The number of FBI background checks conducted last month for people attempting to purchase firearms shattered the previous all-time record, and experts say the surge in gun sales was directly tied to current events rocking the United States.
&#8220;The new coronavirus pandemic, civil unrest after the killing of George Floyd and the ensuing movement to defund police are bringing in new buyers worried about their personal safety, according to buyers, store owners and gun experts,&#8221; The Wall Street Journal <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/background-checks-a-metric-for-gun-sales-hit-all-time-high/2020/07/01/a5e6fe8c-bbdb-11ea-97c1-6cf116ffe26c_story.html">reported</a>. &#8220;In June, background checks for firearms were up 136%, compared to a year earlier &#8230; background checks in June for civilians seeking a license to carry were the highest since the FBI began conducting checks 20 years ago.&#8221;
FBI statistics that were <a href="https://www.fbi.gov/file-repository/nics_firearm_checks_-_month_year.pdf/view">released</a> at the start of the month showed that 3,931,607 background checks were processed last month, which is by far the most ever recorded. The previous all-time record was set in March – when parts of the U.S. began going into shutdown over the coronavirus – when 3,740,688 were conducted.
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Firearm sales in June were the highest monthly sales since data collection began in 1998: 3.9M firearms sold. <a href="https://twitter.com/phil_wellesley?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@phil_wellesley</a> and Robin McKnight explore the trend, as well as potential causes and consequences. <a href="https://t.co/X7ZdI0zP3X">https://t.co/X7ZdI0zP3X</a> <a href="https://t.co/WKRchQ07SK">pic.twitter.com/WKRchQ07SK</a>
&mdash; Brookings Econ (@BrookingsEcon) <a href="https://twitter.com/BrookingsEcon/status/1282821114553663493?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 13, 2020</a></blockquote>
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The Journal reports that dealers estimate that some 40% of sales have been going to first-time buyers, &#8220;an increase over the normal average of about a quarter,&#8221; and are claiming that many of the new buyers &#8220;are people who say they never thought they would own a firearm and were previously critical of those who did.&#8221;
The surge in gun sales comes as the U.S. has experienced a wave of violent riots in response to the death of George Floyd. The riots have spanned from Los Angeles to New York City, and ultimately led to calls from leftist activists and <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/democrat-ilhan-omar-defund-minneapolis-police-theyre-cancer-we-dont-want-your-damn-reforms">Democrat</a> <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/nyc-proposed-budget-would-cut-1-billion-from-nypd-aoc-it-isnt-enough">politicians</a> to defund the police. Violent crime has <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/us/deadly-weekend-in-seattle-chicago-minneapolis-as-new-york-city-reports-uptick-in-shootings">surged</a> in inner cities in the days and weeks following the riots and the demonization of law enforcement officials.
Social media was flooded with images of rioters destroying police cars that were abandoned by law enforcement officials, looters <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/woman-in-l-a-begs-alleged-looters-to-stop-this-is-going-to-get-trump-re-elected">stealing</a> items from stores, and criminals <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/police-officers-hit-by-cars-shot-beaten-in-numerous-cities-on-monday-night-amid-violent-riots">attacking</a> law enforcement officials by hurling objects at them and even running them over.
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POLICE CARS DESTROYED: Rioters destroy a line of police cars, ghost riding them into each other and setting them on fire in West Philadelphia. 
MORE: <a href="https://t.co/Xm93XDEQV4">https://t.co/Xm93XDEQV4</a> <a href="https://t.co/8qcjnBHaHI">pic.twitter.com/8qcjnBHaHI</a>
&mdash; FOX 29 (@FOX29philly) <a href="https://twitter.com/FOX29philly/status/1267186742207164423?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 31, 2020</a></blockquote>
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One gun buyer told the Journal that he was applying for a permit because he feared that law enforcement officials would not be able to protect him, saying, “I don’t want to ever shoot anybody ever. But if I had to duck and shoot back in self-defense, at least I’d have a chance.”
John Kingdon, a registered Democrat who has been a gun control activist in the past, told the paper that he purchased a semi-automatic pistol just a couple of months ago, saying, “If I had a hard time getting police to respond to me when we weren’t in a pandemic, what about now?”
British media personality Piers Morgan, who opposes the Second Amendment, derided the surge in Americans engaging in their constitutionally protected right, writing on Twitter: &#8220;Just when you thought the news couldn&#8217;t [be] more depressing&#8230;8.3 million guns have been sold in the United States since March, meaning 2020 is on course to be the biggest year for gun sales in American history.&#8221;
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BREAKING: Just when you thought the news couldn&#39;t more depressing&#8230;8.3 million guns have been sold in the United States since March, meaning 2020 is on course to be the biggest year for gun sales in American history.
&mdash; Piers Morgan (@piersmorgan) <a href="https://twitter.com/piersmorgan/status/1278382083837235211?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 1, 2020</a></blockquote>
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US-POLITICS-RACISM-JUSTICE-police-minorities

Riots, Violent Crime, ‘Defund Police’ Push Surged In June. Gun Sales Exploded To All-Time High, FBI Data Suggests.

Defund The Police

Guns

Second Amendment

St. Louis police have applied for warrants in the case of a couple who held guns on their property as protesters marched down their street, according to reports.
&#8220;St. Louis Police Chief John Hayden on Tuesday told News 4 they applied for warrants but did not elaborate on what those warrants allege or who they are against. The guns were turned over to police as evidence,&#8221; <a href="https://www.kmov.com/news/st-louis-police-apply-for-warrants-in-mccloskey-case/article_80ff7c46-c619-11ea-ae32-bf86d141c507.html">KMOV</a> reported. Another local station, <a href="https://www.ksdk.com/article/news/local/st-louis-police-warrants-mccloskey-case/63-93c978cc-6df3-4f09-a271-d39cb8df8b4b">KDSK</a>, also reported that police have applied for warrants.
Mark and Patricia McCloskey aimed guns at Black Lives Matter protesters after a group of some 300 protesters came into their neighborhood in St. Louis on June 28. The two have defended their actions by saying they felt their lives were in danger.
“The hostility is what I noticed,” Hayden told KMOV. “I don’t want to see guns out when people are very hostile and angry at each other. Those are recipes for violence, so again we applied on warrant, there’s been follow up information and we are waiting on the decision on the warrant application.
On Friday, law enforcement authorities in St. Louis executed a search warrant at the home of the couple. Two local news stations, <a href="https://www.kmov.com/news/st-louis-couple-pointing-guns-at-protesters-served-with-search-warrant/article_b815652e-c321-11ea-83ca-e7f071b7e021.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">KMOV</a> and <a href="https://www.ksdk.com/article/news/local/mccloskeys-served-with-warrant-police-take-rifle-shown-in-viral-pictures-st-louis-protests/63-c6059a94-528c-4fa5-8fea-4a87fba31f1c" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">KSDK</a>, reported that the warrant was carried out Friday night at in St. Louis&#8217;s affluent Central West End neighborhood.
KSDK reported that the search resulted in police seizing the rifle that Mark McCloskey was seen holding during the incident.
According to police reports, the McCloskeys told police that they heard a disturbance and saw &#8220;a large group of subjects forcefully break an iron gate marked with &#8216;No Trespassing&#8217; and &#8216;Private Street&#8217; signs.&#8221;
&#8220;The group began yelling obscenities and threats of harm to both victims,&#8221; St. Louis police told the <a href="https://www.stltoday.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/couple-points-guns-at-protesters-marching-to-st-louis-mayor-s-home-to-demand-resignation/article_9edc57ed-c307-583f-9226-a44ba6ac9c03.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">St. Louis Post-Dispatch</a>. &#8220;When the victims observed multiple subjects who were armed, they then armed themselves and contacted police.&#8221;
&#8216;It was shocking. The gate came in. Seemingly everybody in the world came forward. I think the estimate is 300-500 people,&#8217; Mark McCloskey told <a href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8512349/Police-raid-house-gun-toting-St-Louis-lawyer-couple.html">Fox News</a> on Tuesday.
&#8220;They came right towards us. We were preparing to have dinner on the porch and we were literally 70 feet from the gate.  By the time we got our guns, by the time I got my gun, the crowd was probably 30 or 40 feet from us. We thought it was the end. People were screaming everything,&#8221; he said.
Asked what the protesters were shouting at them, Patricia McClosky said: &#8216;That they were going to kill us, they were going to come in there, they were going to burn down the house, they were going to be living in our house after I was dead.&#8217;
St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner, the city&#8217;s prosecutor, vowed to investigate the matter.
&#8220;My office is currently working with the public and the police to investigate these events,&#8221; she said on June 29. &#8220;Make no mistake: We will not tolerate the use of force against those exercising their First Amendment rights, and will use the full power of Missouri law to hold people accountable.&#8221;
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Couple points guns at protesters marching to St. Louis mayor&#8217;s home to demand resignation

St. Louis Police Apply For Warrants In Case Of Armed Homeowners, Reports Say

protests

Riots

St. Louis

Mark McCloskey, the homeowner who defended his St. Louis home recently from a large mob of demonstrators, told Fox News on Monday that he excepts to be “indicted shortly.”
The segment came after St. Louis law enforcement officials served a warrant on the McCloskeys late last week and confiscated the rifle that he used to defend his home.
&#8220;The police were really very professional and very nice,&#8221; McCloskey said. &#8220;The cops that came out to issue the search warrant on us, they were almost apologetic. They didn’t want to have to be there. They were doing their job. Patty wanted to take a picture to document it, and she asked if they wouldn’t mind facing away from the camera so that people wouldn’t get mad at them if their faces were shown on TV.&#8221;
McCloskey said that the officers did not believe that he and his wife did anything wrong but were being forced to carry out the order by St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kimberly Gardner, a Democrat, who claimed that the McCloskeys defending their private property was a &#8220;violent assault.&#8221;
&#8220;My attorney advised me not to be on the show tonight because the rumor is that we are going to be indicted shortly,&#8221; McCloskey said. &#8220;Having said that, this is the same circuit attorney that released 35 of the protesters that torched and looted in downtown St. Louis but now she wants to indict me. I didn’t shoot anybody. I just held my ground, protecting my house, and I’m sitting here on television tonight instead of dead or putting out the smoldering embers of my home.&#8221;
WATCH:
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Mark McCloskey says that he believes that he and his wife are going to be &quot;indicted shortly&quot;. <a href="https://t.co/8o4xsb82Az">pic.twitter.com/8o4xsb82Az</a>
&mdash; (((Jason Rantz))) on KTTH Radio (@jasonrantz) <a href="https://twitter.com/jasonrantz/status/1282833518158950400?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 14, 2020</a></blockquote>
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Transcript:
<blockquote>Fox News host Tucker Carlson: Mark McCloskey joins us tonight. Mark, thanks much for coming on. So before I ask you about how you feel about this to reimagine public safety you been subjected to, tell us specifically what happen when the police visited your home recently.
Mark McCloskey: Well, you know, the police were really very professional and very nice. The cops that came out to issue the search warrant on us, they were almost apologetic. They didn’t want to have to be there. They were doing their job. Patty wanted to take a picture to document it and she asked if they wouldn’t mind facing away from the camera so that people wouldn’t get mad at them if their faces were shown on TV. They all did so. They unfortunate are stuck between a circuit attorney that wants to prosecute us in their own belief that we did absolutely nothing wrong.
Carlson: It goes without saying, I mean, police department’s are structured along the lines of the military. They don’t make independent. They are told what to to do and they do it. They didn’t make this decision independently but you still can escape the contrast of what happened the night the mob came to your home and you call the police and they didn’t, and then they come at the command of the prosecuting attorney later to take the firearm you used to defend yourself. Is that what police are for, do you think?
McCloskey: Well, you know, my attorney advised me not to be on the show tonight because the rumor is that we are going to be indicted shortly. Having said that, this is the same circuit attorney that released 35 of the protesters that torched and looted in downtown St. Louis but now she wants to indict me. I didn’t shoot anybody. I just held my ground, protecting my house, and I’m sitting here on television tonight instead of dead or putting out the smoldering embers of my home.
Carlson: So I mean, your strategy in response to all this seems to be staying silent doesn’t get to anything, obviously. If you just retreated into your house, it probably would be burned to the ground, as you just said. But is that how society should function? I mean, shouldn’t someone in authority in the state of Missouri be coming to your aid right about now?
McCloskey: You know, the way I view it is, when you have certain elements of society encouraging violence, at the same time asking the police to stand down, what’s the only possible result? The only possible solution is for individual citizens to stand up and defend themselves. I’m afraid that what’s being promoted is causing citizens to stand up and defend themselves so they can be [inaudible] and abused the way we have been.
Carlson: I don’t think there’s any doubt about that. I don’t think there’s a homeowner in America who wants to defend his own home with a gun. That something you do if you have no choice. You’d much rather the police came and took the risk for you. That’s why you pay them, but they won&#8217;t. What do you make of the media response? You were lectured on another channel by a guy who’s threatened violence against people, actually threatened violence against people, for getting in his space and yet he dressed you down for defending your home. What do you make of it?
McCloskey: The traditional media is right behind the mob. We are not allowed to use that word anymore. The large crowd of angry people and are supporting these entities which are from my understanding Marxist and oppose every thing I stand for and I hold dear. We have gotten tremendous support from ordinary people. My phones in my emails are running at about 90% positive. We have gotten calls from all over the world. I got a nice letter from a lady in Ireland congratulated us for taking a stand against violence and so I think that the vast majority of Americans wish they could do something. The problem is if nobody stands up and supports them, if the media blasts them, I’m self-employed, I own my own law firm, but what if I was an employee somewhere? If I did what I did and I was an employee of anybody else, I would have been canned the next day. My family would’ve been canned. No one would ever get a job again. This is the kind of social pressure that keeps people from standing up and defending themselves and I think it’s time for people to take a different stand. Actually stand up and have some risk. Patrick Henry said, &#8216;give me liberty or give me death&#8217; and now everybody so afraid of losing their job.</blockquote>

