Democrat Blake Gendebien has spent his campaign presenting himself as a rural, independent-minded Democrat who can compete in one of New York&#8217;s most conservative congressional districts.
But newly obtained undercover audio by The Daily Wire reveals Gendebien telling voters and activists that he supports abortion without restrictions, universal background checks and gun-storage laws, and broad vaccination mandates.
Gendebien is running against Republican Anthony Constantino in <a href="https://censusreporter.org/profiles/50000US3621-congressional-district-21-ny/">New York’s 21st Congressional District</a>, a sprawling Upstate constituency currently represented by Elise Stefanik (R-NY). The district encompasses 15 counties and more than 16,000 square miles, stretching across much of New York&#8217;s North Country, the state&#8217;s northernmost geographic region. The district voted for President Donald Trump by roughly 21 points in 2024, according to <a href="https://punchbowl.news/article/campaigns/constantino-gendebien-race-tightens/">Punchbowl News</a>, and Stefanik <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2024-elections/new-york-us-house-district-21-results">won re-election with nearly 62% of the vote</a>. Gendebien, a second-generation dairy farmer, has nevertheless attracted national Democratic attention as Democrats look to compete in traditionally Republican districts.
Gendebien has emphasized his rural background and willingness to work across party lines as he campaigns in the district. But in recordings obtained exclusively by The Daily Wire, he describes positions on some of the most contentious issues in American politics that are considerably more explicit than the moderate image he has cultivated on the campaign trail.
He was asked during a September 3 event in front of an audience of healthcare workers whether he supported any restrictions on abortion and what limits he would impose. 
“I fully stand with women and the decision to control their reproductive care is between their physician, between their family, and, of course, themselves,” Gendebien responded. “We need to go back to the precedent set by Roe v. Wade.” 
Pressed specifically on restrictions, Gendebien could not identify any.
Gendebien also spoke favorably about Planned Parenthood during another portion of the event, discussing his mother’s work there. 
“My mom also taught reproductive classes at Planned Parenthood in Ogdensburg, New York, when there was an office there,” he said.
His position on guns is similarly explicit. Gendebien said he supports both universal background checks and laws governing firearm storage. 
“We have to have universal background checks, we have to have safe gun storage laws,” Gendebien said in the audio obtained by The Daily Wire. “And we’ve got to take those things seriously.”
Gendebien has also endorsed maintaining vaccination mandates. During the September 3 event, he said, “I’m laser focused on making sure that we don’t lose vaccination mandates. That’s just, to me, it seems crazy. So we need healthy communities, we need healthy kids, and I don’t want to go back in time.”
Michael Waller, Gendebien&#8217;s campaign manager, did not address specifics in response to the Daily Wire&#8217;s questions. &#8220;Blake has spent his whole life in this district — farming, coaching, running the school board, and representing farmers for a decade,&#8221; he said. &#8220;People here know where he stands, that&#8217;s why he&#8217;s earned support from Republicans, Independents, and Democrats alike.&#8221;
The comments provide a more detailed picture of Gendebien’s policy positions as he tries to win a seat that has long favored Republicans. The Democrat has emphasized his background as a dairy farmer and argued that economic problems facing the North Country — including energy costs, trade with Canada and rural health care — transcend traditional party divisions.
He has also publicly distanced himself from New York City Democratic Mayor Zohran Mamdani and the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) while stressing his willingness to work with Republicans in Congress, according to the <a href="https://www.timesunion.com/capitol/article/ny-21-gendebien-balances-party-support-moderate-22407740.php">Times Union</a>. That strategy reflects the reality of running as a Democrat in a district that backed Trump decisively, but Gendebien’s comments on abortion, guns, and vaccines undermine the moderate label Gendebien has worked hard to curate.
The race has drawn attention from national Democrats. Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD) has campaigned with Gendebien, while the Blue Dog PAC has <a href="https://bluedogdems.com/blue-dog-pac-endorses-six-new-candidates-built-to-win-in-competitive-districts/">endorsed</a> him.
Gendebien has had to readjust his rhetoric for Democratic leadership before. In August, his campaign aired a television ad promising voters that he would “stand up to Kathy Hochul or work with Donald Trump, anything to do what’s right for upstate.”
According to two people familiar with the situation who spoke to <a href="https://www.politico.com/newsletters/new-york-playbook/2026/08/21/running-with-hochul-at-arms-length-01045147">Politico’s New York Playbook</a>, Gendebien was subsequently told that the ad needed to come down and that he would be suspended from the New York Democratic Party’s statewide coordinated campaign while it remained on the air.
The 30-second ad aired for roughly 10 days in the Albany television market, according to AdImpact. Gendebien’s campaign disputed that characterization, saying the spot had simply reached the end of its planned run.
Gendebien nonetheless appeared at the opening of a Democratic coordinated-campaign office shortly afterward, and state Democratic Chairman Jay Jacobs said the party remained committed to supporting his campaign.
Republicans have seized on that tension to argue that Gendebien’s moderate presentation is primarily a campaign strategy. “Partisan Democrat Blake Gendebien” is how the National Republican Congressional Committee has described him, while Anthony Constantino’s campaign has sought to portray him as aligned with the national Democratic Party.

Undercover Recordings Blow Up Dem’s ‘Moderate’ Pitch To Voters

2026 midterm election

abortion

blake gendebien

covid-19 vaccine mandate

gun control

new york 21st congressional district

The National Rifle Association is going on the road for the 2026 midterm elections, launching its first-ever national bus tour Thursday to mobilize gun owners across 13 states where control of Congress and statehouses is up for grabs, the group exclusively told The Daily Wire.
The NRA Institute for Legislative Action (NRA-ILA) launched the 2026 NRA’s Gun Bus Battleground Tour, sending a tour bus on a more than two-month, 63-stop trek through key battleground states. The tour will conclude on Election Day, November 3.
The tour is designed to bring NRA-ILA staff and volunteers directly to voters rather than relying on traditional campaign advertising. “Gun owners don’t need another polished ad interrupting their favorite show. They need real conversations about what’s at stake for the Second Amendment,” NRA-ILA Executive Director John Commerford told the Daily Wire. “The Gun Bus Tour puts NRA staff and volunteers on the ground where it matters most — talking directly with the men and women who form the backbone of this organization,” Commerford continued. “This is how we build lasting political power: one conversation, one neighborhood, one vote at a time.”
The tour will travel through Georgia, Iowa, Michigan, Montana, Nebraska, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Texas, Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming. Stops will range from gun stores and manufacturing facilities to college football tailgates and community events, including Michigan’s annual Oktoberfest. The tour will also feature appearances from pro-Second Amendment candidates running for local, state, and federal office.
The NRA’s first stop will be in Dillon, Montana, at Montana’s Biggest Weekend, a Labor Day celebration centered around the Beaverhead County Fair. The event includes rodeo competitions, livestock shows, a carnival, a country music concert, and a parade.
Other stops include college football matchups, including the Iowa vs. Iowa State tailgate in Iowa City; the Wisconsin vs. Penn State tailgate in State College, Pennsylvania; and the Kentucky vs. South Carolina tailgate festivities in Columbia, South Carolina. They will also stop at the NRA’s National Sporting Clays Championship in San Antonio, Texas.
The tour comes as Republicans defend their majorities in both chambers of Congress and as gun rights remain a major dividing line between the parties. The NRA says its goal is to ensure that pro-Second Amendment candidates retain control of Congress and state governments while supporting candidates in critical state and local races.
NRA CEO Doug Hamlin warned that recent gains for gun owners could be reversed if Republicans lose control of Congress or statehouses. “Across the country, the NRA is working tirelessly to advance and protect the rights of law-abiding citizens,” Hamlin said. “Thanks to our incredible staff and millions of NRA members, we have secured major victories that have ushered in a golden age of gun ownership.”
“However, while we are enjoying unprecedented success, if we lose pro-gun majorities in Congress and the statehouses, the incredible gains we have made can be wiped out by the stroke of a pen,” he added. “That is why it is more critical than ever for gun owners to get activated and vote to protect their sacred, God-given rights.&#8221;

