embarrassing the way the Supreme Court has allowed the lower courts to fly all over the map on those issues. The worst example may be laws allowing the police to decide who has a need to exercise this constitutional right by carrying a gun for defense of self and family.
Some states say that a general desire for protection, without some specific threat, is not sufficient. So, I guess you call the police office that approves gun permits while the person is breaking down your door when you can describe a need? What other provision of the Bill of Rights is subject to such arbitrary control by police? Would we tolerate this government intrusion in any other context?
I suspect this may change with the confirmation of Justice Amy Coney Barrett to the Court. She has demonstrated in at least one case that she takes the Second Amendment seriously.
Wyoming prohibits felons from possessing firearms, as does federal law. But the Wyoming law limits that prohibition for a short list of violent felonies, whereas the federal law prohibits all felons from having guns. I argued in my book that federal law was not constitutional.
To abridge a clearly stated constitutional right, the government must show at least that the law has a rational basis. Conviction of a violent felony shows a predisposition for violence. But conviction of some innocuous white-collar crime proves no such thing.
There is simply no good reason for keeping Martha Stewart from having a skeet gun.
Im sure Justice Barrett never heard of me or read my book, but in a dissenting opinion she wrote while still a judge on the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals, Judge Barrett expressed that same opinion, arguing that a person convicted of mail fraud has not demonstrated that he is dangerous. This opinion greatly disturbed the Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee considering her nomination who will not be happy until no American citizen has any right to bear arms.
That opinion by Justice Barrett shows that there are now five justices who take the Second Amendment seriously and I believe the amendment will do just fine now unless Democrats are successful in stacking the Supreme Court to put Justice Barrett in the minority.
But Sen. Joe Manchin, Democrat from West Virginia, has already said hell vote against that and any change in the filibuster rule. So, it looks like the Second Amendment may survive another onslaught by politicians who havent read the Constitution or thought much about what it says, why it says it, and how important it is to sustain a free nation.
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Excerpt from:
The Second Amendment In A World Of President Biden, VP Harris, And Justice Barrett - Cowboy State Daily
- SMART-TD preserves member's Second Amendment rights, gets his job back - Smart Union - June 11th, 2024 [June 11th, 2024]
- Tellingly absent: Hunter Biden lawyers embrace Second Amendment, claim lack of evidence in motions for acquittal as federal gun trial speeds toward... - June 11th, 2024 [June 11th, 2024]
- Jacob Sullum - Taking away Second Amendment rights based on nonviolent crimes - Defiance Crescent News - June 11th, 2024 [June 11th, 2024]
- Kimball officials take stance on 2nd Amendment, parental rights, more in 3 resolutions - AOL - June 11th, 2024 [June 11th, 2024]
- GOA fighting to protect the Second Amendment rights of our nation's veterans - Gun Owners of America - June 11th, 2024 [June 11th, 2024]
- Lee Introduces Bill to Protect Gun Shop Owners and Uphold the Second Amendment -... - United States Senator Mike Lee - June 11th, 2024 [June 11th, 2024]
- Majority of House Democrats vote against amendment protecting certain vets gun rights - MyHometownToday.com - June 11th, 2024 [June 11th, 2024]
- Did Donald Trump Just Lose His Second Amendment Rights? - The National Interest Online - June 11th, 2024 [June 11th, 2024]
- MERC Proposes 2024 Draft Second Amendment Regulation For Grid Interactive Rooftop Renewable Energy Systems - SolarQuarter - May 29th, 2024 [May 29th, 2024]
- Donald Trump Isn't Telling the Truth on His Second Amendment Stance - The National Interest Online - May 29th, 2024 [May 29th, 2024]
- Opinion | Black airman's tragic death highlights the Second Amendment's failures - The Washington Post - The Washington Post - May 23rd, 2024 [May 23rd, 2024]