Couple Who Defended Home: ‘Rumor Is That We Are Going To Be Indicted Shortly’

Comedian Sacha Baron Cohen is up to his old tricks again. This time he crashed a gun rights event in Washington, where he posed as a racist country singer, getting some of the crowd to sing along before it reportedly &#8220;turned on him&#8221; and his security whisked him away.
According to <a href="https://variety.com/2020/tv/news/sacha-baron-cohen-prank-rally-who-is-america-1234692557/">Variety</a>, Cohen infiltrated the event &#8220;March for Our Rights 3&#8221; headed by the organization Washington Three Percenters — a pro-gun rights group that has been widely described as an &#8220;anti-government right-wing militia,&#8221; a label the group <a href="https://www.npr.org/2020/02/14/805949683/-not-a-paramilitary-inside-a-washington-militias-efforts-to-go-mainstream">rejects</a> — where he sang a racist song before the crowd after posing as a country musician.
&#8220;According to social media posts from the event’s organizers, Baron Cohen disguised himself as the leader of a political action committee who wanted to sponsor the rally,&#8221; reported Variety. &#8220;He brought his own security team who prevented organizers from kicking him off stage once he began singing and turning off the power to his microphone.&#8221;
Once the actor took the stage, he performed a song while having members of the crowd repeat the overtly racist lyrics back to him. The song focused on &#8220;injecting Obama, Clinton and Fauci with the &#8216;Wuhan flu&#8217; and chopping up members of the World Health Organization &#8216;like the Saudis do.'&#8221;
“Obama, what we gonna do? Inject him with the Wuhan flu. Hillary Clinton, what we gonna do? Lock her up like we used to do. Fauci don’t know his head from his a**. He must be smoking grass. I ain’t lying, it ain’t no jokes. Corona is a liberal hoax. Dr. Fauci, what we gonna do? Inject him with the Wuhan flu. WHO, what we gonna do? Chop ’em up like the Saudis do,” Baron Cohen sang.
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Sacha Baron Cohen infiltrated the Washington militia event in Olympia today.
A last-minute big donor paid to sponsor the event, and hire security &amp; then that security kept the organizers from getting on stage to stop Cohen
&quot;Whatcha gonna do? Chop em up like the Saudis do&quot;.
😂 <a href="https://t.co/qnYMNYLv1l">pic.twitter.com/qnYMNYLv1l</a>
&mdash; Justice for Floyd ➡️ I Can&#39;t Breathe (@InsideASCIF) <a href="https://twitter.com/InsideASCIF/status/1277102477658161153?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 28, 2020</a></blockquote>
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Exactly what Baron Cohen was performing the prank for has not yet been confirmed. Speculation suggests it may have been for his Showtime program &#8220;Who Is America?&#8221; which has lampooned people to the right-of-center.
In a statement, James Connor Blair, a Councilman in Yelm, Washington, described how the stunt unfolded, ending with Baron Cohen escaping in a private ambulance.
&#8220;Sacha Baron Cohen pulled  A bulls**t stunt at the &#8216;March for Our Rights 3&#8217; event. Disguised as a PAC out of Southern California, paid for the stage set up and musical entertainment,&#8221; said Blair in the statement. &#8220;Came on stage disguised as the lead singer of the last band, singing much of racist, hateful, disgusting as s**t. His security blocked event organizers from getting him off the stage or pulling power from the generator. After the crowd realized what he was saying, and turned on him, his security then rushed the stage and evacuated them to a waiting private ambulance that was contracted to be their escape transport. It was a setup, and smack in the face of the great people who put on this event, including Allen Acosta, Tessa Ashley, and Matt Marshall disgusted with what Sacha did off of the bulls**t stunt.&#8221;
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Holy shit 😂
Sacha Baron Cohen infiltrated the Washington 3% (local rightwing militia) event in Olympia a few minutes ago. A last-minute big donor paid to sponsor the event, and hire security&#8230; And then that security kept the organizers from getting on stage to stop Cohen. 😂 <a href="https://t.co/mllLkKBcpZ">pic.twitter.com/mllLkKBcpZ</a>
&mdash; Spek (@spekulation) <a href="https://twitter.com/spekulation/status/1277022446512570368?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 27, 2020</a></blockquote>
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In February, NPR produced a profile piece on the Washington Three Percenters&#8217; &#8220;<a href="https://www.npr.org/2020/02/14/805949683/-not-a-paramilitary-inside-a-washington-militias-efforts-to-go-mainstream">efforts to go mainstream</a>.&#8221; The group, NPR reported, is &#8220;part of the broader &#8216;<a href="https://www.adl.org/resources/glossary-terms/patriot-movement">Patriot Movement</a>,&#8217; an assortment of militias, survivalists and self-described &#8216;<a href="https://www.nationalreview.com/magazine/2019/01/28/toward-a-constitutional-conservatism/">constitutionalist conservatives</a>&#8216; that question the legitimacy of the federal government and seek to limit its powers. Typically, these factions get lumped together under one catchall: anti-government extremists.&#8221;
&#8220;We&#8217;re absolutely not a paramilitary. We&#8217;re a nonprofit corporation,&#8221; the group&#8217;s leader, Matt Marshall, told NPR. &#8220;The narrative is, we&#8217;re an all-white man, Christian Dominion-type, crazy, out-there, far-right militia,&#8221; he said. Marshall has &#8220;set about changing that image,&#8221; NPR reported, including by breaking with the national Three Percent organization. &#8220;We&#8217;re stuck in the middle. The true neo-Nazis hate us, which they should because we hate them too,&#8221; Marshall said. &#8220;And the far left, who we don&#8217;t have any problems with, hate us because they believe that we&#8217;re neo-Nazis.&#8221; (<a href="https://www.npr.org/2020/02/14/805949683/-not-a-paramilitary-inside-a-washington-militias-efforts-to-go-mainstream">Read the full NPR profile here</a>.)
This article has been expanded to include excerpts from NPR&#8217;s profile on the group.
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NBC&#8217;s &#8220;77th Annual Golden Globe Awards&#8221; &#8211; Red Carpet Arrivals

Sacha Baron Cohen Crashed Pro-Gun Event Posing As Racist Country Singer Before Crowd ‘Turned On Him’

Sacha Baron Cohen

A federal judge has blocked a California law that required law-abiding residents to go through a background check every time they purchased ammunition.
The Associated Press <a href="https://apnews.com/da939b10185f662e536ec96dc6156aa2">reported</a> that U.S. District Judge Roger Benitez ruled against the state of California on Thursday, taking the state to task for its “onerous and convoluted” regulations that violated residents’ Second Amendment rights.
“The experiment has been tried. The casualties have been counted. California’s new ammunition background check law misfires and the Second Amendment rights of California citizens have been gravely injured,” Benitez wrote in his 120-page opinion.
“Criminals, tyrants, and terrorists don’t do background checks,” he added. “The background check experiment defies common sense while unduly and severely burdening the Second Amendment rights of every responsible, gun-owning citizen desiring to lawfully buy ammunition.”
Benitez explained that even though the law was supposed to stop criminals from buying ammunition, it denied ammo to law-abiding gun owners 16% of the time. Also, the judge wrote, the state ban on importing ammo from other states violated federal interstate commerce laws, the AP reported. The law, Benitez argued, kept out-of-state sellers from reaching California’s market, which violates federal law.
California Attorney General Xavier Becerra, a Democrat, argued in an earlier court filing that the background checks on ammo had successfully stopped more than 750 people from illegally purchasing ammunition between July 2019 and January 2020. The state also argued that the background checks took about five minutes to complete.
“There is no substantial impediment,” the state argued, according to the AP. “Ammunition purchasers must pass an eligibility check that, in the vast majority of cases, delays a purchase by a few minutes.”
Each time a person bought ammo, they were also required to pay a $1 fee, a nice little boost for state coffers. The law also allowed people to purchase more expensive long-term licenses for ammo if they met certain conditions, such as not having certain criminal convictions or mental health issues.
The law was challenged by the California Rifle &amp; Pistol Association, which asked Benitez to halt the law that required background checks and other restriction on ammunition.
“The law’s red tape and state database errors made it impossible for hundreds of thousands of law-abiding Californians to purchase ammunition for sport or self-defense,” Chuck Michel, the association’s general counsel, told the AP. “The court found that the flimsy reasons offered by the government to justify these constitutional infringements were inadequate.”
Michel said he expects the state to appeal the ruling. The state attorney general’s office told the AP is was reviewing the decision and would not say at that time whether it definitely planned to appeal or try to stay the order.
The California Rifle &amp; Pistol Association were not the only ones named as plaintiffs. Out-of-state ammunition sellers and California residents, such as Olympian Kim Rhode, who has six Olympic medals for shooting competitions, also joined the fight.
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Ammo

California Tried To Force Background Checks For Ammo. A Judge Sided With The Second Amendment.

California

Gun Laws

Amid growing backlash to what many in the state view as an excessive &#8220;stay-at-home&#8221; order, which is the strictest in the nation, several Michigan residents and at least one business have filed federal lawsuits against Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer accusing her of &#8220;draconian encroachments&#8221; on constitutionally protected rights.
Whitmer has become the focal point of a growing protest movement in the state. On Wednesday, demonstrators carried out &#8220;<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/operation-gridlock-thousands-pack-roads-near-michigan-capitol-to-protest-governors-restrictive-stay-at-home-order">Operation Gridlock</a>&#8221; at the Michigan State Capitol, where thousands of cars jammed the roads to protest Whitmer’s stay-at-home order, one of the most restrictive in the country.
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Thousands of people from all over Michigan are converging on our state Capitol today to protest the governor’s restrictive “Stay Home” order and get their voices, and car horns, heard. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/OperationGridlock?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#OperationGridlock</a> <a href="https://t.co/bgjH4wKCUQ">pic.twitter.com/bgjH4wKCUQ</a>
&mdash; MI House Republicans (@MI_Republicans) <a href="https://twitter.com/MI_Republicans/status/1250463355468423170?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 15, 2020</a></blockquote>
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Meanwhile, a <a href="https://www.change.org/p/michigan-state-house-impeach-governor-whitmer">petition</a> calling for the recall of the governor launched just a few days ago has already amassed over 260,000 signatures. &#8220;Her failures during the Covid-19 Corona Virus is causing more Michiganders to get sick,&#8221; the petition reads. &#8220;Closing and banning various non essential business’s and activities while leaving others open. Further promoting the pandemic.&#8221;
Now, at least two federal lawsuits have been filed against the embattled Democratic governor.
&#8220;In complaints filed on Tuesday and Wednesday, several Michigan residents and one business accused the Democratic governor of violating their constitutional rights by imposing her &#8216;Stay Home, Stay Safe&#8217; order,&#8221; <a href="https://news.trust.org/item/20200416145022-vjhiv">Reuters</a> reported Thursday.
Both of the lawsuits argue that Whitmer&#8217;s executive order violates the constitutional rights of residents, particularly their First Amendment and due process rights, Reuters reports. One of the lawsuits specifies that the order violates Second Amendment rights by closing down gun shops.
The lawsuit filed on Wednesday states that the plaintiffs &#8220;reasonably fear that the draconian encroachments on their freedom set forth in this complaint will, unfortunately, become the &#8216;new norm.'&#8221;
&#8220;The plaintiffs in Tuesday&#8217;s lawsuit filed in Detroit include four Michigan residents. One owns a landscaping business, and another said he is forbidden to see his girlfriend of 14 years because they live in different homes,&#8221; Reuters explains. &#8220;Two lawyers and the owner of a different landscaping business are plaintiffs in Wednesday&#8217;s lawsuit, which is being handled in Grand Rapids.&#8221;
The group that organized &#8220;Operation Gridlock,&#8221; the <a href="https://www.facebook.com/events/680520009367268/">Michigan Conservative Coalition</a> (MCC), similarly accuses Whitmer of infringing on constitutionally enshrined rights and points to a larger pattern of abuse by other progressive governors. A spokesperson for the group, Meshawn Maddock, told <a href="https://www.wilx.com/content/news/Operation-Gridlock-protest-underway-569659601.html">News 10</a> Wednesday that Whitmer’s order is doing unnecessary damage to businesses. &#8220;There is no reason why she can’t be looking at some safe ways to be opening up businesses. Instead of talking about what’s essential and nonessential, let’s talk about what’s safe and not safe,” Maddock told the local station. &#8220;Safe businesses and safe workers need to get back to work.&#8221;
&#8220;Citizens are frankly tired of being treated like babies,&#8221; MCC co-founder Marian Sheridan said in a statement. &#8220;As adults, we now know what needs to be done to stay safe.&#8221;
In response to the growing pushback against her &#8220;draconian&#8221; order, Whitmer insists that she really wants residents to have their freedom back and asked for more patience. &#8220;I want you to have your freedom, I want mine too. We will get to a place where we can be with our friends and family again, where restaurants will open again, where we can go back to work safely again,&#8221; <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/operation-gridlock-thousands-pack-roads-near-michigan-capitol-to-protest-governors-restrictive-stay-at-home-order">said</a> the governor. &#8220;We have a few tough days ahead of us, but those days where we can resume some normalcy, they are on the horizon if we keep doing what we need to do to get past this moment.&#8221;
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/watch-nj-governor-confronted-on-violating-bill-of-rights-by-banning-religious-services-gives-viral-response">WATCH: NJ Governor Confronted On Violating Bill Of Rights By Banning Religious Services, Gives Viral Response</a>

