<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/question-if-joe-biden-were-your-dad-would-you-let-him-live-on-his-own/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">President Joe Biden</a>’s claim that <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/second-amendment" target="_blank" rel="noopener">AR-15s</a> fire bullets at a velocity that is five times higher than that of other guns is being shot down by people who know guns.
Biden repeated the claim Friday in a speech to the National Education Association teachers union, even though it has been repeatedly debunked. Several rifles and even some handguns fire bullets at a higher velocity than the 2,700-3,100 feet per second of AR-15s.
“The speed of the bullet is five times that that comes out of the muzzle of most weapons,” Biden said, describing the popular hunting rifle as a “weapon of war.”
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Biden Lies Again!
Biden Repeats False Claims about AR-15 Velocity in Support of a Ban – JONATHAN TURLEY <a href="https://t.co/elhCZYP1oZ">https://t.co/elhCZYP1oZ</a>
&mdash; A Mad Dog (@AMadMadDog) <a href="https://twitter.com/AMadMadDog/status/1574021073733128194?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 25, 2022</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Although some mass shooters, including the Uvalde and Buffalo killers from earlier this year, have used AR-15-style rifles, most murders are committed with handguns. Advocates of more restrictive gun control laws describe AR-15s and AK-47s as “assault rifles,” although there is no technical definition for the term.
Biden has often repeated the claim that AR-15s shoot bullets at higher velocities than other guns. Earlier this month, <a href="https://www.stripes.com/theaters/us/2022-09-02/biden-bungled-talking-point-ar15-muzzle-velocity-7193450.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Washington Post reported</a> that Biden had “bungled the statistic” after he made the same claim in late August.
“Biden was clearly wrong in his statement this week,” the Post wrote.
Biden has made other false claims about guns and the Second Amendment. In May of this year, he claimed that when the Second Amendment was enacted, it did not allow people to possess certain weapons.
“And I might add: The Second Amendment, from the day it was passed, limited the type of people who could own a gun and what type of weapon you could own,” he said. “You couldn’t buy a cannon.”
Historians pointed out that there was no truth to the claim.
AR-15s do fire bullets at high velocities, but nowhere near what Biden claimed, according to ballistics experts. When they exit the barrel, AR-15 bullets are traveling at about twice the speed of bullets fired from a typical handgun.
The White House is pushing hard for new gun control measures ahead of the midterm elections. Vice President Kamala Harris called for a ban on assault rifles.
“Do you know what an assault weapon is?” Harris said in May. “It was designed for a specific purpose, to kill a lot of human beings quickly. An assault weapon is a weapon of war, with no place, no place in a civil society.”
George Washington University law professor <a href="https://jonathanturley.org/2022/05/26/president-biden-repeats-false-claim-about-the-second-amendment/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Jonathan Turley wrote on his blog</a> that banning one particular type of gun would be problematic for courts if it cannot be established that the particular gun is no more powerful than others.
“There are good-faith arguments for gun control, including arguments that the Second Amendment does not create an individual right to bear arms,” Turley wrote. “We should continue to have that worthy debate but we should follow the rule of the late Sen. Patrick Moynihan that &#8216;everyone is entitled to his own opinion, but not his own facts.&#8217;”