- Trump claims the Second Amendment is 'under siege' in NRA speech - The Associated Press - May 23rd, 2024 [May 23rd, 2024]
- Roger Fortson's Death Shows the Conflict Between Gun Rights and Paranoid Cops - Reason - May 23rd, 2024 [May 23rd, 2024]
- How the SCOTUS Ghost Gun Case Might Jeopardize Other Gun Laws - The Trace - May 23rd, 2024 [May 23rd, 2024]
- Supreme Court Declines to Hear Second Amendment Case on Maryland 'Assault Weapons' Ban - TPUSA LIVE - Turning Point USA - May 23rd, 2024 [May 23rd, 2024]
- Civics education: Learn the basics of why the Second Amendment exists - Tennessean - May 1st, 2024 [May 1st, 2024]
- The Future of the Second Amendment - Berkeley Law - April 18th, 2024 [April 18th, 2024]
- Mental Health Firearms Bill Divides Second Amendment Supporters in State House - NH Journal - April 18th, 2024 [April 18th, 2024]
- Biden Administration Unlawfully Expands Background Checks on Firearms Sales - Kevin Cramer - April 18th, 2024 [April 18th, 2024]
- The Second Amendment and 18-to-20-Year-Olds - Reason - March 29th, 2024 [March 29th, 2024]
- Chatbots like crime, hate firearms: A Second Amendment study - Washington Examiner - March 29th, 2024 [March 29th, 2024]
- OK: Oppose H.J.R. 1034, Unless Amended! | GOA - Gun Owners of America - March 29th, 2024 [March 29th, 2024]
- Republicans blast Biden admin's 'Red Flag Operation' as one that will 'violate' Second Amendment rights - Fox News - March 29th, 2024 [March 29th, 2024]
- Gordon Signed Four Second Amendment Bills, Vetoed Another - WyoToday.com - March 29th, 2024 [March 29th, 2024]
- A new resource center in the DOJ has a lot of people worried about their Second Amendment rights - Tri-State Alert - March 29th, 2024 [March 29th, 2024]
- 'It Has Everything to Do With Race': Protesters Clash Outside Kyle Rittenhouse Event - Yahoo News UK - March 29th, 2024 [March 29th, 2024]
- Governor signs firearm bills, vetoes bill to repeal gun-free zones - Buckrail - March 29th, 2024 [March 29th, 2024]
- FISA and the Second Amendment: Gun Owners Beware - RealClearPolicy - February 3rd, 2024 [February 3rd, 2024]
- Second Amendment protects the rest | Commentary | norfolkdailynews.com - Norfolk Daily News - February 3rd, 2024 [February 3rd, 2024]
- Ricketts Signs Brief to Defend Gun Owners and Second Amendment - Rural Radio Network - February 3rd, 2024 [February 3rd, 2024]
- Dems bow to local control on guns then take it away | BRAUCHLER - coloradopolitics.com - February 3rd, 2024 [February 3rd, 2024]
- Augusta County Second Amendment guy wants to protect schoolkids from books? - Augusta Free Press - February 3rd, 2024 [February 3rd, 2024]
- The 2nd Amendment is not about Hunting - WIBC - Indianapolis News & Politics - October 27th, 2023 [October 27th, 2023]
- Opinion: Protecting Our Second Amendment Rights in St. Louis ... - The Missouri Times - October 27th, 2023 [October 27th, 2023]
- Statement by Vice President Kamala Harris on the Mass Shooting in ... - The White House - October 27th, 2023 [October 27th, 2023]
- Letter: Second Amendment matters more than ever - Quad-City Times - October 27th, 2023 [October 27th, 2023]
- The Supreme Court is seriously considering whether domestic ... - Vox.com - October 27th, 2023 [October 27th, 2023]
- Letter urging House Speaker to act on gun violence sent hours prior ... - Woodland Daily Democrat - October 27th, 2023 [October 27th, 2023]
- Vermont: Gun-Controllers Are Abandoning Their Rural Roots - NRA ILA - October 27th, 2023 [October 27th, 2023]
- Foundation prepares to disburse roughly $32 million in legal aid ... - The Florida Bar - October 27th, 2023 [October 27th, 2023]
- Critics Sock Sean Hannity Over His Bizarre Personal 'Plan' For Mass ... - Yahoo! Voices - October 27th, 2023 [October 27th, 2023]
- Second Amendment Roundup: Fusillade of Amicus Briefs Filed in Rahimi - Reason - October 12th, 2023 [October 12th, 2023]
- 12 Defensive Gun Uses Bare Absurdity of Attacking Gun Rights - Daily Signal - October 12th, 2023 [October 12th, 2023]
- Horrific Attack In Israel Shows Critical Importance Of Second Amendment In America | David Hookstead - Outkick - October 12th, 2023 [October 12th, 2023]
- OPINION: Second Amendment rights deserve protection - The ... - Stanly News & Press - October 12th, 2023 [October 12th, 2023]