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EXCLUSIVE: NRA Hits The Road For Midterm Battleground State Tour

congress

national rifle association

politics

second amendment

Attorney General Todd Blanche is launching a new federal process that could give as many as 30 million Americans a pathway to regain their Second Amendment rights, reviving a mechanism that has been effectively unavailable for more than three decades.
The Justice Department <a href="https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/attorney-general-blanche-launches-new-process-restore-federal-firearm-rights">finalized a rule</a> Monday establishing a process for individuals prohibited from possessing firearms to petition the federal government to restore their firearm rights.
“The Second Amendment is not a second-class right, and the federal government should not permanently deprive Americans of a constitutional right without regard to whether they pose a danger to public safety,” Blanche said. “This rule establishes a rigorous, commonsense process that protects the public while giving deserving Americans a real path to restoration.”
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives has been unable to process such applications since 1992, when Congress prohibited the agency from using appropriated funds for that purpose. Congress authorized the attorney general to restore firearm rights under Section 925(c). The new Justice Department program establishes a separate process through which eligible individuals can apply for relief.
U.S. Pardon Attorney Edward Martin said the new program provides a pathway for approximately 30 million Americans who have lost their Second Amendment rights. “President Trump keeps making history — this time by his unprecedented restoration of firearms rights to millions of Americans,” Martin said. “Over the past months, we have worked at the direction of Attorney General Todd Blanche to build a program to give a pathway for restoration for the 30 million Americans who have lost their Second Amendment rights.”
The rule does not automatically restore firearm rights to anyone currently prohibited from possessing a gun. Instead, applicants will have to demonstrate to the attorney general’s satisfaction that the circumstances leading to their firearm prohibition, combined with their record, reputation, and subsequent conduct, show they will not act in a manner dangerous to public safety. The Justice Department will review applications individually and maintain strong presumptions against granting relief to people considered to pose heightened risks to public safety.
&#8220;Each applicant must establish to the Attorney General’s satisfaction that the circumstances giving rise to the prohibition, together with the applicant’s record, reputation, and subsequent conduct, demonstrate that the applicant is not likely to act in a manner dangerous to public safety and that granting relief would not be contrary to the public interest,&#8221; according to the press release from the DOJ.
Absent extraordinary circumstances, violent felons, registered sex offenders, illegal aliens, and others who present an ongoing danger will remain presumptively ineligible. It will not override independent restrictions imposed by state law.
The National Rifle Association, which has long advocated for restoring firearm rights to people who have completed their sentences and are not considered dangerous, welcomed the announcement while noting that it had sought several changes to the final rule.
“NRA has long championed full restoration of Second Amendment rights for individuals who paid their debts to society and who are not demonstrably dangerous to public safety,” John Commerford, Executive Director of the National Rifle Association Institute for Legislative Action, told The Daily Wire. “While the final rule falls short on a few of these suggestions, it is an important step in the right direction.”
“As ever, we will continue our advocacy to ensure no American is unduly deprived of the right to keep and bear arms,” Commerford concluded.
Federal law bars various categories of people from possessing firearms, with felony convictions among the most common grounds for a federal firearm disability. The restrictions have increasingly come under scrutiny following the Supreme Court’s 2022 decision in New York State Rifle &amp; Pistol Association v. Bruen, which established that modern firearm regulations must be consistent with the nation’s historical tradition of firearm regulation.
Individuals seeking restoration of their federal firearm rights can access eligibility information, application instructions, and the Justice Department&#8217;s application process through the Federal Firearm Rights Restoration Program.

US-WEAPONS-STORE

Trump Admin Takes Aim At Decades Old Roadblock To Restoring Gun Rights

department of justice

todd blanche

Former Philadelphia Eagles running back and Super Bowl champion Wendell Smallwood could be released from federal prison early to spend what may be the final days of his 8-year-old daughter&#8217;s life after a New Jersey judge allowed him to withdraw his guilty plea in a separate state gun case.  
Smallwood, 32, could be released from Fort Dix Federal Correctional Institution as early as August 17 after Gloucester County Superior Court Judge Renard Scott approved the withdrawal of his guilty plea on August 7, removing an obstacle to his release from federal custody. 
Smallwood&#8217;s daughter, Mila, was diagnosed earlier this year with diffuse anaplastic Wilms tumor, a rare form of kidney cancer. She underwent unsuccessful chemotherapy, and doctors say she may have only days or weeks to live, according to the <a href="https://www.delawareonline.com/story/news/crime/2026/08/10/former-eagles-running-back-fights-to-be-with-his-dying-daughter-wendell-smallwood/91221627007/?gnt-cfr=1&amp;gca-cat=p&amp;gca-uir=true&amp;gca-epti=z115440p118450n00----l000350c00----e1175xxv115440d--45--b--45--&amp;gca-ft=194&amp;gca-ds=sophi">Delaware News Journal</a>. 
Scott pointed directly to Mila&#8217;s condition when discussing his decision to allow Smallwood to withdraw the plea. The judge also noted that Smallwood was approximately three months away from qualifying for full parole on his state sentence.  
“[It’s an] unfortunate situation none of us would want to face,&#8221; Scott said. &#8220;This is an illness that is untreatable. His daughter has days, possibly weeks remaining.” 
“They can’t do anything except make her comfortable now,&#8221; Smallwood’s attorney, Yaron Helmer, said. &#8220;I can’t think of a stronger reason than to be with his dying daughter.” 
Smallwood had been serving two separate sentences concurrently: an 18-month federal sentence stemming from fraud involving COVID-19 economic relief programs and a three-year New Jersey sentence stemming from his possession of an AR-15-style rifle.
A federal appeals court ruling in July finding New Jersey&#8217;s ban on AR-15-style rifles unconstitutional provided Smallwood with justification to challenge his state conviction. Scott&#8217;s decision to allow Smallwood to withdraw his guilty plea removed the state sentence as an obstacle to his release.
Smallwood had legally purchased the weapon in Pennsylvania but carried it into New Jersey. Scott described the incident as a “poor judgment call” and said Smallwood was not a threat to the community.
Smallwood played college football at West Virginia before the Eagles selected him in the fifth round of the 2016 NFL Draft. He spent three seasons in Philadelphia and was a member of the Eagles team that defeated the New England Patriots in Super Bowl LII.
He later played for Washington and Pittsburgh.