Second Amendment

Biden Repeats False Claim About AR-15 Bullet Velocity In Call For Ban

Biden Administration

Jonathan Turley

Mass Shooting

<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/california" target="_blank" rel="noopener">California’s</a> Democratic Attorney General Rob Bonta <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2022/09/22/california-gun-control-office-violence-prevention/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">announced</a> the Office of Gun Violence Prevention (OGVP) on Wednesday, making California the first state to establish such a group.
“This moment of crisis demands more than thoughts and prayers — we need action now,” Bonta <a href="https://oag.ca.gov/news/press-releases/attorney-general-bonta-launches-office-gun-violence-prevention" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> in a press release. “That is why as California Attorney General, I am doubling down on California’s gun safety efforts: I am defending our commonsense gun safety laws in court and cracking down on the surge of untraceable ghost guns. I am proud to lead a team of special agents that remove firearms from the hands of dangerous individuals.”
“And today, I am establishing the Office of Gun Violence Prevention to advance a strong, statewide, public health-focused effort as we continue working together to put an end to this crisis once and for all,” he added.
In a vague description of the new office, the press release said the group will be “dedicated to developing strategies and working with stakeholders statewide to address the gun violence epidemic.”
The office will reportedly assist the Department of Justice’s continuing attempts to decrease gun violence, “including the Department’s seizure of firearms from dangerous individuals using the Armed and Prohibited Persons System (APPS), prosecution of firearms trafficking cases, and defense of California’s commonsense gun laws.&#8221;
Specifically, the release noted that Bonta supports those in California who will keep trying to reduce gun violence by taking guns from banned individuals in the <a href="https://oag.ca.gov/news/press-releases/california-department-justice-releases-2021-armed-and-prohibited-persons-system" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Armed and Prohibited Persons System</a>, as well as carrying out multiagency sweeps in Los Angeles County and the San Francisco region.
The goal of the OGVP will be to “reduce and prevent gun violence, firearm injury, and related trauma,” according to a government <a href="https://oag.ca.gov/ogvp" target="_blank" rel="noopener">site</a> for the office. The office will also look at various factors “from firearm availability to effective resources for crisis prevention” in order to cut down on the pain allegedly caused by guns.
Sam Paredes, executive director of <a href="https://www.gunownersca.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Gun Owners of California</a>, told The Daily Wire that “all the gun violence that they&#8217;re talking about is being committed by people that they either don&#8217;t want to put in prison or have let out of prison, and then they use all of the numbers to argue their case, not by using the numbers honestly, but by mixing them together in order to present a false narrative that achieves their goal.”
“This is Attorney General Bonta putting his quest to destroy the Second Amendment on steroids in the state of California and just making official the commentary of every group and organization that wants to destroy the Second Amendment, period,” he said.

C2A836C1-5665-4CC2-936C-92F4A692D5B7_1_201_a

California Announces Office Of Gun Violence Prevention

California Attorney General Rob Bonta Announces Office Of Gun Violence Prevention

California

Gavin Newsom

Gun Control

Guns

Hollywood star <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/matthew-mcconaughey" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Matthew McConaughey</a> is acting like he wants to be president.
The “Dazed and Confused” star, who has flirted with a gubernatorial run in his native <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/texas" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Texas</a>, told attendees at <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/san-francisco" target="_blank" rel="noopener">San Francisco</a>’s Dreamforce conference this week that he would “be arrogant not to” consider a White House run in the future. McConaughey, who has never publicly identified with either major party, did not say what his time frame would be but did not rule out 2024, <a href="https://www.sfgate.com/politics/article/matthew-mcconaughey-talks-presidential-run-17456929.php?IPID=SFGate-HP-CP-Spotlight" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according to SFGate.com</a>.
&#8220;Yeah, I&#8217;ll consider it in the future, I&#8217;d be arrogant not to, absolutely I would consider it,&#8221; said McConaughey, who won an Oscar for his role in “Dallas Buyer’s Club.” &#8220;If I got into any form of politics I&#8217;d be remiss not to also go in as an artist and a storyteller; help put a narrative together. You&#8217;re the CEO of a state and a nation, a lot of compartmentalization and choices to be made. They scare me but I&#8217;m not afraid of &#8217;em.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
w <a href="https://twitter.com/joshua_bote?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@joshua_bote</a>:
At Dreamforce in San Francisco yesterday, Matthew McConaughey told attendees a presidential run may be &#39;inevitable&#39; <a href="https://t.co/dSxoAFyfL2">https://t.co/dSxoAFyfL2</a>
&mdash; Eric Ting (@_ericting) <a href="https://twitter.com/_ericting/status/1572635591883526146?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 21, 2022</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
The annual conference is hosted by tech firm Salesforce and known for attracting celebrity speakers who address Silicon Valley liberals. McConaughey made his remarks in a discussion with Salesforce co-CEO Marc Benioff which covered the school shooting in his hometown of Uvalde and gun control as well as his general political beliefs.
But he said if he were to mount a presidential bid, it would be somewhat reluctantly.
&#8220;If that happened to me I would be pulled into it,” McConaughey, 52, said. “If I&#8217;m living right, which I&#8217;m trying to, we get pulled into things &#8230; it&#8217;s inevitable. I didn&#8217;t choose it, it chose me.&#8221;
McConaughey noted the extreme political polarization gripping the nation, but said there is room for someone who can reach out to reasonable folks on both sides.
&#8220;There&#8217;s definitely a greater divide now than there has been,&#8221; the “Failure to Launch” actor said. &#8220;One thing is we have to admit that part of that divide is the Kool-Aid we&#8217;re being sold. The divide is not as thick as we&#8217;re being sold; most of us are much more near the middle than we&#8217;re being told.&#8221;
McConaughey, who called for more gun control measures in the wake of the May 24 school shooting that left 19 students and two teachers dead, said both parties have good points – and big gaps – in their Second Amendment views.
&#8220;[To] the Left, this is about regulation, this is about keeping the weapon out of the bad guy&#8217;s hand, [to] the Right, this is about mental health, but each one of them would put a period after their argument,” he said. “You&#8217;re right, just put a comma after your argument. Both of your arguments are much closer to the solution than each of them independently.&#8221;
Despite sounding like a liberal on some issues, McConaughey, his wife Camila, and their three children left Malibu for Texas because the Lone Star State’s values match theirs, Camila said in an <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/matthew-mcconaugheys-wife-opens-up-on-their-decision-to-leave-malibu-for-a-life-that-embodies-their-belief-system-in-texas" target="_blank" rel="noopener">April interview with Fox News</a>.
“It’s been great,” the Brazilian model and designer said. “It really embodies our belief system, especially the ones I grew up with, like going to church every Sunday, saying ‘yes ma’am’ or ‘no, sir.&#8217;”