Whitmer Protest

Michigan Gov. Whitmer Hit With Multiple Lawsuits Over Coronavirus Order

Constitution

Coronavirus

First Amendment

Gretchen Whitmer

Michigan

As our nation takes precautions against the China-originated novel coronavirus, or COVID-19, President Donald Trump announced over the weekend that Sunday March 15 would be a National Day of Prayer, calling on all faiths to pray for protection and strength.
&#8220;It is my great honor to declare Sunday, March 15th as a National Day of Prayer,&#8221; the president announced on Twitter. &#8220;We are a Country that, throughout our history, has looked to God for protection and strength in times like these.&#8221;
&#8220;No matter where you may be, I encourage you to turn towards prayer in an act of faith. Together, we will easily PREVAIL!&#8221; Trump optimistically added.
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&#8230;.No matter where you may be, I encourage you to turn towards prayer in an act of faith. Together, we will easily PREVAIL!
&mdash; Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1238599373417787394?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 13, 2020</a></blockquote>
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Far-left Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) apparently took issue with Trump&#8217;s announcement, taking to her Twitter account to promote a vulgar message denigrating the National Day of Prayer from Parkland school shooting survivor and anti-gun rights advocate David Hogg.
&#8220;Don&#8217;t let this administration address COVID-19 like our national gun violence epidemic,&#8221; wrote Hogg. &#8220;F*** a National day of prayer, we need immediate comprehensive action.&#8221;
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Don’t let this administration address COVID-19 like our national gun violence epidemic. Fuck a National day of prayer, we need immediate comprehensive action. 
 <a href="https://t.co/mYhpbbhTDP">pic.twitter.com/mYhpbbhTDP</a>
&mdash; David Hogg (@davidhogg111) <a href="https://twitter.com/davidhogg111/status/1239019919401984002?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 15, 2020</a></blockquote>
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Tlaib retweeted the message to her nearly 1 million followers.
Seemingly addressing backlash over the re-post, Tlaib again took to Twitter to backtrack, telling followers she has &#8220;been praying through this all&#8221; and was &#8220;not&#8221; attacking prayer.
&#8220;Let me be clear as someone who has been praying through this all &amp; as someone who attended the National Prayer Breakfast,&#8221; she wrote Monday night. &#8220;My retweet was not to be an attack on prayer. It was to bring attention to the need for meaningful action to combat this public health crisis.&#8221;
The elected Democrat added that we need &#8220;economic stimulus for individuals, families and our local communities, &#8220;testing access for all,&#8221; &#8220;expanded paid sick leave and unemployment benefits,&#8221; and a &#8220;moratorium on water shutoffs, mortgage/rent payments and evictions.&#8221;
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We need: 
➡️ Economic stimulus for individuals, families and our local communities.
➡️ Testing access for all. 
➡️ Expanded paid sick leave and unemployment benefits.
➡️ Moratorium on water shutoffs, mortgage/rent payments and evictions.
&mdash; Rashida Tlaib (@RashidaTlaib) <a href="https://twitter.com/RashidaTlaib/status/1239693977898692609?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 16, 2020</a></blockquote>
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Tlaib has become known for her vulgar anti-Trump antics. When the Democrat was first elected to her seat in Congress, Tlaib, standing alongside her child, promised: &#8220;We&#8217;re gonna impeach the mother***er!,&#8221; referencing President Trump.
On the other hand, Tlaib is highly sensitive. The Democrat stormed out of this year&#8217;s State of the Union address because she was &#8220;triggered&#8221; by hearing the name of Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh.
“I think, you know, even the mention of Brett Kavanaugh for me is a trigger,” Tlaib told MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow following Trump&#8217;s SOTU speech.
“Just as a woman in America, the fact that he, you know, rightfully was accused, and having an incredibly strong woman come before the public and the world and tell her story of sexual assault by this person that was appointed to the Supreme Court is just — I couldn’t stand still and not do anything about it, and I needed to walk away from that,” claimed the Democrat. 
Kavanaugh, who was confirmed to the high court bench in October 2018, was accused of decades-old sexual misconduct by Dr. Christine Blasey Ford. In a letter addressed to Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), Blasey Ford <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/51524/watch-christine-blasey-ford-attorney-admits-video-amanda-prestigiacomo">claimed</a> Kavanaugh attempted to rape her at a house party in the early 1980s, though the accuser was unable to specify exactly where or when the alleged incident took place and the witnesses she named refuted the claim.
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/rashida-tlaib-stormed-out-of-sotu-heres-what-she-said-triggered-her">Rashida Tlaib Stormed Out Of SOTU. Here’s What She Said ‘Triggered’ Her.</a>

POLITICS-TRUMP-HOUSE-US-politics-Trump

‘F***’ Trump’s ‘National Day Of Prayer’: Rashida Tlaib Pushes Nasty Message On Social Media, Backtracks

David Hogg

Donald Trump

Gun Control

Rashida Tlaib

On February 4, Alabama state Representative Proncey Robertson (R-District 7) introduced H.B. 39, which pertains to the issuance of “carry permits,” and to the creation of a “standardized statewide process to issue concealed carry permits for terms of 1 year, 5 years, or permit holder&#8217;s lifetime.”
The bill was read and “referred to the House of Representatives committee on Public Safety and Homeland Security,” according to <a href="https://legiscan.com/AL/bill/HB39/2020">LegiScan</a>.
“Under current law, concealed carry permits are issued by the sheriffs of each county. Each sheriff may have different fees, forms, and processes for the issuance of a concealed carry permit,” the synopsis of the bill reads. “Further, each county may maintain separate databases of individuals authorized to carry a pistol in a vehicle or concealed on or about his or her person within this state.”
The synopsis continues, proposing a standardized, statewide process instead:
<blockquote>This bill would standardize a process by which concealed carry permits may be issued statewide and would create a state concealed carry permit information system by which relevant data may be maintained and provided to law enforcement. This bill would also integrate into that state information system existing data relating to concealed carry permits issued by county sheriffs.</blockquote>
Later, the <a href="http://alisondb.legislature.state.al.us/ALISON/SearchableInstruments/2020RS/PrintFiles/HB39-int.pdf">text of the bill</a> goes into more detail:
<blockquote>Upon receiving notice from a sheriff of an approved application for a concealed carry permit, the Alabama State Law Enforcement Agency shall immediately enter the information into the state concealed carry permit information system and ensure that a concealed carry permit endorsement is viewable by law enforcement officers and other authorized persons through the individual&#8217;s driver license&#8230;</blockquote>
Further, it details how one’s license could be revoked under the proposed system:
<blockquote>Upon receiving notice of a denial of an application for a concealed carry permit or a court disposition which would prohibit that individual from purchasing or possessing a pistol or firearm under state or federal law or render that individual ineligible for a permit based upon the factors provided in paragraph [a] of subsection (b), the Alabama State Law Enforcement Agency shall enter the information into the state concealed carry permit information system and ensure that a &#8220;Concealed Carry Prohibited&#8221; restriction is viewable by law enforcement officers and other authorized persons through an individual&#8217;s driver license.</blockquote>
On Thursday, the National Rifle Association’s Institute for Legislative Action (NRA-ILA) <a href="https://www.nraila.org/articles/20200220/alabama-senate-committee-hearing-on-lifetime-carry-permit-bill">stated in a release</a> pertaining to a <a href="http://alisondb.legislature.state.al.us/ALISON/SearchableInstruments/2020RS/PrintFiles/SB47-int.pdf">parallel bill</a> in Alabama’s state Senate, “contact committee members and ask them to support S.B. 47.”
Despite the NRA-ILA’s seeming endorsement of the legislation, Alabama gun rights organization BamaCarry has a different perspective.
Speaking with Fox affiliate <a href="https://www.wbrc.com/2020/02/22/state-lawmaker-proposes-statewide-database-gun-permit-holders/">WBRC</a>, BamaCarry president Eddie Fulmer said: “They need to back off of trying to regulate people who lawfully carry weapons.”
After stating that “permit holders in Alabama are some of the most law-abiding citizens there are,” Fulmer added, “What they are worried about here is a very insignificant amount of people when it comes to revoking a permit.”
The Daily Wire reached out to Rep. Proncey Robertson, and he answered several questions pertaining to the proposed law.
Robertson first noted how information pertaining to gun licenses in the state of Alabama is quite disparate: “Most people may not even realize this, but the concealed carry permit process in the state of Alabama is done in 67 different counties, by 67 different sheriffs. The 67 different processes and 67 different databases or local systems that hold your information – some of them, very insecure to say the least – they’re just on a standalone server under the front desk, for instance.”
The lawmaker added: “When an officer stops you in one end of the state and you have a permit from the other end of the state, he has very little confidence that that permit is valid, or that the Sheriff used the same background process or even maintained the records correctly.”
Robertson said that his proposed H.B. 39 would “standardize” all these various processes under the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency (ALEA) or the Alabama Criminal Justice Information Center (ACJIC), giving law enforcement the ability to access it.
As for the accountability of law enforcement as it pertains to information searching, Robertson stated: “As a police officer, if I want access to that information, I am passworded into it, and you would know what I looked at, every key stroke, what I obtained, what I learned, what I did with it, and I have to have a law enforcement purpose for accessing that information.”
In response to BamaCarry president Eddie Fulmer’s comments, Robertson said: “I have no interest in regulating people who carry legally. What the system would do is it would begin to keep records of those who are prohibited to carry firearms.”
He added:
<blockquote>If we just do away with the permits in the state of Alabama, you still have to have one if you&#8217;re going to cross the state lines. So, this is just a way to secure that information. Number two, currently ACJIC and the National Crime Information Center (NCIC), it keeps arrest records, but that is much different than conviction records or disposition records.</blockquote>
Robertson then noted that if he, as a police officer, were to stop someone he didn’t know personally, who had a history of arrests for “robbery or domestic violence, something what would prevent them from carrying a concealed weapon or obtaining a concealed weapons permit,” NCIC or state records can tell him if they had been arrested, but not if they were convicted, which, he said, “is what I need in order to make an arrest.”
According to Robertson, H.B. 39 would connect the courts to the permit database. “The day that the court convicts you, they would enter into the system that you are now prohibited, and it would revoke your permit if you have one in the system,” he stated.
When probed as to how his bill isn’t a centralized firearm registry, Robertson replied: “It has nothing to do with your gun. I&#8217;m not registering your guns. It never asks you one single question about your gun.”
He continued:
<blockquote>It&#8217;s about your concealed carry permit. It&#8217;s you coming in, taking a background check that says you&#8217;re not someone convicted of anything that would prohibit you, and it says it&#8217;s your license to carry concealed. They never ask you what gun you have or own or possess.</blockquote>
Robertson said that nothing in H.B. 39 requires new information from citizens, rather, it would simply standardize and centralize the current data from all the numerous hubs in which they currently reside.
The lawmaker also made sure to state that “the ATF, every time you purchase a gun, they do a background check at the gun dealer. They collect the make, model, and serial number of the gun you bought, and your name, address, and all your personal information.”
<blockquote>The federal government and the state of Alabama already has that information. This has nothing to do with your guns. This is just about, do you have the right to carry concealed, have you been convicted of something that would prohibit you from carrying a concealed weapon – and that&#8217;s any violent crime, it&#8217;s domestic violence, and it&#8217;s being ruled by a probate judge with a mental defect and involuntarily committed.</blockquote>
Lastly, Robertson explained why he believes Constitutional Carry or Permitless Carry isn’t an option in Alabama as things currently stand:
<blockquote>If you do that, here&#8217;s what happens – because many of these other states that have done it have very good record-keeping systems of criminal convictions, so an officer can look when he stops someone, and tell what they have been convicted of. In Alabama, we do not have that record keeping on the bad guys. That&#8217;s what I&#8217;m trying to do with this bill.
Right now in Alabama, if we went Permitless Carry, I could literally stop someone who is a convicted felon carrying a gun, and I have no way to prove that he is a felon carrying a gun there on the side of the road. So, I would have to let him drive away or walk away with that gun.</blockquote>
“That&#8217;s what people don&#8217;t understand about the way the system works currently,” Robertson added. “We do not have a good enough records management system of convictions in the state of Alabama to go with Constitutional Carry.”
“H.B. 39 requires the courts to report any conviction, misdemeanor, or felony that would make you a prohibited person to carry a firearm. So this improves things for the citizens, it improves the safety for our officers, and it begins to organize this so if there was ever a dream of going to Constitutional Carry in the state of Alabama, the first thing that we have to do is begin to maintain proper criminal conviction records,” Robertson concluded.

