By David Codrea
USA – -(Ammoland.com)- “With Republicans in control of both chambers and the White House next year, Democrats and advocates predict they will have to pivot and block measures that expand gun owners’ rights,” Roll Call notes. Why Democrats would want to do that, and that the report came out on Bill of Rights Day, are telling.
“[Connecticut Sen. Chris] Murphy said advocates will go on the offensive at the state level, focusing on adding state ballot measures relating to expanded background checks,” Roll Call explains. “He also expressed hope that Congress could address the so-called terror gap, referring to a Democratic push to bar suspected terrorists from purchasing guns.”
That first part was predictable, and in fact, predicted in this column right after Trump won.
Astroturf-funded state measures are the wave of the near future. The formula: Pick a “blue” state; throw in a ton of money from New York City and Silicon Valley; hire the best propagandists money can buy; rely on media allies to amplify the signal and demonize gun owners; spook the useful idiot herd; and steamroll over grassroots volunteers who enjoy neither the money, the media savvy, the contacts nor the reach.
Lather, rinse, repeat.
The good thing is future gun-grabber gains will likely be reduced to “sure win” states, as Nevada only gave them a <1% victory margin. So much for the “fake news” meme that 80% of Americans, including most gun owners, agree with registration-enabling edicts. And there aren’t a lot more substantive edicts they can impose in places like California or New Jersey, especially with the expected reconstituted Supreme Court majority on the way.
The second goal, national due process-ignoring prior restraints under the guise of a “terror watchlist” (“No Fly/No Buy”) should be a concern since Donald Trump telegraphed his support for the concept while debating Hillary Clinton. It’s especially problematic because “kinder, gentler” Republican versions are being touted. While words like “due process” are being thrown around as some kind of reassurance, the fact remains that a fundamental right could be denied to those who have not even been charged with a crime, let alone convicted.
Message to the GOP:
No. Stop it. If you think you’ll satisfy “progressives” and get them to stop attacking you as “extremists” by throwing them a sop, here’s a real world experiment you can conduct first to approximate the outcome: Climb into the hyena enclosure at the local zoo, throw the circling predators a scrap of flesh along with a conciliatory proclamation about the importance of compromise, and see if they then let you alone.
Promise you’ll try that first.
While it’s reassuring to see that fresh infringements at the national level look stoppable and will be limited at the state level to “progressive” enclaves, and that gun owners are poised to make some real gains (provided promises are kept), now is hardly the time to relax.
“First and foremost, we have to play defense,” Murphy admits. That means they’re on the ropes.
Now is the time to pummel the prohibitionists.
About David Codrea:
David Codrea is the winner of multiple journalist awards for investigating / defending the RKBA and a long-time gun rights advocate who defiantly challenges the folly of citizen disarmament.
In addition to being a field editor/columnist at GUNS Magazine and associate editor for Oath Keepers, he blogs at “The War on Guns: Notes from the Resistance,” and posts on Twitter: @dcodrea and Facebook.