White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre

Hollywood A-Lister Says He’d Be ‘Arrogant Not To’ Consider Presidential Run

Hollywood A-Lister Says He'd Be 'Arrogant Not To' Consider Presidential Run

2024 Election

Matthew McConaughey

White House

The state of Florida issued a forceful response Wednesday to credit card companies that want to start tracking gun and ammunition sales, saying that if they proceed that the state will pass a law punishing those companies.
Visa, Mastercard, and American Express have reportedly decided to separately categorize firearm purchases at gun stores in a move that was praised by far-Left gun control advocates.
The credit card companies adopted the new Merchant Category Codes (MCCs) after they were set by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO).
Florida Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Jimmy Patronis issued a strong <a href="https://www.myfloridacfo.com/news/newsletter/archive/news-details/2022/09/21/cfo-jimmy-patronis-florida-will-act-against-credit-card-companies-who-target-the-2nd-amendment">statement</a> warning that if the companies proceed with their plans that they will face penalties from the state of Florida.
&#8220;The second amendment is foundational to our American way of life,&#8221; Patronis said. &#8220;The idea that law-abiding Americans would be put on some kind of corporate watchlist is disturbing. Our rights come from our Creator, not the government, and especially not big corporations. It is clear that the actions by these credit card companies are part of a larger effort to curtail God-given constitutional rights of Americans. It is also symptomatic of the virus known as ESG, which is part of a global effort to socially re-engineer the country that we love so much. There is no way we are going to allow that to happen in the free state of Florida.&#8221;
&#8220;If we come to the legislative session and companies like Visa, Mastercard and American Express are generating these reports to create a chilling effect against the purchase of firearms, then I’ll work with the Legislature to pass a law penalizing businesses who are targeting the right to bear arms,&#8221; he continued. &#8220;We’ve seen a groundbreaking ruling come out of the Fifth Circuit limiting corporations’ ability to curtail American’s constitutional rights, so we are on solid legal footing to pursue a bill protecting Floridians 2nd Amendment Rights. We can also take it a step further by barring these companies from doing any business with the State of Florida. We will send a message out to these large corporations that if you are interested in doing business with Florida, you need to make sure that you’re protecting Floridians right to arm and defend themselves.&#8221;
RELATED: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/more-than-100-house-republicans-demand-answers-from-credit-card-giants-categorizing-sales-at-gun-stores">More Than 100 House Republicans Demand Answers From Credit Card Giants Categorizing Sales At Gun Stores</a>

Governor DeSantis Orlando theme parks roundtable

Florida Issues Forceful Response To Credit Card Companies That Want To Track Gun And Ammo Sales