Handguns

Alabama Republican Who Proposed New Gun Permit Bill Says People Are Mislabeling It As A Gun Registry Bill

Alabama

Concealed Carry

A video of a brawl breaking out between two self-described Bernie fans, one white and one black, has gone viral — and initially inspired a bunch of assumptions about what started it, including that a &#8220;Trump supporter&#8221; infiltrated the event to stir up trouble. But a video posted later and a pair of interviews with two men claiming to be the ones involved indicate that the blow up was ultimately about the African-American man&#8217;s &#8220;Black Guns Matter&#8221; T-shirt, which the white &#8220;Bernie bro&#8221; condemned as &#8220;racist.&#8221;
The fight broke out during a Sanders rally held at the Colorado Convention Center in Denver Sunday evening. The initial fight was caught on camera by Colorado&#8217;s CBS4. The video of the sudden eruption of violence, which occurred at the back of the rally near the media risers, rapidly circulated online.
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At last night’s Bernie Sanders rally in Colorado, the Bernie rally briefly turned into a Bernie vs Bernie brawl 😂😂 Notice in the background, Bernie’s speech is uninterrupted! 😂😂 <a href="https://t.co/c6Dq8H24GZ">pic.twitter.com/c6Dq8H24GZ</a>
&mdash; Shawnasaurus Rex (@ShawnG927) <a href="https://twitter.com/ShawnG927/status/1229749115434782725?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 18, 2020</a></blockquote>
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&#8220;CBS4’s news camera was capturing video of the event when two men began fighting,&#8221; <a href="https://denver.cbslocal.com/2020/02/17/video-fight-bernie-sanders-rally-denver/">CBS4</a> reported. &#8220;They pushed through a metal barrier fence toward the back near the media risers as they grappled with each other and one man knocked the other down onto the ground after lifting him up. They both landed on the ground partially under the stage Sanders was in the middle of delivering his speech from. Friends of both people quickly intervened and after some more shoving successfully broke up the fight.&#8221;
CBS4&#8217;s crew said that they were initially unsure what started the scuffle, but on Monday, the outlet was contacted first by a man, Tyler, a self-described Sanders supporter who said he was the white guy shown duking it out in the video, then by another man who asked to remain anonymous who said he was the African-American man battling with Tyler. Another video involving the incident, this one before the fight broke out, shows Tyler and the African-American man arguing over the latter&#8217;s &#8220;Black Guns Matter&#8221; shirt.
The first to contact CBS4 Monday was &#8220;Tyler,&#8221; who told the outlet that a man with a &#8220;&#8216;Black Guns Matter&#8221; shirt was with two other men &#8220;and they were booing during the speech,&#8221; CBS reports. &#8220;When Tyler tried to capture video of the booing on his phone’s camera, the man shoved him through the barrier. Tyler then retaliated. It was that action which was captured by CBS4’s camera.&#8221;
After the interview with Tyler, CBS4 was provided with a new video from an anonymous source showing the argument leading up to the blow-up. The outlet was then contacted by a man claiming to the &#8220;Black Guns Matter&#8221; shirt-wearer, who described himself as African-American and said the whole thing started over his shirt.
&#8220;He had a problem with the shirt I was wearing,&#8221; the man told CBS4. &#8220;I was recording the event, he walks up and calls me a racist. But I thought, ‘What’s he know about black lives, about discrimination, or, for that matter, the representation of the shirt.'&#8221;
&#8220;Black people and their ability to own firearms has historically been very restricted,&#8221; he added. &#8220;The shirt I got from a conceal-carry class.&#8221;
The man also told CBS4 that he agrees with Sanders on most policies but not on guns.
&#8220;I think it’s really a sad thing at a Bernie rally, when someone has a difference of opinion, that someone would be treated like that,&#8221; he added. &#8220;I thought it really would be a lot more inclusive than that. It’s not a safe place to express differences. I would expect that sort of thing at a Trump rally.&#8221;
Below is the video that appears to have been sent to CBS4:
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Here’s the reason for the brawl: White guy called Black guy a racist at a Bernie rally. <a href="https://t.co/cJouk3Kvri">pic.twitter.com/cJouk3Kvri</a>
&mdash; Deirdra Lichtenberge (@diamondsoul317) <a href="https://twitter.com/diamondsoul317/status/1229628620643217410?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 18, 2020</a></blockquote>
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&nbsp;

Bernie Sanders

WATCH: Brawl Breaks Out At Sanders Rally; Video Shows What Started It: ‘Black Guns Matter’ Shirt

Race

In a surprise defeat for pro-gun control Virginia Democrats, including Gov. Ralph Northam, the judiciary committee of the Democrat-majority senate voted to shelve a controversial &#8220;assault firearms&#8221; and high-capacity magazine ban on Monday. The reaction in the Senate chamber to the bill&#8217;s failure — particularly that of the sponsor of the bill, Democratic Del. Mark Levine — has gained some attention online.
As its first item of business on Monday, Virgina&#8217;s Senate Judiciary Committee took up the bill (<a href="https://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?201+sum+HB961">HB961</a>), which &#8220;expands the definition of &#8216;assault firearm&#8217; and prohibits any person from importing, selling, transferring, manufacturing, purchasing, or transporting an assault firearm.&#8221; After questioning Del. Levine about some of the problematic aspects of the bill, the committee <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/virginia-gun-ban-fails-in-senate-committee-marking-legislative-blow-for-gov-northam">voted</a> to send it to the Virginia Crime Commission for further study, which effectively shelves the bill until next year.
The committee rejected the bill by a vote of 10 to 5 after having &#8220;grilled bill sponsor Del. Mark Levine over his definition of an &#8216;assault weapon,&#8217; the arbitrary ban on ammunition magazines that can hold more than twelve rounds, and other aspects of the legislation,&#8221; Bearing Arms&#8217; <a href="https://bearingarms.com/cam-e/2020/02/17/northams-gun-ban-bill-rejected/">Cam Edwards</a> notes.
Video of the moment the bill is rejected, with Levine standing before the committee while cheers and applause erupt behind him, is <a href="https://twitchy.com/samj-3930/2020/02/17/tfw-you-failed-to-criminalize-law-abiding-gun-owners-look-on-va-dem-mark-levines-face-when-assault-weapons-ban-failed-to-move-forward-is-priceless-watch/">circulating online</a>. &#8220;Cheers erupted when the Virginia Senate Judiciary Committee voted to not move forward on HB961, the the &#8216;assault weapons&#8217; ban and magazine confiscation bill, for the year,&#8221; tweeted Townhall Senior Writer Julio Rosas along with a clip of the moment. &#8220;[Del. Levine], who had been pushing for the bill, has a priceless reaction.&#8221;
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Cheers erupted when the Virginia Senate Judiciary Committee voted to not move forward on HB961, the the &quot;assault weapons&quot; ban and magazine confiscation bill, for the year.<a href="https://twitter.com/DelegateMark?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@DelegateMark</a>, who had been pushing for the bill, has a priceless reaction. <a href="https://t.co/rvvF8JiWcO">pic.twitter.com/rvvF8JiWcO</a>
&mdash; Julio Rosas (@Julio_Rosas11) <a href="https://twitter.com/Julio_Rosas11/status/1229418227656282113?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 17, 2020</a></blockquote>
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Below is the summary of the bill, which narrowly passed in the Virginia House:
<blockquote>HB 961 Assault firearms, certain firearm magazines, etc.; prohibiting sale, transport, etc., penalties.
Prohibiting sale, transport, etc., of assault firearms, certain firearm magazines, silencers, and trigger activators; penalties. Expands the definition of &#8220;assault firearm&#8221; and prohibits any person from importing, selling, transferring, manufacturing, purchasing, or transporting an assault firearm. A violation is a Class 6 felony. The bill prohibits a dealer from selling, renting, trading, or transferring from his inventory an assault firearm to any person. The bill makes it a Class 6 felony to import, sell, transfer, manufacture, purchase, possess, or transport silencers, and trigger activators, all defined in the bill. The bill makes it a Class 6 felony to import, sell, transfer, manufacture, purchase, or transport a large-capacity firearm magazine, as defined in the bill, and a Class 1 misdemeanor to possess such large-capacity firearm magazine. Any person who legally owns a large-capacity firearm magazine, silencer, or trigger activator on July 1, 2020, may retain possession until January 1, 2021. During that time, such person shall (i) render the large-capacity firearm magazine, silencer, or trigger activator inoperable; (ii) remove the large-capacity firearm magazine, silencer, or trigger activator from the Commonwealth; (iii) transfer the large-capacity firearm magazine, silencer, or trigger activator to a person outside the Commonwealth who is not prohibited from possessing it; or (iv) surrender the large-capacity firearm magazine, silencer, or trigger activator to a state or local law-enforcement agency.</blockquote>
As The Daily Wire&#8217;s Ashe Schow <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/watch-pistol-grips-a-weapons-of-war-feature-virginia-democrat-trying-to-ban-guns-gives-6-minute-speech-gets-everything-wrong-about-guns">reported</a>, Levine&#8217;s appearance at a town hall a couple of weeks before the committee&#8217;s vote featured the lawmaker repeating a series of debunked talking points about &#8220;assault weapons,&#8221; including that the 1994 assault weapons ban significantly reduced gun crimes — &#8220;The Department of Justice produced <a href="https://www.urban.org/research/publication/impact-evaluation-public-safety-and-recreational-firearms-use-protection-act-1994/view/full_report">two</a> <a href="https://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/nij/grants/204431.pdf">studies</a> on the ban to measure its effectiveness and concluded in both that it had little to no effect,&#8221; Schow notes — and suggesting semi-automatic weapons are virtually the same as fully automatic weapons.
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/watch-pistol-grips-a-weapons-of-war-feature-virginia-democrat-trying-to-ban-guns-gives-6-minute-speech-gets-everything-wrong-about-guns">WATCH: Pistol Grips A ‘Weapons Of War’ Feature? Virginia Democrat Trying To Ban Guns Gives 6-Minute Speech, Gets EVERYTHING Wrong About Guns</a>

Virginia Senate

WATCH: Virginia Democrat Who Pushed Gun Bill Endures Cheers, Applause When It Unexpectedly Fails

Ralph Northam

Virginia

Florida&#8217;s &#8220;red flag&#8221; gun confiscation law has been used thousands of times in the two years since a mentally unstable young man who had given several warning signs that he was dangerous went on a horrific shooting spree at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida. And the pace of the gun confiscation law&#8217;s use is only picking up.
The law was voted into law about three weeks after the tragic 2018 Valentine&#8217;s Day shooting. The law was supported by congressional members of both parties in the state and signed into law by the Republican governor. As reported by <a href="https://apnews.com/6560501986455adcb0ef57fdb370035a">The Associated Press</a> on the two-year anniversary of the massacre, the law has been applied on Florida residents &#8220;more than 3,500 times since, with the pace accelerating during the last half of 2019.&#8221;
Application of the law is initiated by police submitting a request to a civil court that contains an explanation of why authorities believe the individual is a threat. Among the potential reasons is mental illness. Approval of the request by a judge results in a temporary suspension of the individual&#8217;s Second Amendment rights to possess a firearm and authorizes police to confiscate any of the individual&#8217;s firearms.
A hearing must be held within two weeks to determine whether the individual&#8217;s firearms can be retained for a year. If the person is perceived to be a long-term threat by law enforcement, authorities can apply for an extension. If the judge determines the confiscation is unwarranted, the weapons are returned.
Despite the stunning number of uses of the law, AP suggests that it is potentially not being used enough. An AP analysis found that the law&#8217;s use is &#8220;inconsistent, with some counties and cities using it rarely and others not at all.&#8221; AP provides some more details on its findings:
<blockquote>
The AP analysis shows that from March 2018, when the law was enacted, through December 2019, there was a wide disparity in its per capita usage in Florida’s 67 counties. Twenty issued at least one for every 5,500 residents during that time period, the statewide average. Three issued at least one for every 2,000 residents, including Gualtieri’s Pinellas County, which includes the Tampa Bay area, and has nearly 1 million people. Highlands County, near Lake Okeechobee, ranked No. 1, issuing one for every 850 residents.
On the other extreme, 12 counties issued one for every 30,000 residents or less. Two neighboring Panhandle counties — Escambia and Santa Rosa — issued one for every 100,000 residents or more. Another nine small, rural counties issued none.
</blockquote>
Sheriffs from the counties that had sparingly used the law or not used it at all told AP in a questionnaire that they are not &#8220;philosophically opposed to the law&#8221; but rather &#8220;just haven’t needed it,&#8221; AP notes.
Florida is one of 17 states that now have their own versions of &#8220;red flag&#8221; laws. The District of Columbia also has a similar law. Eleven of these laws were enacted after the Parkland shooting, AP notes.
One of the states that has recently implemented its own &#8220;red flag&#8221; law is Colorado, which enacted the “Zackari Parrish Violence Prevention Act” — named after a sheriff’s deputy shot in the line of duty by a heavily armed, mentally ill man — at the start of the new year. As <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/red-flag-law-first-colorado-judge-denies-gun-confiscation-for-first-time-under-law">The Daily Wire</a> reported, two weeks after the law&#8217;s enactment, law enforcement had already submitted at least four confiscation requests, three of which were approved and one of which was rejected.
One of the states that is making the most waves in the Second Amendment debate in recent weeks is Democrat-controlled Virginia. Amid a wave of pro-Second Amendment protests, the Democrats&#8217; attempt to pass an &#8220;assault-style rifle&#8221; ban failed in a Democrat-majority Senate committee on Monday.
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/virginia-gun-ban-fails-in-senate-committee-marking-legislative-blow-for-gov-northam">Virginia Gun Ban Fails in Senate Committee, Marking Legislative Blow For Gov. Northam</a>
H/T <a href="https://hotair.com/archives/jazz-shaw/2020/02/17/floridas-red-flag-law-led-massive-gun-confiscation-numbers/">Jazz Shaw</a>