Baltimore Ravens v Philadelphia Eagles

Former Super Bowl Champ Could Leave Prison Early To Be With Dying Child

new jersey

philadelphia eagles

prison

wendell smallwood

A federal appeals court ruled Friday that New Jersey’s ban on semiautomatic rifles and high-capacity magazines violates the Second Amendment, marking the first time a federal appellate court has struck down a state ban on so-called assault weapons. 
The Third Circuit reached the decision by a 10-5 vote, expanding a lower court ruling that had found New Jersey&#8217;s <a href="https://law.justia.com/codes/new-jersey/title-2c/section-2c-39-1/">ban</a> on Colt AR-15 rifles unconstitutional.
A lower court had previously ruled that New Jersey&#8217;s ban on Colt AR-15 rifles violated the Second Amendment while upholding the state&#8217;s large-capacity magazine restriction. The appeals court went further, concluding the constitutional protection extends to all semiautomatic rifles covered by the law.
“We agree with the District Court that New Jersey’s ban on Colt AR-15s violates the Second Amendment,&#8221; the court <a href="https://www2.ca3.uscourts.gov/opinarch/242415p.pdf">wrote</a>. It added that &#8220;the same result&#8221; applies to the broader class of semiautomatic rifles covered by the state&#8217;s assault weapons ban.  
The appeals court relied heavily on the Supreme Court’s 2022 decision in New York State Rifle &amp; Pistol Association v. Bruen, which held that modern gun laws must be &#8220;consistent with this nation&#8217;s ⁠historical tradition of ​firearm regulation,&#8221; US News <a href="https://www.usnews.com/news/top-news/articles/2026-07-17/us-appeals-court-declares-new-jerseys-ban-on-assault-rifles-unconstitutional">reports</a>. 
New Jersey Attorney General Jennifer Davenport, a Democrat, blasted the ruling, saying it was “as unfortunate as it is legally incorrect”
“Assault weapons and large-capacity magazines play a dangerous role in the modern epidemic of mass shootings, and New Jersey acted reasonably and lawfully in restricting them,&#8221; Davenport said.
She added that the state was already exploring its legal options following the ruling.
The Firearms Policy Coalition, one of the plaintiffs in the case, celebrated the decision.
“This is a massive victory for the People and another devastating blow to the authoritarian war on gun owners,” FPC’s President Brandon Combs <a href="https://www.firearmspolicy.org/fpc-wins-major-third-circuit-victory-against-new-jersey-assault-weapon-ban">said</a>. 
The Supreme Court is currently considering challenges to similar bans in Connecticut and Illinois.

Second Amendment Concepts – Firearm on a scale

Gun Owners Just Scored A Huge Court Victory

courts

Gun Laws

U.S.

President Donald Trump survived yet another serious assassination attempt, this time at the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner.
Anti-gun advocates have wasted no time framing this as a gun control issue. Again.
It’s a particularly unserious blame shift this time, given that the would-be assassin, Cole Allen, legally purchased his firearms in California and attempted to kill the president in Washington, D.C. — two places awash with the very types of “commonsense” gun laws that advocates demand be imposed on a national scale.
The problem isn’t a lack of gun laws. The problem is that those laws, as we so often see, are incapable of stopping people like Allen from simply ignoring or sidestepping them.
Federal law required Allen to declare his firearms in his checked luggage when transporting them interstate as a passenger on a common or contract carrier, such as Amtrak. California state law separately prohibited Allen from possessing his firearms in a public transit facility unless he complied with the appropriate policies for declaring them in checked baggage. He violated both laws when he failed to declare his firearms and transported them in his carry-on.
Both California and D.C. make it a crime to transport guns outside the home unless certain conditions are met, including that the guns are transported for a lawful purpose and to a place where the person can legally possess them. “Attempting to assassinate the president” is not a lawful purpose. Although Allen may have lawfully owned his guns in California, he lacked valid D.C. firearm registration certifications, which are required to legally possess firearms in the nation’s capital. Moreover, because Allen didn’t have a valid D.C. gun registration certificate, merely possessing ammunition was a crime.
It’s a felony in D.C. to carry a handgun in public without a D.C. concealed carry permit, something Allen didn’t possess. It’s another felony to carry any long gun in public in D.C. under any circumstance — and while federal prosecutors have a non-enforcement policy with respect to people carrying validly registered long guns, that wouldn’t apply to Allen. Yet, neither provision deterred him from charging through a D.C. hotel with both an unregistered shotgun and an illegally concealed handgun.
Another provision of the D.C. Code prohibits the carrying of concealed handguns within 1,000 feet (roughly 3 football fields) of a government dignitary or high-ranking official moving under the protection of law enforcement, at least when signs, law enforcement perimeters, or other means make it obvious that there’s a designated area of protection. Not only was the security perimeter at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner obvious to everyone, but Allen knew the nature of the security perimeter and attempted to breach it for the purpose of shooting high-ranking officials within it.
The number of “commonsense gun laws” that Allen simply ignored or sidestepped with ease is devastating to the narrative that such laws are necessary for public safety.
But even more devastating is the shocking number of “commonsense gun laws” with which Allen actually complied.
He didn’t just skip down to his nearest convenience store and buy a gun from a vending machine. The caricature of “easy access to firearms” exists apart from reality in any state, but particularly so in California, the Mecca of American gun control that virtually every activist group praises as the high-water mark of Second Amendment restrictions, whose policies they believe ought to be emulated nationwide.
California not only prohibits residents from owning standard capacity magazines and semiautomatic long guns arbitrarily deemed to be “assault weapons,” but limits them to a state-maintained roster of handguns that the government pre-approves as “safe.” Prospective gun buyers must first obtain a Firearms Safety Certificate by passing a 30-question written exam covering the basics of gun handling, safe storage, and state and federal gun laws, and then pass an in-person “safe handling demonstration” with the firearm in front of the dealer. They cannot leave the store with a gun unless they purchase a state-approved firearm safety device or sign an affidavit stating they already own a state-approved lock box or gun safe (and provide proof of ownership).
Californians don’t need an ID to vote, but they need one to buy a gun. Many of the state’s most populous counties require concealed carry permit applicants to provide proof of citizenship or lawful permanent residency. Handgun purchasers must also provide secondary evidence of their California residency that matches their driver’s license address.
The state has universal background check laws (including for ammunition sales). It imposes a 10-day waiting period on all gun purchases. It has virtually eliminated the right of law-abiding young adults to keep and bear arms. It punishes lawful gun sales with an 11 percent state excise tax on top of the existing 10-11 percent federal gun sales tax. It has de facto point-of-sale universal gun registration requirements.
Short of completely banning guns, California and D.C. already had in place virtually all the burdens on the right to keep and bear arms that advocates insist are necessary for public safety. None of these “commonsense” gun laws protected the president of the United States from a man bent on murdering him — that credit belongs to the well-armed members of the president’s taxpayer-funded security detail.
Perhaps it’s time that gun control advocates find another boogeyman for political violence.
***
Amy Swearer is a senior legal fellow at the Edwin Meese III Institute for the Rule of Law at Advancing American Freedom Foundation.