Florida

Visa

The Republican attorneys general of 23 states are expected to send a letter Tuesday opposing plans by Visa, Mastercard, and American Express to add a new code to identify gun purchases made at firearm retailers.
“Categorizing the constitutionally protected right to purchase firearms unfairly singles out law-abiding merchants and consumers alike,” a draft of the <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/visa-mastercard-amex-face-calls-from-gop-attorneys-general-to-abandon-gun-shop-code-11663674954" target="_blank" rel="noopener">letter</a> reads, according to the Wall Street Journal.
“We will marshal the full scope of our lawful authority to protect our citizens and consumers from unlawful attempts to undermine their constitutional rights,” it added.
The letter is led by Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti and Montana Attorney General Austin Knudson, according to the report.
The attorneys general of California and New York recently sent letters to the three companies to encourage the new categorization of gun purchases. The request came after the Supreme Court <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/breaking-scotus-strikes-down-new-york-concealed-carry-restrictions-restrictions" target="_blank" rel="noopener">struck down</a> a New York law in June that included unconstitutional requirements for issuing concealed-carry permits.
Tuesday&#8217;s letter adds to a letter from more than 100 House Republicans last week demanding answers from major credit card companies over the controversial decision to separately categorize gun sales.
As The Daily Wire previously <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/more-than-100-house-republicans-demand-answers-from-credit-card-giants-categorizing-sales-at-gun-stores" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a>, House GOP leaders also sent <a href="https://stefanik.house.gov/_cache/files/3/2/327afb2a-664b-41dc-ba6c-ce0f93af68ad/B339C19813330E1FBB3AD3B51FA773F2.rep.-stefanik-letter-to-visa.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">letters</a> to the CEOs of Visa, MasterCard, and American Express. Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY) led the effort to demand that the companies answer questions about their decision to adopt new <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/visa-to-categorize-sales-at-gun-stores-in-win-for-gun-control-advocates" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Merchant Category Codes</a> (MCCs) set by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO).
The House letter sought details regarding the prospective standards and questioned whether categorizing gun purchases and flagging law enforcement was an attempt to skirt federal law by effectively creating a gun registry.
“As you know, the ISO uses four-digit codes known as MCCs to classify merchants and businesses by the type of goods or services provided,” the letter said. “There were already two MCCs that captured legal firearm sales, 5999 for Miscellaneous Retail Stores and 5941 for Sporting Goods Stores.”
Visa that revealed plans on September 10 for the company to join Mastercard and American Express in the move to separately categorize gun purchases.
Gun rights advocates see the move as an erosion of Second Amendment rights.
“The [industry’s] decision to create a firearm specific code is nothing more than a capitulation to anti-gun politicians and activists bent on eroding the rights of law-abiding Americans one transaction at a time,” said National Rifle Association spokesman Lars Dalseide, <a href="https://apnews.com/article/gun-violence-shootings-new-york-city-politics-4aae50c67e40f9683f604a8683acc391" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according to</a> the Associated Press.
Many Democratic lawmakers, however, have supported the new categorization, including Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren and Pennsylvania Rep. Madeleine Dean. &#8220;Credit card companies like @Visa, @Mastercard, and @AmericanExpress can and should do more to help stop mass shootings. @RepDean and I are urging these companies to step up and help identify suspicious purchases to prevent gun violence,&#8221; Warren tweeted earlier this month.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Credit card companies like <a href="https://twitter.com/Visa?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Visa</a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/Mastercard?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Mastercard</a>, and <a href="https://twitter.com/AmericanExpress?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@AmericanExpress</a> can and should do more to help stop mass shootings.<a href="https://twitter.com/RepDean?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@RepDean</a> and I are urging these companies to step up and help identify suspicious purchases to prevent gun violence.<a href="https://t.co/kkqsYxpmzd">https://t.co/kkqsYxpmzd</a>
&mdash; Elizabeth Warren (@SenWarren) <a href="https://twitter.com/SenWarren/status/1567214955690135552?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 6, 2022</a></blockquote>
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Fictitious firearms hanging on the wall of a gun store. 3D rendering.