Florida ‘Red Flag’ Gun Confiscation Law Has Been Used Thousands Of Times Since Parkland

Parkland Shooting

Anti-gun rights activist and the father of a Parkland school shooting victim, Fred Guttenberg, was asked to leave President Donald Trump&#8217;s annual State of the Union (SOTU) address on Tuesday night after the activist heckled the president for vowing to protect Americans&#8217; Second Amendment rights.
Mr. Guttenberg shouted about gun control when Trump vowed that he would “always protect your Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms.”
The father attended the SOTU address as a guest of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA).
According to the <a href="https://nypost.com/2020/02/04/state-of-the-union-address-pelosi-guest-a-father-of-parkland-shooting-victim-booted/">New York Post</a>, the speaker &#8220;turned to the gallery with a stern look after the disruption and muttered something under her breath&#8221; after Guttenberg&#8217;s outburst.
The father, who tragically lost his 14-year-old daughter Jaime during the 2018 Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting, is a constant activist against gun rights.
In September, Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) met with both actress/left-wing activist Alyssa Milano and Guttenberg to discuss the Second Amendment.
&#8220;I am always grateful for the opportunity to engage in positive, civil discussion on the substantive issues of the day — especially with those with whom I disagree. Today&#8217;s meeting was productive and respectful, and I appreciate Alyssa and Fred&#8217;s willingness to come here with an open mind. I believe more conversations like this will go a long way in helping unite and heal our divided country,&#8221; Sen. Cruz said in a <a href="https://www.cruz.senate.gov/?p=press_release&amp;id=4647">statement</a> following the meeting.
&#8220;We all agree we have far too many of these mass shootings, and they need to stop. It is long past time for everyone to put away the partisan talking points so we can work together to solve this problem. We need to act,&#8221; he added.
Though Pelosi was seemingly displeased with Guttenberg&#8217;s outburst, the speaker offered some disobedience herself on Tuesday night. The leading Democrat refused to properly announce President Trump at the start of the evening, and ripped up her copy of Trump’s speech following the event.
As reported by <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/pelosi-violates-protocol-by-refusing-to-announce-trump-properly-at-sotu-rips-up-speech">The Daily Wire</a>, <a href="https://www.c-span.org/search/?sdate=&amp;edate=&amp;searchtype=Videos&amp;sort=Least+Recent+Event&amp;text=0&amp;tagid%5B%5D=2109&amp;show100=">decades of past SOTU addresses show</a> that is protocol for the House Speaker to announce the president by noting that it is their “high privilege and distinct honor” to do so: “Members of Congress, I have the high privilege and distinct honor of presenting to you the President of the United States.”
Instead, Pelosi merely <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BdU4MGyOmLA">announced</a> Trump as follows: “Members of Congress, the President of the United States.”
Pelosi was unapologetic about ripping up Trump&#8217;s speech, too.
In a statement reported by <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/pelosi-shreds-trumps-speech-reflecting-a-tumultuous-year-in-washington/2020/02/04/c378856c-4771-11ea-ab15-b5df3261b710_story.html">The Washington Post</a> on Tuesday, the speaker called the speech from the president a “manifesto of mistruths.&#8221;
“The manifesto of mistruths presented in page after page of the address tonight should be a call to action for everyone who expects truth from the President and policies worthy of his office and the American people,” a statement from Pelosi said.
“Nancy Pelosi says ripping up Donald Trump’s speech was ‘was the courteous thing to do considering the alternative,'&#8221; Jim Roberts reported.
Eight House Democrats (listed below) and Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) all skipped the president&#8217;s speech:
<blockquote>Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY)
Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-MA)
Rep. Al Green (D-TX)
Rep. Steve Cohen (D-TN)
Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-OR)
Rep. Hank Johnson (D-GA)
Rep. Frederica Wilson (D-FL)
Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA)</blockquote>
WATCH:
<iframe src="//players.brightcove.net/4137224153001/ed38fae1-4db1-4308-8095-399a04010bc1_default/index.html?videoId=6129744762001" width="618" height="348" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>

Fred Guttenberg

WATCH: Parkland Dad Booted From SOTU After Heckling Trump, Second Amendment

New York Post

State of the Union

Socialist Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) made numerous false statements during an interview she gave at a Martin Luther King Jr. Day event on Monday, claiming that the Democrat Party is not a &#8220;left&#8221; party and alleging without evidence that the pro-Second Amendment activists in Virginia were waving &#8220;Confederate flags.&#8221;
&#8220;You know, another thing that I&#8217;ve been really thinking and sitting with today is that, there&#8217;s this, um, gun rights protest that&#8217;s happening down in Richmond &#8230; but here&#8217;s the image that has struck with me the most about that, is that when we go out and march for the dignity and for the recognition of the lives of people &#8230; the whole place is surrounded by police in riot gear without a gun in sight,&#8221; Ocasio-Cortez said. &#8220;And here are all of these people flying Confederate flags with semi-automatic weapons and there&#8217;s almost no police officers at that protest.&#8221;
Ocasio-Cortez&#8217;s claim is weak at best as the overwhelming majority of images and video that was available online showed no Confederate flags at the rally. The Daily Wire also spoke to over half a dozen activists who attended the rally, all of whom said they did not see a single Confederate flag.
While there is certainly the possibility that a fringe protester may have had a flag that eluded media scrutiny, Ocasio-Cortez&#8217;s claim suggested that the flying of Confederate flags was a common occurrence at the rally, which is verifiably false.
Ocasio-Cortez&#8217;s false claim lined up with what left-wing publications like CNN and MSNBC sought to cast the rally as: a white nationalist event. Yet, the event was completely peaceful, no incidents happened, and fringe groups were rejected.
NBC News, which pushed the false narrative that the protest was a white nationalist event, even later had to admit that it was false in an article <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/tense-virginia-rally-gun-rights-supporters-chant-we-will-not-n1118811">titled</a>: “At tense Virginia rally, demonstrators reject extremists, defend law-abiding gun owners.”
The event also <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/narrative-fail-minorities-lgbt-community-women-show-up-in-force-at-pro-gun-rally">attracted numerous</a> minorities, women, members of the LGBT community, and Democrats who believed in supporting the Second Amendment.
WATCH:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
.<a href="https://twitter.com/AOC?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@AOC</a> contrasts today’s gun rights march in Richmond with protests against Eric Garner’s killing: &quot;Why were there almost no police officers” despite protesters “flying confederate flags and [carrying] semiautamtic weapons”? <a href="https://t.co/JRL9B76EQW">pic.twitter.com/JRL9B76EQW</a>
&mdash; Tom Elliott (@tomselliott) <a href="https://twitter.com/tomselliott/status/1219363078241968128?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 20, 2020</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Later in the interview, Ocasio-Cortez gas-lighted the audience by falsely claiming that the current Democrat Party is really a &#8220;center-conservative&#8221; party and is &#8220;not a leftist party.&#8221;
&#8220;We don&#8217;t have a left party in the United States,&#8221; Ocasio-Cortez falsely claimed. &#8220;The Democratic Party is not a left party. The Democratic Party is a center or center-conservative party. We do not advocate, we can&#8217;t even get a floor vote on Medicare for All, not even a floor vote that gets voted down, we can&#8217;t even get a vote on it. So this is not a party.&#8221;
Ocasio-Cortez later admitted that there are far-left members of her party that are trying to drag the Democrats even further left.
Even the leftist New York Times editorial board <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/01/19/opinion/amy-klobuchar-elizabeth-warren-nytimes-endorsement.html">said</a> in its endorsement of two Democrat presidential candidates this week that the current field of Democrats that are running in 2020 are “the most” far-left “in decades on issues like health care, the economy, and government’s allocations of resources.”
WATCH:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
AOC: “The Democratic Party is not a left party. The Democratic Party is a center, or a center-conservative party” <a href="https://t.co/6TNAC50nXi">pic.twitter.com/6TNAC50nXi</a>
&mdash; Tom Elliott (@tomselliott) <a href="https://twitter.com/tomselliott/status/1219365820213669896?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 20, 2020</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Boston Mayor, Activists Rally To Ask Jeff Flake To Reject Kavanaugh Nomination

AOC GASLIGHTS: Democrats Are ‘Conservative’; Virginia Gun Protesters Had ‘Confederate Flags’

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez

In an interview with Turning Point USA published Sunday (video below), Jack Wilson, who was awarded the Texas Governor&#8217;s Medal of Courage last week for his life-saving response to a mass shooter at his church, gave a powerful defense of Second Amendment rights, which he maintains, are essential to keeping all our other rights under the Constitution.
Jack Wilson, 71, is a volunteer member of the security team at the West Freeway Church of Christ near Fort Worth, Texas, where a mass shooter opened fire during a church service on Dec. 29, 2019. As Texas allows licensed congregants to carry in churches, Wilson, a former Texas Army National Guardsman and NRA instructor, was armed, along with other members of the security team.
The expert marksman responded with remarkable speed when the shooter opened fire. Within six seconds of the gunman&#8217;s first shot, Wilson shot him dead, undoubtedly saving many lives. For his heroic actions, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) Abbott presented Wilson last week with the <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/bloomberg-misfires-on-jack-wilson-11579219312">Governor’s Medal of Courage</a>, the highest civilian honor the state of Texas awards.
After receiving the prestigious award, Wilson spoke with TPUSA about what prepared him for that harrowing moment when he confronted the shooter, including not only his years of training with firearms but his realist views on self-defense and the presence of &#8220;evil&#8221; in the world.
&#8220;There&#8217;s evil in the world,&#8221; Wilson told the conservative nonprofit. &#8220;Be prepared to protect yourself.&#8221;
&#8220;I killed evil. I took out evil,&#8221; Wilson said of the harrowing moment he took down the gunman with a single shot.
&#8220;I spent six years at Texas Army National Guard, 30 years in the defense world, D.O.D. world, had my own business for 21 years teaching people how to shoot,&#8221; said Wilson.
&#8220;It doesn&#8217;t start at the moment that you need to protect yourself,&#8221; he explained. &#8220;You have to learn, choose a firearm you&#8217;re comfortable with, become proficient with it, train with it.&#8221;
&#8220;Without the Second Amendment — my opinion, very strongly — you will lose all other rights,&#8221; Wilson stressed. &#8220;The firearm is not the evil thing. The person behind it is either good or evil. It’s not a firearm issue. It is a person issue.&#8221;
Wilson also provided some details about how he and the rest of the security team was prepared for the actions of the shooter. When he first walked into the service, Wilson said he recognized him as an &#8220;obvious&#8221; potential threat in part because he appeared to be wearing a wig and a fake beard. &#8220;We were observed the individual, we were watching the individual,&#8221; he said, noting that he walked into the audio-visual room and instructed them to train one of the cameras on the individual.
&#8220;The individual got up and that&#8217;s when he turned &#8230; and pulled the shotgun &#8230; from underneath his coat,&#8221; he said. &#8220;Richard told him, &#8216;Drop the gun! Drop the gun!&#8217; I had people in front of me that prevented me from taking a body shot, a torso shot. The only shot I had was the headshot. When I took the headshot, the subject went down. From the time the individual turned with the gun in his hand till I was over him was a total of six seconds.”
&#8220;I did not do what I did &#8230; for hero status. I don&#8217;t see myself as a hero,&#8221; Wilson emphasized. &#8220;My role is more of a protector for anyone who happens to be in the congregation&#8230;&#8221;
In the end, he said, God is the one who should get the credit for the lives saved, saying, &#8220;God gave me the training, gave me the mindset, to be able to stop the situation.&#8221;
Video below via TPUSA:
<iframe title="Church Shooting Hero: Evil Exists, Defend Yourself" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/0iNJ51YfP1U?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-hammers-bloomberg-for-his-comments-on-hero-with-gun-who-stopped-shooting">Trump Hammers Bloomberg For His Comments On Hero With Gun Who Stopped Shooting</a>

West Freeway Church of Christ

WATCH: Hero Who Stopped Texas Church Shooter: ‘Without The Second Amendment, You Will Lose All Other Rights’