Florida, Miami Beach, Colllins Park, March for Our Lives, youth gun control rally, Parent holding Gun Control Now sign

The ‘Commonsense Gun Laws’ That Didn’t Stop Trump Assassination Attempt

assassination attempt

DW Opinion

Washingtonians just notched a landmark Second Amendment victory as the <a href="https://www.dccourts.gov/sites/default/files/2026-03/Benson%2520v%2520US%2520et%2520al%252023-CV-0541%2520FINAL.pdf">D.C. Court of Appeals</a> held the District’s 10-round limit on magazine sizes unconstitutional. Why is U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro — who <a href="https://www.mediaite.com/politics/jeanine-pirro-attempts-damage-control-after-being-shredded-by-the-right-over-her-gun-comments/">insists</a> that she is “a proud supporter of the Second Amendment” and who may be <a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2026/04/09/trump-attorney-general-blanche-dhillion-pirro-00864988">in the running</a> to be the next Attorney General — asking the court to second-guess itself?
After decades of struggling under one of the strictest gun-control schemes in the country, residents of the nation’s capital might have expected to breathe a sigh of relief when President Donald Trump was reelected. After all, he <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/fact-sheets/2025/02/fact-sheet-president-donald-j-trump-is-protecting-americans-second-amendment-rights/">boasts</a> of “standing up for” the right to keep and bear arms, and his Department of Justice is taking some <a href="https://www.cato.org/commentary/getting-gun-permit-la-county-shouldnt-be-rarer-nolan-ryan-no-hitter">bold steps</a> in that direction — including filing <a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-administration-lawsuit-washington-dc-guns-661b8f71c9ee6c28883fe726f17230dc">a lawsuit</a> against D.C.’s ban on many semiautomatic weapons.
The Department should also be joining locals in celebrating the recent court decision in <a href="https://www.dccourts.gov/sites/default/files/2026-03/Benson%2520v%2520US%2520et%2520al%252023-CV-0541%2520FINAL.pdf">Benson v. District of Columbia</a>. The case began when Tyree Benson was arrested for possessing a gun with a detachable, 30-round magazine. That was illegal because Benson had not registered the gun or obtained a carry license. But Benson had a compelling defense: the District would not have let him register the gun because it bans magazines that can hold more than 10 rounds — and that restriction is itself unconstitutional under the Second Amendment.
D.C.’s highest court agreed and, on March 5, a three-judge panel struck down the ban. A two-judge majority observed that “about half of the magazines in the hands of our citizenry” hold more than 10 rounds and “come standard with the most popular firearms sold in America today.” The Constitution does not let a locale ban such “arms in common and ubiquitous use by law-abiding citizens across this country.” The Benson decision now stands as a monument to common sense, protecting magazines that many Americans rely on.
Surprisingly, the court reached this decision with the encouragement of Pirro’s office. Though she had initially prosecuted Benson, she ultimately agreed that the District’s law violated his rights.
Then something even less expected happened: Pirro <a href="https://efile.dcappeals.gov/document/view.do?documentID=410696&amp;csIID=67629">asked the court</a> to press rewind. It backed the District’s request for the court to rehear the case en banc, meaning <a href="https://www.dccourts.gov/court-of-appeals/court-of-appeals-judges">all seven of its judges</a> would participate in the decision.
It is anyone’s guess whether Washington gunowners will manage to run the court’s gauntlet a second time. One of the three judges who heard the case the first time <a href="https://www.dccourts.gov/sites/default/files/2026-03/Benson%2520v%2520US%2520et%2520al%252023-CV-0541%2520FINAL.pdf">dissented</a> from the decision. <a href="https://www.dccourts.gov/court-of-appeals/court-of-appeals-judges/shanker-vijay">All</a> <a href="https://www.dccourts.gov/court-of-appeals/court-of-appeals-judges/beckwith-corinne">four</a> <a href="https://www.dccourts.gov/court-of-appeals/court-of-appeals-judges/howard-iii-john-p">of</a> <a href="https://www.dccourts.gov/court-of-appeals/court-of-appeals-judges/mcleese-iii-roy-w">the</a> judges who would join the case, if reheard, were appointed by Democratic presidents. Letting the decision stand would vindicate the Second Amendment — rehearing would roll the dice with virtually no chance of achieving a better constitutional ruling.
Pirro <a href="https://efile.dcappeals.gov/document/view.do?documentID=410696&amp;csIID=67629">attempted to explain</a> her stance. While noting that she continued to believe the District law is unconstitutional, she fretted that the court’s decision went too far, saying it should have merely limited the law’s application to extremely high-capacity magazines. (Never mind that the law the court invalidated is far broader than that.) Further, she argued that the law wasn’t what kept Benson from registering his gun. Had he gone down to the station, the police could have “confiscate[d] the prohibited large-capacity magazine while registering the firearm itself.” Judge Deahl, the author of the majority opinion, deemed this poppycock, <a href="https://efile.dcappeals.gov/document/view.do?documentID=409666&amp;csIID=67629">writing</a> that the District could “with a snap of its fingers” comply with the Constitution by “no longer conditioning the registration and licensure of firearms upon their firing capacity.”
Setting aside the technicalities of D.C.’s gun-registration laws, Second Amendment advocates are <a href="https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2026/apr/9/second-amendment-groups-rip-dc-us-attorney-pirro-hurting-gun-rights/">wondering</a> why Pirro is working overtime to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. The National Association for Gun Rights said her support for rehearing “risks undermining” the Benson decision. Gun Owners of America warned: “Stop adopting anti-gun positions, DOJ!” <a href="https://thereload.com/analysis-jeanine-pirro-may-have-just-fumbled-a-long-sought-hardware-ban-circuit-split-for-gun-rights-activists/">The Reload</a> noted that Pirro’s brief “did not even need to exist.”
This is not the first time Pirro has shown hostility toward the Second Amendment. Back in 2004, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/09/01/us/politics/dc-crime-trump-guns.html">she said</a>, “There is no legitimate purpose in possessing an assault weapon other than to kill as many people as quickly as possible.” Two months ago, she <a href="https://www.cato.org/blog/us-attorney-jeanine-pirro-threatens-jail-anyone-who-brings-gun-dc">threatened</a>: “I don’t care if you have a license in another district, and I don’t care if you’re a law-abiding gun owner somewhere else. You bring a gun into this District, count on going to jail, and hope you get the gun back.” Following backlash, Pirro put out a <a href="https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/jeanine-pirro-attempts-damage-control-164555079.html?guccounter=1&amp;guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuY2F0by5vcmcv&amp;guce_referrer_sig=AQAAAA3ENxYwnYqPOo0a93nk_CqihxFuUJ10_yU3jpWSW7vNBU-XniEKTZVyHxIAtFLqBREbSUodAqEqdTklh7Vr9b8llOAbnogh68VN4iBm0dT0PZsF1TzOsqCg_d4aTEs3USGIr63_pX99cw3kGbsEYoW5qF2nxcZ6eaRzrGI0FGcd">social media video</a> casting herself as “a proud high-heeled gun owner.”
Those heels are doing quite the dance on the Second Amendment. Should President Trump nominate her to lead the DOJ, every American gun owner will get to know the dangers of Pirro’s pirouettes, facing an attorney general who voices support for their rights while undermining them at every turn.
***
Matthew Cavedon is the director of the Cato Institute’s Project on Criminal Justice.

U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro Announces Take Down of D.C. Fentanyl And PCP Drug Trafficking Crew

Jeanine Pirro’s Second Amendment Two-Step 

Washington D.C.