23 Republican AGs Warn Credit Card Companies To Abandon Plan To Identify Gun Sales

Attorney General

<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/visa" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Visa</a> announced Saturday that the world’s largest payment processing corporation will begin separately categorizing <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/guns" target="_blank" rel="noopener">firearm</a> purchases at gun stores.
<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/gun-control" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Gun control</a> activists have encouraged the decision, claiming it will allow for easier tracking of gun sales and help prevent mass shootings, the Associated Press <a href="https://apnews.com/article/gun-violence-shootings-new-york-city-politics-4aae50c67e40f9683f604a8683acc391" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a>. Second Amendment proponents, however, see the move as a dangerous encroachment on legal firearm sales.
“The (industry&#8217;s) decision to create a firearm specific code is nothing more than a capitulation to anti-gun politicians and activists bent on eroding the rights of law-abiding Americans one transaction at a time,” said National Rifle Association spokesman Lars Dalseide.
Visa’s decision will allow banks to make decisions with enhanced information on whether they will allow purchases at gun shops on their cards. The move could also cause other corporations like Mastercard and American Express to adopt a similar policy, the AP reported. The payment processing company, however, claimed that it will continue to “protect” the legal selling and purchasing of goods on its network.
“Following ISO’s decision to establish a new merchant category code, Visa will proceed with next steps, while ensuring we protect all legal commerce on the Visa network in accordance with our long-standing rules,” Visa said in a statement.
Earlier this week leftist Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) said credit card companies have an obligation to work harder toward stopping mass shootings.
“Credit card companies like @Visa, @Mastercard, and @AmericanExpress can and should do more to help stop mass shootings,” Warren tweeted. “[Rep. Madeleine Dean] and I are urging these companies to step up and help identify suspicious purchases to prevent gun violence.”
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Credit card companies like <a href="https://twitter.com/Visa?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Visa</a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/Mastercard?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Mastercard</a>, and <a href="https://twitter.com/AmericanExpress?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@AmericanExpress</a> can and should do more to help stop mass shootings.<a href="https://twitter.com/RepDean?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@RepDean</a> and I are urging these companies to step up and help identify suspicious purchases to prevent gun violence.<a href="https://t.co/kkqsYxpmzd">https://t.co/kkqsYxpmzd</a>
&mdash; Elizabeth Warren (@SenWarren) <a href="https://twitter.com/SenWarren/status/1567214955690135552?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 6, 2022</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
The two lawmakers authored a letter, which was signed by more than 12 other Democrats, urging credit card companies to more closely track gun sales. &#8220;The creation of a new [merchant category code] for gun and ammunition retail stores would be the first step towards facilitating the collection of valuable financial data that could help law enforcement in countering the financing of terrorism efforts,&#8221; the letter read.

Gun Store

Visa To Categorize Sales At Gun Stores In Win For Gun Control Advocates

Elizabeth Warren

A <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/second-amendment" target="_blank" rel="noopener">gun rights</a> group filed an amended complaint Wednesday in its lawsuit seeking to lower the age requirement of <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/tennessee" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Tennessee&#8217;s</a> constitutional carry law to adults age 18 and older.
The Firearms Policy Coalition (FPC) <a href="https://www.firearmspolicy.org/fpc-amends-lawsuit-challenging-tennessee-young-adult-carry-ban" target="_blank" rel="noopener">filed</a> an amended complaint in its Tennessee lawsuit after winning a similar case in <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/texas" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Texas</a> last month. FPC sued Tennessee last year after the state passed a law allowing residents age 21 and older to either open or <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/concealed-carry" target="_blank" rel="noopener">concealed carry</a> a handgun without a permit.
“The State cannot carry its burden of proving the existence of ‘a distinctly similar historical regulation’ that burdened the right to bear arms in the same way and for the same reasons,” FPC’s amended <a href="https://assets.nationbuilder.com/firearmspolicycoalition/pages/6079/attachments/original/1662528791/Bassett_v_Slatery_First_Amended_Complaint.pdf?1662528791" target="_blank" rel="noopener">complaint</a> says. “Instead, the relevant historical evidence weighs heavily in favor of upholding the right to carry loaded handguns in public for 18-to-20-year-olds, just the same as for those who are 21 years and older.”
“They are squarely among ‘the people’ for whom the Second Amendment guarantees were created. They were not only allowed to keep and bear arms without any restriction but required to do so during the Founding era that shaped the liberties enshrined in the Amendment,” the complaint says.
On August 25, a federal judge in Texas <a href="https://www.texastribune.org/2022/08/25/federal-court-texas-21-handguns/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">struck down</a> part of a state law barring adults ages 18 to 20 from carrying a handgun without a permit.
“Based on the Second Amendment’s text, as informed by Founding-Era history and tradition, the Court concludes that the Second Amendment protects against this prohibition,” U.S. District Judge Mark Pittman wrote in the <a href="https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/1b5478d53ca94273f608f46c40f581fe/Firearms-Policy-Coalition-v.-McCraw.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ruling</a>.
FPC Director of Legal Operations Bill Sack cited the Texas ruling in a statement about the updated Tennessee complaint. He said the Tennessee lawsuit gave the court the “opportunity” to apply last year’s Supreme Court decision in New York State Rifle &amp; Pistol Association Inc. v. Bruen appropriately.
“Just two weeks ago in the FPC-led case Andrews v. McCraw, a federal district judge in Texas concluded that the Constitution demands the restoration of the right to bear arms to the young adults of that state,” said FPC Director of Legal Operations Bill Sack. “With today’s filing in Beeler, the Eastern District of Tennessee now has the opportunity to properly apply Bruen and reach the same conclusion.”
In Bruen, the Supreme Court <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/breaking-scotus-strikes-down-new-york-concealed-carry-restrictions-restrictions" target="_blank" rel="noopener">struck down</a> a New York law requiring applicants for a permit to carry a handgun to demonstrate that they have a special need for self-defense in addition to other requirements.