Greg Abbott

Texas

When a man at the pro-Second Amendment rally in Virginia seemingly tried to agitate others into violence, conservative rally attendees shut him down and dismissed him as an &#8220;infiltrator.&#8221;
&#8220;Wanna hop the fence and kill that guy?&#8221; a man at the rally said to another attendee talking about &#8220;revolution,&#8221; video shows.
Pro-Second Amendment advocates quickly jumped in. &#8220;He&#8217;s starting stuff up,&#8221; one man accused. &#8220;Why would you say something dumb like that?&#8221;
&#8220;Are you conservative?&#8221; the man seemingly advocating violence was asked. &#8220;I&#8217;m a libertarian,&#8221; he responded.
&#8220;I&#8217;m a libertarian and that is not how we are!&#8221; another rally-goer shouted. &#8220;I think what that guy just said was absurd. We don&#8217;t believe in going and killing people. This is a peaceful rally.&#8221;
The man who asked about killing then seemingly claimed he was trying to expose a pro-Second Amendment rally attendee for promoting violence.
&#8220;We know what you&#8217;re about,&#8221; the attendees told him. &#8220;You&#8217;re an infiltrator. Get the f*** out.&#8221;
WATCH:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Agitator tried to stir up the crowd at the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/VirginiaRally?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#VirginiaRally</a> by suggesting violence but the crowd wasn’t having it. <a href="https://t.co/SUh1C3fO6l">pic.twitter.com/SUh1C3fO6l</a>
&mdash; Brandon Morse (@TheBrandonMorse) <a href="https://twitter.com/TheBrandonMorse/status/1219291733768507392?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 20, 2020</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Tens of thousands of pro-Second Amendment Americans gathered outside Virginia’s capitol on Monday to express their opposition to new gun control bills pushed through by the Democrat-majority state legislature and backed by <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/breaking-kkk-blackface-photo-emerges-virginia-ryan-saavedra">controversial Democratic Governor Ralph Northam</a>.
Three gun control bills passed the Democrat-controlled Virginia Senate, last week. “The three bills that made it through include a law that will allow local authorities to ban weapons from public spaces during some events, another that limits handgun purchases to one a month, and a law requiring background checks for all firearm purchases,” <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/democrat-governor-declares-state-of-emergency-over-massive-gun-control-protest-here-are-the-three-gun-control-laws-causing-all-the-controversy">The Daily Wire</a> reported Monday.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Gun rights rally at Virginia State Capital to protest newly proposed gun control laws. 
 <a href="https://t.co/9k2zUlj4HC">pic.twitter.com/9k2zUlj4HC</a>
&mdash; The Daily Wire (@realDailyWire) <a href="https://twitter.com/realDailyWire/status/1219297328235872256?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 20, 2020</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
The rally has been completely peaceful despite media fearmongering. For example, those in attendance have touted pro-civil rights signs, chanted &#8220;USA&#8221; together, sang the national anthem, and recited the pledge of allegiance in unison.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Virginians rallying for civil rights <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/VirginiaRally?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#VirginiaRally</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Virginia2A?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Virginia2A</a> <a href="https://t.co/uYOwVTJo7D">pic.twitter.com/uYOwVTJo7D</a>
&mdash; Gayle Trotter (@gayletrotter) <a href="https://twitter.com/gayletrotter/status/1219267216169934850?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 20, 2020</a></blockquote>
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Representation for the gay community is also in attendance at the 2nd amendment rally in Richmond, Virginia.
“Gun rights are also gay rights” <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/VirginiaRally?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#VirginiaRally</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Richmond2ARally?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Richmond2ARally</a> <a href="https://t.co/ED98qLXsKL">pic.twitter.com/ED98qLXsKL</a>
&mdash; Michael Coudrey (@MichaelCoudrey) <a href="https://twitter.com/MichaelCoudrey/status/1219263988208291840?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 20, 2020</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Amazing <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/VirginiaRally?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#VirginiaRally</a> <a href="https://t.co/24obUhMQJH">pic.twitter.com/24obUhMQJH</a>
&mdash; Jack Posobiec🇺🇸 (@JackPosobiec) <a href="https://twitter.com/JackPosobiec/status/1219287208806506500?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 20, 2020</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
2A Protesters in Virginia singing the Star Spangled Banner.
 <a href="https://t.co/1Zlr3yJf52">pic.twitter.com/1Zlr3yJf52</a>
&mdash; Benny (@bennyjohnson) <a href="https://twitter.com/bennyjohnson/status/1219256512301932544?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 20, 2020</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
As outlined by <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/democrat-governor-declares-state-of-emergency-over-massive-gun-control-protest-here-are-the-three-gun-control-laws-causing-all-the-controversy">The Daily Wire</a>, here are three gun control bills sparking the protests:
<ul>
<li><a href="https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__lis.virginia.gov_cgi-2Dbin_legp604.exe-3F201-2Bsum-2BSB35&amp;d=DwMFaQ&amp;c=aLv4kG3eFBuAUFgZFQ07JQ&amp;r=ksyXiO9uHm8aOu377TmyBg&amp;m=E1cLqjPNpOTZMsqEF6xThaBZeuo655xCnWqwNUE8G-o&amp;s=V3e6PzeNJP8EPwyJUs3a0PdzLBsDHH1rNpu9pyo9dBI&amp;e=">Senate Bill 35</a>: Authorizes any locality to prohibit the possession of firearms and ammunition in public spaces during permitted events or events that would otherwise require a permit. Introduced by Sen. Scott Surovell, D-Mount Vernon.</li>
<li><a href="https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__lis.virginia.gov_cgi-2Dbin_legp604.exe-3F201-2Bsum-2BSB69&amp;d=DwMFaQ&amp;c=aLv4kG3eFBuAUFgZFQ07JQ&amp;r=ksyXiO9uHm8aOu377TmyBg&amp;m=E1cLqjPNpOTZMsqEF6xThaBZeuo655xCnWqwNUE8G-o&amp;s=zAb21OJWZSa3Iio8QplBQNNR2rM5c6cS-FRHszV5EX8&amp;e=">SB 69</a>: Prohibits anyone who is not a licensed firearms dealer from purchasing more than one handgun within a 30-day period, making the offense a Class 1 misdemeanor. Exempts those with valid Virginia concealed handgun permits and those replacing a lost or stolen handgun, as well as law enforcement agencies, state and local correctional facilities, private security companies and those with special circumstances with a  background check from Virginia State Police. Also exempts purchases made during a private sale for a personal collection of rare or historical items. Introduced by Sen. Mamie Locke, D-Hampton.</li>
<li><a href="https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__lis.virginia.gov_cgi-2Dbin_legp604.exe-3F201-2Bsum-2BSB70&amp;d=DwMFaQ&amp;c=aLv4kG3eFBuAUFgZFQ07JQ&amp;r=ksyXiO9uHm8aOu377TmyBg&amp;m=E1cLqjPNpOTZMsqEF6xThaBZeuo655xCnWqwNUE8G-o&amp;s=zHEbWKxrkdSADd_LQigfeRxh6MgVFdyUqM6Py6CQpWw&amp;e=">SB 70</a>: Requires background checks for any firearm transfer and directs State Police to set up a process for obtaining such a check from a licensed firearms dealer. Anyone who sells a firearm without a background check is guilty of a Class 6 felony, and the person who receives the firearm is guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor. Exempts transfers between immediate family members and by estate administrators, as well as transfers during lawful activities at shooting ranges or similar spaces designed for target practice. It also exempts temporary transfers that occur while the owner is present or are necessary to prevent death or bodily harm. Additionally, it allows transfers of antique firearms, transfers that are part of a buy-back or give-back program and those that occur by operation of law. Introduced by Sen. Louise Lucas, D-Portsmouth.</li>
</ul>

Gun Rights Advocates From Across U.S. Rally In Virginia&#8217;s Capital Against Gun Control Legislation

‘GET THE F*** OUT’: ‘Infiltrator’ Pushes Violence At 2A Rally In VA. Rally Attendees Shut It Down.

Violence

Attending a pro-Second Amendment rally outside Virginia&#8217;s state capitol on Monday, Grayson County Sheriff Richard Vaughan said he will not be enforcing unconstitutional gun control laws.
&#8220;Grayson County Virginia Sheriff Richard Vaughan is here with his deputies. He said he won’t enforce stricter gun laws,&#8221; The Virginian-Pilot&#8217;s <a href="https://twitter.com/AlissaSkelton">Alissa Skelton</a> reported. &#8220;We are here to stand up for the Second Amendment, he said.&#8221;
&#8220;Many people are shaking his hand and thanking him,&#8221; noted Skelton.
&#8220;If the bills go through as proposed, they will not be enforced,&#8221; Mr. Vaughan said on camera. &#8220;They&#8217;re unconstitutional. We swore to uphold the Constitution of the United States and the Constitution of Virginia, and that&#8217;s what we&#8217;ll do.&#8221;
WATCH:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
This is Sheriff Richard Vaughan of Grayson County, VA. “If the bills go through as proposed, they will not be enforced. They are unconstitutional.” This is not true, according to the Exec. Dir. of the VA Assoc. of Chiefs of Police&#8230; <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Richmond2ARally?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Richmond2ARally</a> <a href="https://t.co/mjpQupE6of">pic.twitter.com/mjpQupE6of</a>
&mdash; Andrew Kimmel (@andrewkimmel) <a href="https://twitter.com/andrewkimmel/status/1219280001427812353?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 20, 2020</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
As noted by <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/this-is-terrorism-alyssa-milano-other-democrats-triggered-by-pro-2a-protesters-in-va">The Daily Wire</a> on Monday morning, tens of thousands of pro-Second Amendment Americans gathered outside Virginia’s capitol to express opposition to a spate of gun control bills pushed through by the commonwealth&#8217;s Democrat-majority state legislature and backed by <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/breaking-kkk-blackface-photo-emerges-virginia-ryan-saavedra">controversial Democratic Governor Ralph Northam</a>.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Gun rights rally at Virginia State Capital to protest newly proposed gun control laws. 
 <a href="https://t.co/9k2zUlj4HC">pic.twitter.com/9k2zUlj4HC</a>
&mdash; The Daily Wire (@realDailyWire) <a href="https://twitter.com/realDailyWire/status/1219297328235872256?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 20, 2020</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Protesters gathered in the wake of three controversial gun control bills passing the Democrat-controlled Virginia Senate last week. “The three bills that made it through include a law that will allow local authorities to ban weapons from public spaces during some events, another that limits handgun purchases to one a month, and a law requiring background checks for all firearm purchases,” <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/democrat-governor-declares-state-of-emergency-over-massive-gun-control-protest-here-are-the-three-gun-control-laws-causing-all-the-controversy">The Daily Wire</a> reported.
“The good guys won’t have the guns,” argued Republican Sen. Amanda Chase (Chesterfield). “They won’t be able to protect themselves, and we’re basically creating a disastrous situation in which criminals will not follow the law, and it will only hurt and create victims.”
As outlined by <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/democrat-governor-declares-state-of-emergency-over-massive-gun-control-protest-here-are-the-three-gun-control-laws-causing-all-the-controversy">The Daily Wire</a>, here are the three gun laws sparking the protests:
<ul>
<li><a href="https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__lis.virginia.gov_cgi-2Dbin_legp604.exe-3F201-2Bsum-2BSB35&amp;d=DwMFaQ&amp;c=aLv4kG3eFBuAUFgZFQ07JQ&amp;r=ksyXiO9uHm8aOu377TmyBg&amp;m=E1cLqjPNpOTZMsqEF6xThaBZeuo655xCnWqwNUE8G-o&amp;s=V3e6PzeNJP8EPwyJUs3a0PdzLBsDHH1rNpu9pyo9dBI&amp;e=">Senate Bill 35</a>: Authorizes any locality to prohibit the possession of firearms and ammunition in public spaces during permitted events or events that would otherwise require a permit. Introduced by Sen. Scott Surovell, D-Mount Vernon.</li>
<li><a href="https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__lis.virginia.gov_cgi-2Dbin_legp604.exe-3F201-2Bsum-2BSB69&amp;d=DwMFaQ&amp;c=aLv4kG3eFBuAUFgZFQ07JQ&amp;r=ksyXiO9uHm8aOu377TmyBg&amp;m=E1cLqjPNpOTZMsqEF6xThaBZeuo655xCnWqwNUE8G-o&amp;s=zAb21OJWZSa3Iio8QplBQNNR2rM5c6cS-FRHszV5EX8&amp;e=">SB 69</a>: Prohibits anyone who is not a licensed firearms dealer from purchasing more than one handgun within a 30-day period, making the offense a Class 1 misdemeanor. Exempts those with valid Virginia concealed handgun permits and those replacing a lost or stolen handgun, as well as law enforcement agencies, state and local correctional facilities, private security companies and those with special circumstances with a  background check from Virginia State Police. Also exempts purchases made during a private sale for a personal collection of rare or historical items. Introduced by Sen. Mamie Locke, D-Hampton.</li>
<li><a href="https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__lis.virginia.gov_cgi-2Dbin_legp604.exe-3F201-2Bsum-2BSB70&amp;d=DwMFaQ&amp;c=aLv4kG3eFBuAUFgZFQ07JQ&amp;r=ksyXiO9uHm8aOu377TmyBg&amp;m=E1cLqjPNpOTZMsqEF6xThaBZeuo655xCnWqwNUE8G-o&amp;s=zHEbWKxrkdSADd_LQigfeRxh6MgVFdyUqM6Py6CQpWw&amp;e=">SB 70</a>: Requires background checks for any firearm transfer and directs State Police to set up a process for obtaining such a check from a licensed firearms dealer. Anyone who sells a firearm without a background check is guilty of a Class 6 felony, and the person who receives the firearm is guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor. Exempts transfers between immediate family members and by estate administrators, as well as transfers during lawful activities at shooting ranges or similar spaces designed for target practice. It also exempts temporary transfers that occur while the owner is present or are necessary to prevent death or bodily harm. Additionally, it allows transfers of antique firearms, transfers that are part of a buy-back or give-back program and those that occur by operation of law. Introduced by Sen. Louise Lucas, D-Portsmouth.</li>
</ul>
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/democrat-governor-declares-state-of-emergency-over-massive-gun-control-protest-here-are-the-three-gun-control-laws-causing-all-the-controversy">Virginia Gov Declares Emergency Gun Ban For Massive Rally; Here Are The Three Gun Control Laws Prompting Protests</a>