Virginia Democrats are advancing a sweeping slate of gun control measures that critics say could dramatically reshape firearm ownership in the Commonwealth, with more than 30 proposed restrictions now moving through the legislature and toward the desk of Gov. Abigail Spanberger.
Second Amendment advocates warn the legislation represents one of the most aggressive gun control pushes in the state’s modern history, and could serve as a template for similar policies across the country. 
“This is not just what’s going to happen in Virginia — this is the blueprint for D.C. and across the country,” said Justin Davis, director of public affairs for the National Rifle Association, in a phone call with The Daily Wire.
Before the legislative session even began, Virginia Democrats had already pre-filed 18 gun control bills. That number quickly ballooned to more than 30 proposals covering a wide range of restrictions, including firearm bans, magazine capacity limits, taxes on gun purchases, and new regulations affecting shooting ranges and firearms businesses.
Among the most controversial is <a href="https://lis.virginia.gov/bill-details/20261/SB749">SB 749</a>, introduced by Dan Helmer, which would ban certain semi-automatic firearms and impose new limits on magazine capacity.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560">
Virginia Del. Dan Helmer (D), a major architect of the anti-gun bills that have swept the commonwealth, is running for U.S. Congress.
His gun confiscation agenda won&#8217;t stop in Virginia. Now he&#8217;s seeking to take guns from law-abiding citizens across the nation. <a href="https://t.co/eYo1g0IAK0">pic.twitter.com/eYo1g0IAK0</a>
— NRA (@NRA) <a href="https://twitter.com/NRA/status/2024604914370928686?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 19, 2026</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
The legislation has already undergone several revisions as lawmakers debated how broadly the restrictions should apply. At various points, the bill has included, and then removed, a grandfather clause allowing current gun owners to keep existing firearms. The proposed magazine limit has also changed during negotiations, shifting from a 10-round limit to a restriction on fixed magazines with a capacity of 15 rounds.
Another proposal, SB 727, would restrict carrying and transporting certain firearms on public property. Critics say the language leaves significant uncertainty about how gun owners could legally move firearms outside their homes. 
Additional bills, including SB 27 and HB 21, would impose new “responsible conduct” standards on firearm manufacturers, distributors, and retailers. Critics say the proposals create vague liability standards that could expose gun businesses to lawsuits without clearly defining what constitutes compliance.
Small firearms retailers are already expressing concern about the legislation and what it could mean for their livelihoods. “Mom-and-pop gun shops are scared sh*tless,” Davis said, arguing that the uncertainty created by the proposed laws could devastate small businesses across the state.
Gun rights advocates say the proposals mark a dramatic shift for a state long known for its strong gun culture and constitutional protections.
In a statement obtained by The Daily Wire, John Commerford, executive director of the NRA Institute for Legislative Action, said, “Virginia serves as a stark warning to the rest of the country. Progressive politicians have hijacked the state and are attempting to turn the Commonwealth into California. Now, a once proud freedom-loving state is staring down the barrel of radical gun control measures, including bans on commonly owned firearms, standard capacity magazines, and a whole host of laws that further erode the constitutional rights of law-abiding Virginians.”
Commerford added that the NRA is preparing legal challenges should the measures become law.
“Our legal team is locked, loaded, and ready to challenge these unconstitutional laws in court,” he said. Gun rights groups also point to recent court rulings that could shape the outcome of future legal fights, including the landmark Supreme Court decision in <a href="https://www.scotusblog.com/cases/case-files/dc-v-heller/">District of Columbia v. Heller</a>, which affirmed that the Second Amendment protects an individual right to keep and bear arms &#8220;unconnected with service in a militia.&#8221;
More recently, a federal court in Washington, D.C., <a href="https://x.com/gunpolicy/status/2029695613219012723">ruled</a> that certain magazine capacity restrictions violate the Constitution, a decision advocates say could bolster challenges if Virginia moves forward with similar bans.
With the legislation advancing through the General Assembly, the final decision will likely fall to Spanberger, who must determine whether to sign the measures into law, a prospect that seems nearly certain, according to Davis. For gun rights advocates, the stakes extend far beyond Virginia.

Biden Administration Cracks Down On Gun Dealers For Violations

Blue State Dems Plow Ahead With Dozens Of Gun Control Bills

Virginia Dems Plow Ahead With Over 30 Gun Restriction Bills

abigail spanberger

Democrats

National Rifle Association (NRA)