Revolvers

Gun Rights Group Amends Lawsuit To Lower Tennessee Constitutional Carry Age To 18+ After Texas Victory

Gun Rights

Tennessee

Texas

Gun manufacturer Smith &amp; Wesson ripped politicians for demonizing <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/guns">guns</a> and lawful gun owners to cover for failed policies that have led to surging <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/crime" target="_blank" rel="noopener">crime</a> rates.
Company president and CEO Mark Smith released a 440-word statement Monday castigating “politicians and their lobbying partners in the media.” Smith accused the cabal of using his company and other gun manufacturers as scapegoats for a “crisis of violence” that has rocked the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/united-states">United States</a>.
“Some have had the audacity to suggest that after they have vilified, undermined and defunded law enforcement for years, supported prosecutors who refuse to hold criminals accountable for their actions, overseen the decay of our country’s mental health infrastructure, and generally promoted a culture of lawlessness, Smith &amp; Wesson and other firearm manufacturers are somehow responsible for the crime wave that has predictably resulted from these destructive policies,” Smith said. “But they are the ones to blame for the surge in violence and lawlessness, and they seek to avoid any responsibility for the crisis of violence they have created by attempting to shift the blame to Smith &amp; Wesson, other firearm manufacturers and law-abiding gun owners.”
“It is no surprise that the cities suffering most from violent crime are the very same cities that have promoted irresponsible, soft-on-crime policies that often treat criminals as victims and victims as criminals,” he continued, noting that often those cities have strict gun control policies.
Leftist prosecutors in cities such as Los Angeles, New York, and Philadelphia have overseen spikes of violent crime across the communities they are tasked with keeping orderly and safe. Philadelphia is particularly dangerous and at risk of <a href="https://www.inquirer.com/crime/philadelphia-gun-violence-2022-shootings-data-20220622.html">setting</a> a record for most homicides in a year, tracking closely with its previous record set just last year.
Philadelphia&#8217;s Soros-backed district attorney, Larry Krasner, is one of the most left-leaning prosecutors in the U.S. He has faced intense criticism over his city&#8217;s spate of violent crime, and has even been <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2022/08/11/us/philadelphia-gun-violence-shootings.html">threatened</a> by Republican state lawmakers with impeachment.
President Joe Biden has made gun control one of his main priorities. He has repeated his <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/white-house/biden-make-prime-time-address-calling-gun-reform-legislation-rcna31665">calls</a> to ban certain semi-automatic rifles and &#8220;high-capacity&#8221; magazines after mass shooting events.
In June, Democrats <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/boston/news/senator-ed-markey-gun-safety-legislation-smith-wesson-headquarters/">held</a> an event outside the Smith &amp; Wesson headquarters in Springfield, Massachusetts, calling for stricter gun control. The event was led by Massachusetts Sen. Ed Markey (D) targeted the gun manufacturer explicitly.
“More and more mass shooters murder more and more Americans with these assault weapons in hand,” Markey said. “The AR-15 style assault weapons made right here at Smith and Wesson were used in mass shootings.”
Smith said blame directed at guns and gun-owners is misplaced. “To be clear, a Smith &amp; Wesson firearm has never broken into a home, a Smith &amp; Wesson firearm has never assaulted a woman out for a late-night run in the city, a Smith &amp; Wesson firearm has never carjacked an unsuspecting driver stopped at a traffic light,” he wrote.
“Instead, Smith &amp; Wesson provides these citizens with the means to protect themselves and their families,” he said. Smith ended his statement pledging to “never back down in our defense of the Second Amendment.”
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Amid an unprecedented and unjustified attack on the firearm industry, Smith &amp; Wesson President &amp; CEO issues strong statement: <a href="https://t.co/6NHztbGIe4">pic.twitter.com/6NHztbGIe4</a>
&mdash; Smith &amp; Wesson Inc. (@Smith_WessonInc) <a href="https://twitter.com/Smith_WessonInc/status/1559209562858717187?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 15, 2022</a></blockquote>
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Smith & Wesson