Pro-2A Rally In Virginia

WATCH: VA Sheriff: We Will NOT Enforce ‘Unconstitutional’ Gun Control Laws

President Trump has been directing more criticism as of late toward former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, whose platform features radical gun control, which he has been promoting through his pro-gun control nonprofit Everytown for Gun Safety since 2013.
After several tweets slamming &#8220;Mini Mike Bloomberg&#8221; last week, Trump hit the late addition to the Democratic presidential field on his past comments on Jack Wilson, a 71-year-old NRA instructor and volunteer security guard at a Texas church who stopped a shooter literally dead in his tracks before he could take more lives.
&#8220;It may be true that someone in the congregation had his own gun and killed the person who murdered two other people, but it’s the job of law enforcement to have guns and to decide when to shoot,&#8221; Bloomberg <a href="https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/479007-trump-slams-bloomberg-over-comments-on-man-who-shot-dead-texas-gunman">said</a> during an appearance at a church in Montgomery, Alabama, a few weeks ago. &#8220;You just do not want the average citizen carrying a gun in a crowded place.&#8221;
Trump added to his growing collection of &#8220;Mini Mike&#8221; tweets on Sunday by calling out Bloomberg over the comment.
&#8220;Now Mini Mike Bloomberg is critical of Jack Wilson, who saved perhaps hundreds of people in a Church because he was carrying a gun, and knew how to use it,&#8221; Trump tweeted. &#8220;Jack quickly killed the shooter, who was beginning a rampage. Mini is against the 2nd A. His ads are Fake, just like him!&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Now Mini Mike Bloomberg is critical of Jack Wilson, who saved perhaps hundreds of people in a Church because he was carrying a gun, and knew how to use it. Jack quickly killed the shooter, who was beginning a rampage. Mini is against the 2nd A. His ads are Fake, just like him!
&mdash; Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1219004689716412416?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 19, 2020</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Texas&#8217; Republican Gov. Greg Abbott honored Wilson last week with the Governor’s Medal of Courage for rapidly shooting a gunman who opened fire in the church. Within six seconds of the shooter firing on congregants of the West Freeway Church of Christ, Wilson took down the gunman with a single shot. As <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/bloomberg-misfires-on-jack-wilson-11579219312">The Wall Street Journal</a> noted last week, &#8220;most of America rightly regards Mr. Wilson as a hero who used his gun to save innocent life on that December Sunday.&#8221;
Trump&#8217;s tweet comes amid massive backlash to the Democrats&#8217; gun control agenda in Virginia. Late last week, the Democrat-controlled Virginia Senate passed <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/democrat-governor-declares-state-of-emergency-over-massive-gun-control-protest-here-are-the-three-gun-control-laws-causing-all-the-controversy">three controversial gun bills</a> that have inspired tens of thousands of pro-Second Amendment rallyers to converge on Richmond, a development that has prompted Virginia&#8217;s Democratic Gov. Ralph Northam to issue a temporary state of emergency, banning all weapons at the state capitol.
Bloomberg&#8217;s <a href="https://www.mikebloomberg.com/policies/gun-safety?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIxb6H9NKS5wIVRR6tBh1rEASKEAAYASAAEgLaAfD_BwE&amp;utm_expid=.Ean3QEj9S1KUM4de8VlRlg.2&amp;utm_referrer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com%2F">gun control platform</a> calls for imposing an &#8220;effective background check system so that no one can purchase a gun without passing a completed background check,&#8221; closing all so-called &#8220;loopholes,&#8221; &#8220;including one that prohibits married domestic abusers from possessing guns, but not many unmarried ones,&#8221; &#8220;reinstat[ing] the federal ban on assault weapons and high-capacity magazines, and banning &#8220;all guns in K-12 schools, colleges, and universities – except for law enforcement.&#8221;
Trump&#8217;s Sunday tweet followed a series of posts hammering Bloomberg last week, including one accusing the former mayor of engaging in a &#8220;vanity project.&#8221;
“Mini Mike Bloomberg ads are purposely wrong — A vanity project for him to get into the game,” Trump wrote Friday. “Nobody in many years has done for the USA what I have done for the USA, including the greatest economy in history, rebuilding our military, biggest ever tax &amp; regulation cuts, &amp; 2nd A!”
The president also mocked &#8220;Mini Mike&#8221; for avoiding the debate stage thus far. “Mini Mike Bloomberg doesn’t get on the Democrat Debate Stage because he doesn’t want to,” her wrote. “He is a terrible debater and speaker. If he did, he would go down in the polls even more (if that is possible!).”
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Mini Mike Bloomberg ads are purposely wrong &#8211; A vanity project for him to get into the game. Nobody in many years has done for the USA what I have done for the USA, including the greatest economy in history, rebuilding our military, biggest ever tax &amp; regulation cuts, &amp; 2nd A!
&mdash; Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1218174158280019968?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 17, 2020</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Mini Mike Bloomberg doesn’t get on the Democrat Debate Stage because he doesn’t want to &#8211; he is a terrible debater and speaker. If he did, he would go down in the polls even more (if that is possible!).
&mdash; Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1218165916451602432?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 17, 2020</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

President Trump

Trump Hammers Bloomberg For His Comments On Hero With Gun Who Stopped Shooting

Michael Bloomberg

On Monday morning, tens of thousands of pro-Second Amendment Americans gathering at Virginia&#8217;s capitol to express opposition to a spate of gun control bills pushed through by the Democrat-majority state congress and backed by <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/breaking-kkk-blackface-photo-emerges-virginia-ryan-saavedra">controversial Democratic Governor Ralph Northam</a>.
The gathering thus far has been completely peaceful, with rally attendees reciting the pledge of allegiance, singing the national anthem, and chanting &#8220;USA,&#8221; together.
Still, the peaceful protesters were maligned by Hollywood elites and left-wing politicos.
&#8220;This is what’s happening in Virginia right now,&#8221; actress and activist Alyssa Milano captioned a video of gun owners walking to the protest Monday morning. 
&#8220;Trump’s America,&#8221; she added. &#8220;<a class="css-4rbku5 css-18t94o4 css-901oao css-16my406 r-1n1174f r-1loqt21 r-1qd0xha r-ad9z0x r-bcqeeo r-qvutc0" role="link" href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/IStandWithVirginia?src=hashtag_click" data-focusable="true">#IStandWithVirginia</a>.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
This is what’s happening in Virginia right now. Trump’s America. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/IStandWithVirginia?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#IStandWithVirginia</a> <a href="https://t.co/ewUfKrk6Qs">pic.twitter.com/ewUfKrk6Qs</a>
&mdash; Alyssa Milano (@Alyssa_Milano) <a href="https://twitter.com/Alyssa_Milano/status/1219253770950868992?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 20, 2020</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
&#8220;So! I see a bunch of incel (involuntary celibate) ammosexuals have gathered in Virginia,&#8221; former Democratic congressional candidate Pam Keith bashed the protesters. &#8220;While I believe in the right of the people to protest peacefully. I reject threatening goon squads. <a class="css-4rbku5 css-18t94o4 css-901oao css-16my406 r-1n1174f r-1loqt21 r-1qd0xha r-ad9z0x r-bcqeeo r-qvutc0" role="link" href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/IStandWithVirgina?src=hashtag_click" data-focusable="true">#IStandWithVirgina</a>.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
So! I see a bunch of incel ammosexuals have gathered in Virginia.
While I believe in the right of the people to protest peacefully. I reject threatening goon squads.<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/IStandWithVirgina?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#IStandWithVirgina</a>
&mdash; Pam Keith (@PamKeithFL) <a href="https://twitter.com/PamKeithFL/status/1219259673452470272?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 20, 2020</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Left-wing writer Danielle Campoamor said pro-Second Amendment protesters are &#8220;f***ing a**hole[s]&#8221; with &#8220;white privilege,&#8221; though the protesters&#8217; racial and ethnic backgrounds are varied. She also accused them of committing &#8220;terrorism.&#8221;
&#8220;White privilege is having the freedom to walk around in public with shotguns and AR-15s and handguns strapped to your chest like a f***ing a**hole and not getting gunned down by a single cop,&#8221; the writer posted.
&#8220;These people are literally walking around in camo and body armor and like seven different guns strapped to their person, all with the intent to and sole purpose of intimidating people,&#8221; Campoamor added. &#8220;This is terrorism, folks.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
These people are literally walking around in camo and body armor and like seven different guns strapped to their person, all with the intent to and sole purpose of intimidating people. 
This is terrorism, folks. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/VirginiaRally?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#VirginiaRally</a>
&mdash; Danielle Campoamor (@DCampoamor) <a href="https://twitter.com/DCampoamor/status/1219282244180807680?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 20, 2020</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
&#8220;This is NOT what the founders had in mind when writing the 2nd Ammendment [sic],&#8221; said filmmaker and ardent anti-Trumper Morgan J. Freeman. &#8220;THIS IS NOT MY AMERICA! <a class="css-4rbku5 css-18t94o4 css-901oao css-16my406 r-1n1174f r-1loqt21 r-1qd0xha r-ad9z0x r-bcqeeo r-qvutc0" role="link" href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/IStandWithVirgina?src=hashtag_click" data-focusable="true">#IStandWithVirgina</a>.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
This is NOT what the founders had in mind when writing the 2nd Ammendment. 
THIS IS NOT MY AMERICA!<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/IStandWithVirgina?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#IStandWithVirgina</a> <a href="https://t.co/nE1YZ63Ahv">pic.twitter.com/nE1YZ63Ahv</a>
&mdash; Morgan J. Freeman (@mjfree) <a href="https://twitter.com/mjfree/status/1219252211147997184?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 20, 2020</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
NBC News corespondent Gabe Gutierrez, perhaps accidentally, spread fake news on social media. Captioning a video of rally attendees reciting the pledge of allegiance, wrote: &#8220;Chants of &#8216;we will not comply&#8217; from gun rights protesters in Richmond.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Chants of “we will not comply” from gun rights protesters in Richmond. <a href="https://t.co/BjEfniwMKP">pic.twitter.com/BjEfniwMKP</a>
&mdash; Gabe Gutierrez (@gabegutierrez) <a href="https://twitter.com/gabegutierrez/status/1219271317242945540?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 20, 2020</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Mr. Gutierrez kept the post with the incorrect caption up, though he added another video on his Twitter thread: &#8220;Earlier posted video of Pledge of Allegiance. For those who’ve asked, here’s the video of &#8216;We will not comply,.&#8217; Taken seconds apart.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Earlier posted video of Pledge of Allegiance. For those who’ve asked, here’s the video of “We will not comply,.” Taken seconds apart. <a href="https://t.co/Egz4mqVhzo">pic.twitter.com/Egz4mqVhzo</a>
&mdash; Gabe Gutierrez (@gabegutierrez) <a href="https://twitter.com/gabegutierrez/status/1219289367350579200?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 20, 2020</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
The protests come in response to three gun control bills passed by the Democrat-controlled Virginia Senate last week. &#8220;The three bills that made it through include a law that will allow local authorities to ban weapons from public spaces during some events, another that limits handgun purchases to one a month, and a law requiring background checks for all firearm purchases,&#8221; <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/democrat-governor-declares-state-of-emergency-over-massive-gun-control-protest-here-are-the-three-gun-control-laws-causing-all-the-controversy">The Daily Wire</a> notes.
Republican Sen. Amanda Chase (Chesterfield) has argued that such gun control bills will keep guns out of good guys&#8217; hand.
“The good guys won’t have the guns,&#8221; she said during a debate, last week. &#8220;They won’t be able to protect themselves, and we’re basically creating a disastrous situation in which criminals will not follow the law, and it will only hurt and create victims.”
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/democrat-governor-declares-state-of-emergency-over-massive-gun-control-protest-here-are-the-three-gun-control-laws-causing-all-the-controversy">Virginia Gov Declares Emergency Gun Ban For Massive Rally; Here Are The Three Gun Control Laws Prompting Protests</a>
&nbsp;

Alyssa Milano

‘This Is Terrorism,’ ‘Trump’s America’: Alyssa Milano, Other Democrats Trash Pro-2A Protesters In VA