virginia

Hundreds of thousands of Canadians could face prison time if they do not turn in their newly prohibited guns under a supposedly “voluntary” gun buyback program that is testing the strength of Canada&#8217;s bureaucratic regime.
Since May 2020, the Canadian government has attempted to institute a massive “assault-style firearms compensation program” that will purportedly trade cash for prohibited guns. If Canadians do not turn in a prohibited gun by October 2026, they could face up to five years in prison. The program has faced massive pushback from provincial leaders and gun rights organizations who say it will only disarm law-abiding Canadians.
<div id="attachment_1038193" style="width: 1034px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-1038193" class="size-full wp-image-1038193" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/GettyImages-2239605544.jpg" alt="HAMILTON,ON Oct 9,2025- Sgt. Massimo Guiliani, a use of force instructor with expertise in firearms on the Hamilton Police shooting range .Cathie Coward/ The Hamilton Spectator / Nicole O story (Cathie Coward/Toronto Star via Getty Images)" width="1024" height="448" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/GettyImages-2239605544.jpg 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/GettyImages-2239605544-300x131.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/GettyImages-2239605544-768x336.jpg 768w" sizes=" (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" />Cathie Coward/Toronto Star via Getty Images</div>
“We&#8217;re finding that they&#8217;re running into a lot of compliance issues,” Blair Hagen, an executive at Canada’s National Firearms Association, told The Daily Wire. “They have no idea where [the guns are] or who has them. So it&#8217;s proving to be a very, very difficult situation for the government.”
Due to the scope of the program, the government has extended amnesty three times for ownership of one of the thousands of banned so-called “assault-style” guns, with the latest one set to expire in October 2026.
<h3>We Can Thank Justin Trudeau</h3>
<div id="attachment_1038177" style="width: 875px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-1038177" class="size-large wp-image-1038177" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/GettyImages-1241009452-865x576.jpg" alt="Justin Trudeau, Canada's prime minister, speaks during a press conference at the Fairmont Chateau Laurier in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, on Monday, May 30, 2022. After banning 1,500 types of military-style assault firearms in 2020, Trudeau now announced new legislation to further strengthen gun control in Canada. Photographer: David Kawai/Bloomberg via Getty Images" width="865" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/GettyImages-1241009452-865x576.jpg 865w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/GettyImages-1241009452-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/GettyImages-1241009452-768x512.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/GettyImages-1241009452.jpg 1024w" sizes=" (max-width: 865px) 100vw, 865px" />David Kawai/Bloomberg via Getty Images</div>
An <a href="https://www.pm.gc.ca/en/news/news-releases/2020/05/01/prime-minister-announces-ban-assault-style-firearms">order in council</a> rolled out by then Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in May 2020 banned thousands of “assault weapons” and claimed to offer compensation to those who voluntarily turn in their weapons. According to Hagen, an order in council is a “non-democratic legal instrument” where the Canadian government can ban items like guns “without having to take legislation through parliament.”
Today, the government <a href="https://www.canada.ca/en/public-safety-canada/campaigns/firearms-buyback.html">describes</a> participation in the gun buyback program as “voluntary” but that compliance with the gun ban is required.
“While participating in the program is voluntary, compliance with the law is not. Businesses and individual firearm owners must safely dispose of or permanently deactivate their assault-style firearms before the amnesty period ends on October 30, 2026, or risk criminal liability for the illegal possession of a prohibited firearm,” the government says on its website.
Justin Davis, the public affairs director of the National Rifle Association, said that it made no sense to call the program voluntary.
“I mean, they call these things voluntary, but if the option is either turn them in or you&#8217;re going to jail, I would not consider that voluntary,” he told The Daily Wire. 
The government also doesn’t guarantee compensation for turning in the designated weapons, only saying that gun owners “who choose to participate in the program may receive compensation subject to availability of program funds.”
<h3>Carney Calls It Compensation, Not Confiscation</h3>
<div id="attachment_1038185" style="width: 876px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-1038185" class="size-large wp-image-1038185" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/GettyImages-2251898850-866x576.jpg" alt="Mark Carney, Canada's prime minister, and Doug Ford, Ontario's premier, left, during a news conference in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, on Thursday, Dec. 18, 2025. Carney's government signed a deal with Ontario to remove duplication in environmental assessments as Canada pushes to develop resources and build projects more quickly. Photographer: James Park/Bloomberg via Getty Images" width="866" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/GettyImages-2251898850-866x576.jpg 866w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/GettyImages-2251898850-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/GettyImages-2251898850-768x511.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/GettyImages-2251898850.jpg 1024w" sizes=" (max-width: 866px) 100vw, 866px" />James Park/Bloomberg via Getty Images</div>
Prime Minister Mark Carney <a href="https://torontosun.com/opinion/columnists/forcing-people-to-hand-over-their-guns-isnt-a-voluntary-program">claims</a> that the program, which could penalize gun owners with jail time if they don’t comply, was not “confiscation.”
“This is not about confiscation. This is about voluntary return of firearms for compensation,” Carney said during a podcast in September 2025. “People aren’t going around confiscating guns. Anyone who says that, that is a mischaracterization, what it is is an opportunity for Canadians to return guns for compensation.”
In the same podcast, Carney claimed that the hunting rifles would not be impacted by the extensive gun ban.
“We are not talking about hunting rifles. We’re not talking sports shooting or anything like that. We’re talking about assault rifles,” Carney said.
However, this appears to ignore the fact that there is a specific carve-out for Native tribes that use prohibited rifles for hunting. The amnesty <a href="https://www.canada.ca/en/public-safety-canada/news/2024/12/government-of-canada-extends-list-of-prohibited-assault-style-firearms-and-moves-forward-on-regulatory-changes-to-strengthen-gun-control.html">includes</a> “a temporary exception for Indigenous peoples’ exercising a right” under the Constitution and “as well as those who use firearms for sustenance hunting, which enables them to continue to use their newly prohibited firearms to hunt (if previously non-restricted) until a suitable replacement can be found.”
<h3>Not In Alberta</h3>
<div id="attachment_1038187" style="width: 874px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-1038187" class="size-large wp-image-1038187" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/GettyImages-2257917785-864x576.jpg" alt="Attendees during the Alberta Independence Town Hall event in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, on Monday, Jan. 26, 2026. A petition has been started by separatist activists in Alberta for a referendum on independence from Canada, driven in part by a belief that the government in Ottawa hasn't done enough to accelerate projects to expand oil production, such as new pipelines. Photographer: Leah Hennel/Bloomberg via Getty Images" width="864" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/GettyImages-2257917785-864x576.jpg 864w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/GettyImages-2257917785-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/GettyImages-2257917785-768x512.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/GettyImages-2257917785.jpg 1024w" sizes=" (max-width: 864px) 100vw, 864px" />Leah Hennel/Bloomberg via Getty Images</div>
Many Canadian provinces, including Yukon, Alberta, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Saskatchewan, and Ontario, have indicated they will not assist the national government in enforcing the ban.
“We will have nothing to do with this program. We will not spend any Alberta taxpayer dollars on this program,&#8221; Teri Bryant, the chief firearms officer of Alberta, <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/alberta-gun-buyback-program-9.7053027">told</a> CBC News last month. &#8220;We can&#8217;t block the federal government from setting something up, but they have to set it up and be appropriately licensed.&#8221;
Effectively, what this means is that the feds will be on their own for enforcing the gun ban throughout much of Canada without any assistance from local law enforcement.
“If the feds want to try and enforce it, they are going to have to do it themselves, and of course, the logistics get even more insurmountable and the price goes up,” Hagen said.
In the fall of 2025, the Canadian government ran a <a href="https://www.canada.ca/en/public-safety-canada/campaigns/firearms-buyback/pilot-lessons-learned.html">pilot program</a> of the buyback scheme that ran for six weeks and only yielded 25 guns. The government had <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/manitoba-federal-gun-buyback-assault-weapons-program-9.7047872">reportedly</a> expected to confiscate some 200 weapons.
The government declared the program a success, saying that it showed that “factual, consistent information on how the program works, what individuals can expect if they choose to participate, and legal requirements to comply with the prohibition must be readily available and up-to-date.”
Hagen said that there was not much public appetite for the gun buyback program, but that it was pushed by leftists embedded in Canada’s federal bureaucracy. 
“That&#8217;s one of the biggest problems with firearms laws in Canada,” he said. “There is a civil disarmament agenda in that bureaucracy. It started many years ago. They&#8217;ve done everything they can to ensure that it continues.”
At the end of the day, Hagen sees the government&#8217;s efforts to stop crime and violence by taking law-abiding citizens&#8217; firearms as illogical.
“You can put all the laws and restrictions and prohibitions on the lawful acquisition and ownership of firearms that you want, but it&#8217;s not going to decrease or eliminate crime or tragedies because criminals and lunatics will always find a way,” he said.
<h3>American Leftists Want The Same Policy</h3>
That sentiment was echoed by Davis with the NRA, who warned that leftist politicians in the United States wanted to enact similar policies.
“The issue here is the idea that criminals would be turning in their firearms is just absolutely illogical,” he told The Daily Wire. “There&#8217;s no criminal in the world who&#8217;s going to turn in their firearm for a few dollars when instead they can use it for perpetuating crime.”
During her first run for president back in 2019, Kamala Harris <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2020-election/live-blog/gun-safety-forum-live-updates-las-vegas-n1060911#ncrd1061751">said</a> she supported a “mandatory” gun buyback program for so-called “assault weapons.”
“We have to have a buyback program, and I support a mandatory gun buyback program,” Harris said. “It’s got to be smart, we got to do it the right way.”
<div id="attachment_1038205" style="width: 874px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-1038205" class="size-large wp-image-1038205" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/GettyImages-2173791544-864x576.jpg" alt="US Vice President Kamala Harris speaks during an event on gun violence in the East Room of the White House in Washington, DC on September 26, 2024. (Photo by SAUL LOEB / AFP) (Photo by SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images)" width="864" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/GettyImages-2173791544-864x576.jpg 864w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/GettyImages-2173791544-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/GettyImages-2173791544-768x512.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/02/GettyImages-2173791544.jpg 1024w" sizes=" (max-width: 864px) 100vw, 864px" />SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images</div>
Davis said that the Second Amendment gave a layer of protection to gun owners that those in Europe and Canada didn’t have.
“Places like Europe and Canada and Australia do not have those type of protections, and you see political figures continue to push more and more gun control laws that, again, just disarm law abiding citizens and create more soft targets for criminals, and evil individuals in this world who want to do harm to innocent lives,” he said.
A 2024 challenge to Canada&#8217;s buyback program lost, but advocates for gun rights in Canada believe that the program will become too expensive to institute and will face a host of practical problems.
Hagen sees some parallels between the current ban on “assault-style” weapons and the effort to have all long guns registered. That requirement was repealed in 2012 by a Conservative coalition and was seen as a major victory for Canadian gun rights advocates. The policies could also be overturned if Carney&#8217;s Liberal Party loses power in Canada.
“It&#8217;s one thing to ban a bunch of guns and declare that they&#8217;re prohibited and state your intention to confiscate them,&#8221; Hagen said. &#8220;But it&#8217;s quite another to actually make that happen.”