Smith & Wesson CEO Blasts Lawmakers, Activists Who Call For Gun Control While Feeding ‘Culture Of Lawlessness’

Joe Biden

Philadelphia

<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/whole-foods">Whole Foods</a> founder John Mackey warned that <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/socialism">socialists</a> are “taking over” every facet of American society, and promised he’ll have much more to say when he steps down as CEO of the trailblazing supermarket chain.
Mackey, who founded the company in 1980 and stayed on to run it after selling it to Amazon for $13.7 billion in 2017, said freedom-hating fascists have seized control of companies, education, and even the military. The explosive comments came in an interview with <a href="https://reason.com/podcast/2022/08/10/whole-foods-john-mackey-i-feel-like-socialists-are-taking-over/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Reason magazine</a>.
“They’re marching through the institutions — they’re taking everything over,” said Mackey, who is stepping down at the end of September. “They’ve taken over education. It looks like they’ve taken over a lot of the corporations. It looks like they’ve taken over the military. And it’s just continuing.”
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&quot;I feel like socialists are taking over,&quot; <a href="https://twitter.com/WholeFoods?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@WholeFoods</a> CEO John Mackey tells <a href="https://twitter.com/reason?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@reason</a>. &quot;I believe in liberty and capitalism. Those are my twin values. And I feel like&#8230;a lot of the liberties that I&#39;ve taken for granted most of my life&#8230;are under threat.&quot;<a href="https://t.co/M9VC9pOone">https://t.co/M9VC9pOone</a>
&mdash; Nick Gillespie (@nickgillespie) <a href="https://twitter.com/nickgillespie/status/1557463255811080192?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 10, 2022</a></blockquote>
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Although many consider Whole Foods and its parent company progressive, Mackey said he is a “capitalist at heart.” While building the company, Mackey espoused what he called “conscious capitalism,” and sought to “create financial, intellectual, social, cultural, emotional, spiritual, physical, and ecological wealth for all of [its] stakeholders.” The company promoted environmentally sound agriculture, paid living wages, and was a pioneer in providing health care to entry-level employees.
But incompetent Leftist governance, especially during the COVID pandemic, has made it difficult to champion those values while still making a profit, he said. He cited increased government unemployment benefits that made it more lucrative for prospective workers to stay jobless.
“A lot of people were making as much money, if not more money, not working at all,” he said. “And so guess what? They chose not to come back to work. They got used to it,” he said.
Even now, the younger generation that the supermarket industry relies on to unload trucks, stock shelves, and man the registers “don’t seem to want to work,” he said. The problem is most acute in Democrat-run big cities, he said.
“They only wanna work if it’s really purposeful, and [something] they feel aligned to,” he said. “You can’t hope to start with meaningful work. You’re going to have to earn it over time. Some of the younger generation doesn’t seem to be willing to pay that price, and I don’t know why.”
Mackey also lamented the Left’s ongoing assault on freedom of speech and other constitutional rights.
“I feel like with the way freedom of speech is today — the movement on gun control — a lot of the liberties that I’ve taken for granted most of my life, I think, are under threat,” he said.
The comments were apparently just a hint of what’s to come, when Mackey steps down and can speak even more freely.
“Pretty soon, you’re gonna hear about ‘Crazy John’ who’s no longer muzzled,” he said. “I’ve got six weeks. I can talk more about politics in six weeks than I can today.”