A pro-Second Amendment rally taking place in Virginia&#8217;s capital this week is expected to draw tens of thousands of protesters, all gathering in Richmond to express their opposition to a slate of controversial gun control bills pushed through by the Democrat-majority state congress and backed by Democratic Gov. Ralph Northam. Ahead of the rally, Northam <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/breaking-virginia-democrat-governor-ralph-northam-to-declare-emergency-banning-all-guns-from-state-capitol-grounds">declared</a> an emergency weapons ban at the state capitol and law enforcement has gone on high alert, the FBI already making some <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/fbi-arrests-members-of-group-preparing-for-race-war-ahead-of-virginia-gun-rally">arrests</a>.
After four out of five Democrat-sponsored gun control bills easily passed the Democrat-controlled Virginia General Assembly last Monday, three of the four bills passed in the Virginia Senate Thursday. The three bills that made it through include a law that will allow local authorities to ban weapons from public spaces during some events, another that limits handgun purchases to one a month, and a law requiring background checks for all firearm purchases,
The bill banning firearms in public spaces and bill limiting handgun purchases passed in the Senate by a razor-thin majority entirely along party lines (21-19), while the background check bill Gainesvilles two Republican votes. Below are descriptions of the three bills via Richmond&#8217;s <a href="https://wtkr.com/2020/01/17/three-gun-control-bills-pass-virginia-senate/">WTKR</a>:
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<li><a href="https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__lis.virginia.gov_cgi-2Dbin_legp604.exe-3F201-2Bsum-2BSB35&amp;d=DwMFaQ&amp;c=aLv4kG3eFBuAUFgZFQ07JQ&amp;r=ksyXiO9uHm8aOu377TmyBg&amp;m=E1cLqjPNpOTZMsqEF6xThaBZeuo655xCnWqwNUE8G-o&amp;s=V3e6PzeNJP8EPwyJUs3a0PdzLBsDHH1rNpu9pyo9dBI&amp;e=">Senate Bill 35</a>: Authorizes any locality to prohibit the possession of firearms and ammunition in public spaces during permitted events or events that would otherwise require a permit. Introduced by Sen. Scott Surovell, D-Mount Vernon.</li>
<li><a href="https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__lis.virginia.gov_cgi-2Dbin_legp604.exe-3F201-2Bsum-2BSB69&amp;d=DwMFaQ&amp;c=aLv4kG3eFBuAUFgZFQ07JQ&amp;r=ksyXiO9uHm8aOu377TmyBg&amp;m=E1cLqjPNpOTZMsqEF6xThaBZeuo655xCnWqwNUE8G-o&amp;s=zAb21OJWZSa3Iio8QplBQNNR2rM5c6cS-FRHszV5EX8&amp;e=">SB 69</a>: Prohibits anyone who is not a licensed firearms dealer from purchasing more than one handgun within a 30-day period, making the offense a Class 1 misdemeanor. Exempts those with valid Virginia concealed handgun permits and those replacing a lost or stolen handgun, as well as law enforcement agencies, state and local correctional facilities, private security companies and those with special circumstances with a  background check from Virginia State Police. Also exempts purchases made during a private sale for a personal collection of rare or historical items. Introduced by Sen. Mamie Locke, D-Hampton.</li>
<li><a href="https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__lis.virginia.gov_cgi-2Dbin_legp604.exe-3F201-2Bsum-2BSB70&amp;d=DwMFaQ&amp;c=aLv4kG3eFBuAUFgZFQ07JQ&amp;r=ksyXiO9uHm8aOu377TmyBg&amp;m=E1cLqjPNpOTZMsqEF6xThaBZeuo655xCnWqwNUE8G-o&amp;s=zHEbWKxrkdSADd_LQigfeRxh6MgVFdyUqM6Py6CQpWw&amp;e=">SB 70</a>: Requires background checks for any firearm transfer and directs State Police to set up a process for obtaining such a check from a licensed firearms dealer. Anyone who sells a firearm without a background check is guilty of a Class 6 felony, and the person who receives the firearm is guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor. Exempts transfers between immediate family members and by estate administrators, as well as transfers during lawful activities at shooting ranges or similar spaces designed for target practice. It also exempts temporary transfers that occur while the owner is present or are necessary to prevent death or bodily harm. Additionally, it allows transfers of antique firearms, transfers that are part of a buy-back or give-back program and those that occur by operation of law. Introduced by Sen. Louise Lucas, D-Portsmouth.</li>
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One Republican senator, Sen. Amanda Chase (Chesterfield) summarized Second Amendment advocates&#8217; argument against the bills, particularly SB 35, saying during the debate last week, &#8220;The good guys won’t have the guns. They won’t be able to protect themselves, and we’re basically creating a disastrous situation in which criminals will not follow the law, and it will only hurt and create victims.&#8221;
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A &#8220;red flag&#8221; law allowing authorities to temporarily confiscate guns from those deemed a risk to themselves or others passed in the Assembly but stalled in the Senate, while a bill expanding the definition of &#8220;assault firearms&#8221; in state law and banning their possession as well as prohibiting &#8220;the selling or transfer of any firearm magazine with the capacity for more than 10 rounds of ammunition,&#8221; <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/politics/gun-control-bills-advance-virginia-general-assembly">failed</a> to make it to the Senate.
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/fbi-arrests-members-of-group-preparing-for-race-war-ahead-of-virginia-gun-rally">FBI Arrests Alleged Members Of Group ‘Preparing For Race War’ Ahead Of Virginia Gun Rally</a>
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US-POLITICS-DEMONSTRATION-WEAPONS

Virginia Gov Declares Emergency Gun Ban For Massive Rally; Here Are The Three Gun Control Laws Prompting Protests

Republican Virginia State Senator Amanda Chase issued a warning on Friday to the thousands of Second Amendment advocates who are planning to attend an upcoming massive pro-gun rally in Richmond, saying that they are &#8220;being set up.&#8221;
The Virginia Citizens Defense League (VCDL) organized the event, which is being held on Monday, and &#8220;is traditionally known as &#8216;Lobby Day&#8217; in Virginia’s capital,&#8221; WTOP reported. &#8220;Tens of thousands are expected to show up for the event Monday in Richmond. Given the contentious nature of the issue, the prospect of such a large event has raised tensions. Earlier, [Virginia Democrat Governor Ralph] Northam declared a state of emergency. And recent arrests have further raised those tensions.&#8221;
In a Facebook post, Chase wrote: &#8220;Sadly, I am posting this, knowing that the Governor of Virginia has declared a State of Emergency in our state. I want you to be aware of how we are being set up. Does the Patriot Act ring a bell? Does the National Defense Authorization Act ring a bell?&#8221;
&#8220;If people show up wearing any kind of uniform, patch or other symbol on their clothing signifying they belong to a militia and something goes wrong, you could/will be held as a domestic terrorist,&#8221; Chase continued. &#8220;If anyone steps out of line, all it takes is one person, it may even be a government plant&#8230;.if that plant does anything to disrupt the rally, you could/will be arrested as a domestic terrorist.&#8221;
&#8220;The Governor, using the media has already set the stage for this to happen,&#8221; Chase continued. &#8220;He has already laid the groundwork to make the entire movement look like insurrection. It will be used to put the rest of the nation on notice of what will happen to you, if you resist. They have used the Southern Poverty Law Center over the last 15 years to lay the groundwork. They have labeled us as potential domestic terrorist for a long time now.&#8221;
&#8220;Anyone who has ever related to the 3%er&#8217;s, a militia, or just belonged to any Patriot group&#8230;the groundwork has been laid to brand you as a domestic terrorist,&#8221; Chase continued. &#8220;They have gone out of their way since the Obama years to [ensure] they had us labeled, but it didn&#8217;t start with Obama. It started with the Patriot Act under the Bush administration. We are being played by a well oiled machine, these things have been in the works for many years. They are kicking things into high gear. Military veterans were/are even listed as potential domestic terrorist[s].&#8221;
&#8220;We were told not once, but several times by the current President, &#8216;It&#8217;s Not Me they are after, It&#8217;s You, The American People,'&#8221; Chase concluded. &#8220;Their actions over the last three years have shown you he was right, they are coming after us full speed ahead and they aren&#8217;t even trying to hide it anymore. Sic semper tyrannis, keep your head on a swivel and know what&#8217;s going on around you at all times, at Lobby Day 1/20/20. Everyone be safe out there&#8230;.Thus always to tyrants.&#8221;
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<blockquote cite="https://www.facebook.com/Chase4Senate/posts/2840596102672514" class="fb-xfbml-parse-ignore">
Sadly, I am posting this, knowing that the Governor of Virginia has declared a State of Emergency in our state. I want&#8230;
Posted by <a href="https://www.facebook.com/Chase4Senate/">Senator Amanda Chase</a> on&nbsp;<a href="https://www.facebook.com/Chase4Senate/posts/2840596102672514">Friday, January 17, 2020</a></blockquote>
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The public outrage at Northam&#8217;s extreme anti-Second Amendment push has been intense as a majority of cities, towns, and counties in the state have declared themselves to be Second Amendment sanctuaries.
“The grassroots resistance to Virginia Democrats’ extreme anti-Second Amendment agenda has exploded as nearly 90% of the counties in the state have declared themselves to be sanctuary cities in response to the Democrats’ anti-freedom agenda,” The Daily Wire <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/resistance-to-virginia-democrats-extreme-anti-second-amendment-agenda-surges-to-new-heights">reported</a> in November. “More than 100 cities, towns, and counties have passed resolutions in preparation for Democrats taking over the state who had <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/virginia-democrats-filing-proposals-to-begin-confiscation-of-lawfully-owned-firearms-second-amendment-reporter-says">indicated</a> a desire to confiscate semi-automatic firearms from law-abiding citizens.”
President Donald Trump weighed in on Democrats&#8217; agenda on Friday, tweeting on Friday: &#8220;Your 2nd Amendment is under very serious attack in the Great Commonwealth of Virginia. That’s what happens when you vote for Democrats, they will take your guns away. Republicans will win Virginia in 2020. Thank you Dems!&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Your 2nd Amendment is under very serious attack in the Great Commonwealth of Virginia. That’s what happens when you vote for Democrats, they will take your guns away. Republicans will win Virginia in 2020. Thank you Dems!
&mdash; Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1218297464941314049?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 17, 2020</a></blockquote>
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Second Amendment

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AOC GASLIGHTS: Democrats Are ‘Conservative’; Virginia Gun Protesters Had ‘Confederate Flags’

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Trump Hammers Bloomberg For His Comments On Hero With Gun Who Stopped Shooting

‘This Is Terrorism,’ ‘Trump’s America’: Alyssa Milano, Other Democrats Trash Pro-2A Protesters In VA

Virginia Gov Declares Emergency Gun Ban For Massive Rally; Here Are The Three Gun Control Laws Prompting Protests

Virginia State Senator Warns Gun Owners About Upcoming Rally: ‘We Are Being Set Up’

Menu

Second Amendment

Riots, Violent Crime, ‘Defund Police’ Push Surged In June. Gun Sales Exploded To All-Time High, FBI Data Suggests.

St. Louis Police Apply For Warrants In Case Of Armed Homeowners, Reports Say

Couple Who Defended Home: ‘Rumor Is That We Are Going To Be Indicted Shortly’

Sacha Baron Cohen Crashed Pro-Gun Event Posing As Racist Country Singer Before Crowd ‘Turned On Him’

California Tried To Force Background Checks For Ammo. A Judge Sided With The Second Amendment.

Michigan Gov. Whitmer Hit With Multiple Lawsuits Over Coronavirus Order

‘F***’ Trump’s ‘National Day Of Prayer’: Rashida Tlaib Pushes Nasty Message On Social Media, Backtracks

Alabama Republican Who Proposed New Gun Permit Bill Says People Are Mislabeling It As A Gun Registry Bill

WATCH: Brawl Breaks Out At Sanders Rally; Video Shows What Started It: ‘Black Guns Matter’ Shirt

WATCH: Virginia Democrat Who Pushed Gun Bill Endures Cheers, Applause When It Unexpectedly Fails

Florida ‘Red Flag’ Gun Confiscation Law Has Been Used Thousands Of Times Since Parkland

WATCH: Parkland Dad Booted From SOTU After Heckling Trump, Second Amendment

AOC GASLIGHTS: Democrats Are ‘Conservative’; Virginia Gun Protesters Had ‘Confederate Flags’

WATCH: Hero Who Stopped Texas Church Shooter: ‘Without The Second Amendment, You Will Lose All Other Rights’

‘GET THE F*** OUT’: ‘Infiltrator’ Pushes Violence At 2A Rally In VA. Rally Attendees Shut It Down.

WATCH: VA Sheriff: We Will NOT Enforce ‘Unconstitutional’ Gun Control Laws

Trump Hammers Bloomberg For His Comments On Hero With Gun Who Stopped Shooting

‘This Is Terrorism,’ ‘Trump’s America’: Alyssa Milano, Other Democrats Trash Pro-2A Protesters In VA

Virginia Gov Declares Emergency Gun Ban For Massive Rally; Here Are The Three Gun Control Laws Prompting Protests

Virginia State Senator Warns Gun Owners About Upcoming Rally: ‘We Are Being Set Up’

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