Canadian Prime Minster Carney Makes National Defense And Security Announcement

Canada’s Massive ‘Voluntary’ Gun Buyback Program Comes With Prison Time

Alberta

Assault Weapons

canada

Gun Rights

Hunting

mark carney

Ontario

As every mom knows, our greatest fear is something bad happening to our kids.
So, like much of the country, I was shocked when I learned that Jay Jones, a Democrat running to be the next Attorney General of my home state of Virginia, expressed his desire to see a political opponent’s children <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/read-them-virginia-dem-sent-shocking-texts-about-killing-gop-leader-pissing-on-graves" target="_blank" rel="noopener">killed</a> because of their father’s views on gun control.
But reading those texts — in which Jones imagines his opponent being shot twice while his wife cradled her dying child — I had another thought.
He was talking about me.
I am a Republican. I am a mother and a wife. And Jay Jones and I probably do not agree on Second Amendment issues.
Jones, who could very possibly become the top law enforcement official of my state, is on the record saying he wants people like me to suffer unimaginable tragedy so that I will change my views and stop “breeding little fascists.”
“Only when people feel pain personally do they move on policy,” Jones <a href="https://www.nationalreview.com/news/dem-ag-nominee-jay-jones-fantasized-about-shooting-former-virginia-gop-speaker-he-receives-both-bullets/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">wrote</a>.
This was not a mistake. It wasn’t an accident. He meant those words, and he believes them in his heart still today, regardless of weak apologies.
How do I know this to be true? He’s still running.
And why not? Just look at all the Democrats rallying around him and continuing to support his campaign, including gubernatorial candidate Abigail Spanberger.
“I stand with [Jay Jones]. Period. End of Statement,” <a href="https://x.com/melforhd48/status/1975206810455027859" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> Virginia House of Delegates candidate Melody Cartwright (who has “Human Rights Defender” in her bio on X).
The <a href="https://x.com/bluevirginia/status/1974616667499192690" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Virginia Beach Democratic Committee</a> &#8220;reaffirmed its full support for Jay Jones for Attorney General&#8221; and &#8220;[called] on all Virginians to line up behind Jay Jones.&#8221;
Again, Jay Jones believes that the way to enact his political agenda is for moms to hold our dying children in our own arms.
Jones’s Republican opponent, the sitting Attorney General of Virginia, Jason Miyares, launched an <a href="https://x.com/JasonMiyaresVA/status/1975234553867313211" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ad</a> hitting the nail on the head: &#8220;Do you trust Jay Jones to protect your children?&#8221;
The answer is simple: of course not.
But the rot runs deeper. Jay Jones is not alone.
As I am unfortunately learning, it appears that Democrats on the whole believe that killing political opponents is an acceptable option to enact their political agenda.
In fact, a sobering poll taken in the wake of Charlie Kirk’s assassination found that over 40% of liberals believe violence can be <a href="https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2025/sep/16/liberals-younger-americans-likely-justify-political-violence-poll/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">justified</a> to achieve political goals.
Here’s the bottom line: any Democrat who refuses to call for Jones to step down is doing more than endorsing his candidacy. They’re endorsing mothers holding our dying children to make us change our minds on gun control.
<a class="c-link" href="https://get.dailywire.com/subscribe/plus/?utm_campaign=fall40&amp;utm_content=fallsale&amp;utm_medium=website&amp;utm_source=editorial" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-stringify-link="https://get.dailywire.com/subscribe/plus/?utm_campaign=fall40&amp;utm_content=fallsale&amp;utm_medium=website&amp;utm_source=editorial" data-sk="tooltip_parent">Get 40% off new DailyWire+ annual memberships with code FALL40 at checkout!</a>
They’re endorsing the continued and seriously deranged normalization of political violence and the dehumanization of those who disagree with them on politics.
Mothers of Virginia, beware: this man could be our next Attorney General.
Mothers of America, beware: this is the Democratic Party.
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Carly Bird is a Republican strategist and founder and president of Bird’s Eye Consulting. She previously served as the national spokeswoman for Ron DeSantis’ presidential campaign.
The views expressed in this piece are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.
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Rep. Abigail Spanberger (D-VA) campaigns as the Democratic nominee in the Virginia’s governor’s race.