- Noel Hudson: What, exactly, was the well-regulated militia? - VTDigger - October 12th, 2023 [October 12th, 2023]
- Berkshire residents and officials join the debate at the statehouse ... - Berkshire Eagle - October 12th, 2023 [October 12th, 2023]
- Old gun controls that were constitutionally repealed are not precedents for modern gun control - Reason - October 7th, 2023 [October 7th, 2023]
- Rahimi: The Case That Might Turn the Court Even More Extreme on Guns - The New Republic - October 7th, 2023 [October 7th, 2023]
- Second Amendment proponents fear public health emergencies ... - The Statehouse File - October 7th, 2023 [October 7th, 2023]
- UGA political groups debate the Second Amendment at political ... - Red and Black - October 7th, 2023 [October 7th, 2023]
- From the Second Amendment to OxyContin Settlements, Here Are ... - WTTW News - October 7th, 2023 [October 7th, 2023]
- Goldwater Institute Urges Supreme Court to Respect Second ... - The Creative Corner - October 7th, 2023 [October 7th, 2023]
- I carry a firearm daily. Second Amendment rights are not absolute. - Daily Kos - October 7th, 2023 [October 7th, 2023]
- Free Lecture - To Trust the People with Arms: The Supreme Court ... - Buckeye Firearms Association - October 7th, 2023 [October 7th, 2023]
- Federal Judge Enjoins Several Maryland Restrictions on Carrying ... - Reason - October 7th, 2023 [October 7th, 2023]
- Guest columnist Lee Armstrong: Taking 2nd Amendment to extremes - GazetteNET - August 26th, 2023 [August 26th, 2023]
- Analysis: ACLU Warns of Government Overreach in Second ... - The Reload - August 26th, 2023 [August 26th, 2023]
- Madison's Militia: The Hidden History of the Second Amendment, by ... - Shepherd Express - August 26th, 2023 [August 26th, 2023]
- Massachusetts Judge Rules Law Against Carrying Guns Across ... - The Reload - August 26th, 2023 [August 26th, 2023]
- It's Not Hard to Tell Good Guy From Bad Guy, as 12 More Defensive ... - Heritage.org - August 26th, 2023 [August 26th, 2023]
- NRA-ILA Files Friend of the Court Brief Urging the Eighth Circuit to ... - NRA ILA - August 26th, 2023 [August 26th, 2023]
- Panhandling ordinance amendments pass first Council vote - Mountain Xpress - August 26th, 2023 [August 26th, 2023]
- Florida's New Concealed Carry Law: What You Need to Know - Hernando Sun - August 26th, 2023 [August 26th, 2023]
- Why did PragerU lie about being approved in Texas schools? - Reckon - August 26th, 2023 [August 26th, 2023]
- No longer a cold war, the Tennessee House and Senate are not ... - News Channel 5 Nashville - August 26th, 2023 [August 26th, 2023]
- What's News, Breaking: Tuesday, August 22, 2023 - Brooklyn Daily Eagle - August 26th, 2023 [August 26th, 2023]
- Sparse turnout for gun rights rally with Kyle Rittenhouse after Michigan gun reform laws signed Michigan Advance - Michigan Advance - July 21st, 2023 [July 21st, 2023]
- Tom Huckin: A misinterpretation of the Constitution leads to disastrous consequences - Salt Lake Tribune - July 21st, 2023 [July 21st, 2023]
- Debate on Second Amendment | News, Sports, Jobs - Williamsport Sun-Gazette - July 21st, 2023 [July 21st, 2023]
- Sorry, Gov. Newsom, but Citizens Want to Use Guns to Defend ... - Heritage.org - July 21st, 2023 [July 21st, 2023]
- D-Wave Quantum Inc. Enter into the Limited Waiver and Second Amendment to Loan and Security Agreement with PSPIB Unitas Investments II Inc -... - July 21st, 2023 [July 21st, 2023]
- Federal Judge Rejects Lawsuit to Uphold Texas Suppressor Law for ... - The Texan - July 21st, 2023 [July 21st, 2023]
- Governor's Council approves all 7 of Healey's pardon ... - WBUR News - July 21st, 2023 [July 21st, 2023]
- Jonah Goldberg: Why July is the cruelest month for GOP presidential ... - The Winchester Star - July 21st, 2023 [July 21st, 2023]
- Second Amendment Roundup: U.S. Seeking Cert on Prohibited Persons % - Reason - May 30th, 2023 [May 30th, 2023]
- 2nd Amendment Quotes for Hot Topics - Everyday Power - May 30th, 2023 [May 30th, 2023]
- ICYMI: Buffalo News Editorial: Gun Laws and a More Sensible ... - ny.gov - May 30th, 2023 [May 30th, 2023]
- Opinion | Prince William needs gun-free zones - The Washington Post - May 30th, 2023 [May 30th, 2023]
- Second Federal Judge Expands Block on Biden Pistol-Brace Ban as ... - The Reload - May 30th, 2023 [May 30th, 2023]