Jay Jones’s Texts Should Frighten Every Mom In America

Jay Jones

HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. faces a hostile Senate hearing, defending his vaccine policies against attacks from Democrats. The Department of Justice is reportedly considering new gun restrictions targeting individuals with gender dysphoria following the Minneapolis school shooting. CBS News is under fire for another deceptively edited interview as reports suggest a major shakeup is coming with the potential hiring of Bari Weiss.
It’s Friday, September 5, 2025, and this is the news you need to know to start your day.
Morning Wire is available on video! You can watch today’s episode here:
<iframe loading="lazy" title="Kennedy’s Capital Crossfire &amp; DOJ’s Gun Ban Consideration" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/L2awJwXdYnc?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>
If you’d rather listen to your news, today’s edition of the Morning Wire podcast can be heard below:
<iframe style="width: 100%; max-width: 660px; overflow: hidden; border-radius: 10px;" src="https://embed.podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/kennedys-capital-crossfire-dojs-gun-ban-consideration/id1576594336?i=1000725120108" height="175" frameborder="0" sandbox="allow-forms allow-popups allow-same-origin allow-scripts allow-storage-access-by-user-activation allow-top-navigation-by-user-activation"></iframe>
<h2>RFK Jr. Defends Vaccine Policies in Fiery Senate Hearing</h2>
<div class="image"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-large wp-image-968947" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/MRN-9.5.25-Fri-SH1-1024x576.jpg" alt="" width="1024" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/MRN-9.5.25-Fri-SH1-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/MRN-9.5.25-Fri-SH1-300x169.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/MRN-9.5.25-Fri-SH1-768x432.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/MRN-9.5.25-Fri-SH1-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/MRN-9.5.25-Fri-SH1.jpg 1920w" sizes=" (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></div>
Topline: Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. endured a hostile Senate hearing on Thursday, where he fiercely defended his vaccine policies and shakeup of the CDC against a barrage of attacks from Democrats.
During the fiery hearing, Democrats called Kennedy a &#8220;charlatan,&#8221; said he was perpetrating &#8220;hoaxes,&#8221; and demanded his resignation. Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR) accused him of sacrificing children&#8217;s lives, to which Kennedy retorted, &#8220;You&#8217;ve sat in that chair for &#8230; 25 years – while the chronic disease in our children went up to 76%. And you said nothing.&#8221; When Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) attacked him over recent changes to COVID vaccine access, Kennedy shot back, &#8220;I know you&#8217;ve taken $855,000 from pharmaceutical companies, senator.&#8221;
Kennedy defended his decision to fire CDC Director Susan Monarez, saying she had twice admitted to him that she was not &#8220;trustworthy.&#8221; He also stood by his overhaul of the CDC&#8217;s vaccine advisory panel (ACIP), stating the old panel was &#8220;plagued with conflicts of interest.&#8221;
When Democrats praised Operation Warp Speed in an apparent attempt to drive a wedge between him and the president, Kennedy said Trump deserved a Nobel Prize for it, but that the risk-benefit &#8220;calculus is different&#8221; now that the virus has mutated and adverse event reports have piled up. He also announced that the FDA is reviewing the safety data of the abortion pill mifepristone, alleging the previous administration &#8220;twisted the data&#8221; to &#8220;bury one of the safety signals.&#8221;
<h2>DOJ Weighs Gun Ban for Gender Dysphoria</h2>
<div class="image"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-large wp-image-968943" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/MRN-9.5.25-Fri-SH2-1024x576.jpg" alt="" width="1024" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/MRN-9.5.25-Fri-SH2-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/MRN-9.5.25-Fri-SH2-300x169.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/MRN-9.5.25-Fri-SH2-768x432.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/MRN-9.5.25-Fri-SH2-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/MRN-9.5.25-Fri-SH2.jpg 1920w" sizes=" (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></div>
Topline: The Department of Justice is internally deliberating ways to bar individuals suffering from gender dysphoria from obtaining firearms, following a string of violent attacks by trans-identifying individuals, including last week&#8217;s deadly school shooting in Minneapolis.
The Daily Wire first reported that the DOJ is looking at the issue as one of mental health, not gun control. The move comes after a series of high-profile violent crimes committed by people who identify as transgender, including the 2023 Covenant school shooting in Nashville and the attempted assassination of Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh.
The administration&#8217;s focus on mental health stands in stark contrast to the Democratic response to the Minneapolis shooting. Minnesota Governor Tim Walz has called for a special legislative session to address gun laws, citing the strict gun control measures in Scotland and Australia as models for the U.S.
On Wednesday, Vice President JD Vance and his wife visited the Annunciation school in Minneapolis, where they laid flowers and met with the parents of the murdered children. &#8220;There is nothing that you can say that can take away the grief that these parents are dealing with,&#8221; Vance said. &#8220;If you do have kids &#8230; make sure that they know that you love them &#8230; because there are families in Minneapolis who won&#8217;t be able to do that ever again.&#8221;
<h2>CBS Under Fire for Deceptive Edits as Shakeup Looms</h2>
<div class="image"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-large wp-image-968945" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/MRN-9.5.25-Fri-SH3-1024x576.jpg" alt="" width="1024" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/MRN-9.5.25-Fri-SH3-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/MRN-9.5.25-Fri-SH3-300x169.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/MRN-9.5.25-Fri-SH3-768x432.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/MRN-9.5.25-Fri-SH3-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/MRN-9.5.25-Fri-SH3.jpg 1920w" sizes=" (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></div>
Topline: The White House is blasting CBS News for deceptively editing an interview with DHS Secretary Kristi Noem, the latest in a string of similar incidents, as reports indicate a major leadership shakeup is imminent at the network.
CBS News is under fire for editing out the serious criminal allegations against illegal immigrant Kilmar Abrego Garcia from an interview with Secretary Noem, making it appear the Trump administration was targeting an ordinary person for deportation. According to Curtis Houck of NewsBusters, this is at least the fifth time in four years that CBS has been caught making questionable edits that go &#8220;in one direction&#8221; against conservatives. Previous targets include Governor Ron DeSantis, Speaker Mike Johnson, President Trump, and former Vice President Kamala Harris.
The repeated instances of apparent bias come as a major shakeup is reportedly coming to the network. Puck News reported Wednesday that CBS&#8217; new parent company is in the final stages of a deal to acquire The Free Press and install its founder, Bari Weiss, in a senior role at CBS News. The move is seen as a potential attempt to &#8220;de-politicize&#8221; the news division and return to the network&#8217;s more trusted roots, though it could face internal resistance from current staff.

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Morning Brief: RFK Jr.’s Blockbuster Senate Hearing, DOJ Weighs Trans Gun Ban, CBS’ Stunning Shakeup

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White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt tore into her predecessor, former Press Secretary Jen Psaki, over an X post attacking those who responded to Wednesday&#8217;s tragic school shooting by offering prayers.
During Thursday&#8217;s briefing, Leavitt told members of the Press Corps that she had seen Psaki&#8217;s post and thought it was extremely disrespectful of her to dismiss the beliefs of many Americans who value prayer.
WATCH:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
With class and calm, Karoline Leavitt just absolutely wrecked Jen Psaki for mocking the power of prayer:
&#8220;I saw the comments of my predecessor, Jen Psaki, I think they&#8217;re incredibly insensitive and disrespectful to the tens of millions of Americans of faith across this country… <a href="https://t.co/Mk595Sq1Dn">https://t.co/Mk595Sq1Dn</a> <a href="https://t.co/cHLb31pWSR">pic.twitter.com/cHLb31pWSR</a>
— Charlie Kirk (@charliekirk11) <a href="https://twitter.com/charliekirk11/status/1961126369288708540?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 28, 2025</a></blockquote>
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&#8220;Yes, I saw the comments of my predecessor, Ms. Psaki, and frankly, I think they&#8217;re incredibly insensitive and disrespectful to the tens of millions of Americans of faith across this country who believe in the power of prayer, who believe that prayer works, and who believe that on a morning like this, when beautiful young children were killed while praying in a church, it&#8217;s utterly disrespectful to deride the power of prayer in this country,&#8221; Leavitt said. &#8220;And it&#8217;s disrespectful to the millions of Americans of faith, and I would encourage Ms. Psaki to pray for these families themselves, who need it right now more than ever.&#8221;
<a href="https://get.dailywire.com/subscribe/plus/?utm_campaign=summer&amp;utm_content=editorialsummersale&amp;utm_medium=website&amp;utm_source=editorial" target="_blank" rel="noopener">End of Summer Sale – Get 40% off New DailyWire+ Annual Memberships</a>
Psaki posted on Wednesday, shortly after news broke of the deadly shooting, saying, &#8220;Prayer is not freaking enough. Prayers does not end school shootings. prayers do not make parents feel safe sending their kids to school. Prayer does not bring these kids back. Enough with the thoughts and prayers.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Prayer is not freaking enough. Prayers does not end school shootings. prayers do not make parents feel safe sending their kids to school. Prayer does not bring these kids back. Enough with the thoughts and prayers.
— Jen Psaki (@jrpsaki) <a href="https://twitter.com/jrpsaki/status/1960730977472237739?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 27, 2025</a></blockquote>
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Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, also a Democrat, made a <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/minneapolis-mayor-trashes-people-for-offering-thoughts-and-prayers-after-shooting">similar comment</a> during a press conference on Wednesday in an effort to direct the conversation toward gun control: &#8220;Don’t just say this is about thoughts and prayers right now, these kids were literally praying. It was the first week of school, they were in a church.&#8221;

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