U.S.-WASHINGTON-UNEMPLOYMENT RATE

‘No Longer Muzzled’: Whole Foods Founder Issues Dire Warning About Socialists

'No Longer Muzzled': Whole Foods Founder Issues Dire Warning About Socialists

Business

Free Speech

U.S. Military

Whole Foods

Woke Culture

All too often, major media outlets spend hours of airtime and tens of thousands of words covering the instances where firearms are used by criminals to hurt people. For some reason, those same outlets rarely address how often peaceful individuals use firearms in order to protect themselves, their loved ones, and their communities.
Last week, The Daily Wire covered the story of <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/armed-peaceful-citizens-can-stop-mass-shootings-one-just-did-in-indiana">Elisjsha Dicken</a>, who stopped a would-be mass shooter in his tracks, and last month, we covered several other <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/5-times-a-lawfully-armed-citizen-stopped-a-would-be-mass-shooter-in-his-tracks">armed individuals</a> who stopped mass shootings. However, there are hundreds of thousands — possibly millions — of defensive gun uses in the United States that don’t receive even that level of coverage.
<a href="https://nap.nationalacademies.org/read/18319/chapter/3#15">In a 2013 study</a>, the National Academies Press reported that defensive gun uses number between 500,000 and 3 million per year. With all of those times a firearm was used to preserve and protect life kept in mind, here are four key stories from just last month:
<h4>80-Year-Old Store Owner Shoots Armed Robber</h4>
On July 31, 80-year-old Craig Cope, who owns a convenience store in Norco, California, saw an armed assailant exit a vehicle on the store’s surveillance cameras just before 3:00 AM. Cope immediately retrieved the shotgun he kept behind the counter and <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/losangeles/news/caught-on-camera-80-year-old-norco-store-owner-shoots-attempted-robbery-suspect/">shot the would-be robber</a> in the arm as he entered the store, before the robber was able to cause any harm or steal any property.
Cope specifically installed his new surveillance system less than a year ago because of the uptick in store robberies in the area, and it clearly paid off. One of the store employees told the local CBS station: “I’m proud to call him my boss. He makes us feel better about being here, you know.”
<h4>Pregnant Woman Saves Herself And Unborn Child By Shooting Attacker</h4>
A 34-year-old pregnant woman in Ohio likely saved her life, and the life of her unborn child, on July 29 during a domestic violence incident. According to 911 calls, shortly before 11:00 AM, the expectant mother was being choked by a male attacker when <a href="https://www.cantonrep.com/story/news/2022/07/29/man-shot-during-domestic-dispute-lake-township-uniontown-police/10182184002/">she grabbed a nearby gun and shot her attacker</a>. 
The man had, just the month prior, pleaded guilty to a disorderly conduct charge for violating an order from police to cease all communication with the same woman. He received a 30-day sentence, but he only spent one day in jail, with the other 29 days suspended. Police have a warrant for the man’s arrest as soon as he is discharged from the hospital.
<h4>Armed Bystander Saves Store Clerk Being Held At Knife-Point</h4>
A female store clerk in St. Charles, Missouri may be alive today because a 26-year-old man from St. Louis happened to stop into a QuikTrip to use the bathroom shortly after 3:00 AM. On July 16, as the man was leaving the store, he saw another man abruptly pull up in an SUV, run into the store with a backpack, and drag the female clerk to the front of the store screaming. The attacker held a knife to the woman’s throat.
The young man, who had just left the store, grabbed a handgun from his vehicle and ran back into the store to confront the assailant. When the assailant approached the armed civilian with his backpack saying, “I have something for you,” <a href="https://www.stltoday.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/man-shoots-kills-robbery-suspect-during-violent-crime-spree-in-st-charles/article_31011371-4d41-5b63-815b-027d9fe163b2.html">the civilian opened fire, killing the assailant</a>. It turns out the assailant was on a violent crime spree, having robbed two other stores that night and severely injuring a clerk at one of those stores.
<h4>Concealed Carry License Holder In Chicago Defends Himself And His 11-Year-Old Daughter</h4>
The last thing most people expect when sitting in a McDonald’s parking lot while having dinner on a Tuesday night is needing to defend yourself and your daughter from an armed attacker. But that’s exactly what happened at a McDonald’s in Chicago on July 14. Around 5:00 PM, a masked 19-year-old approached a man’s car, began yelling, and then drew a gun and fired several shots into the car.
However, the would-be victim was armed, and he immediately drew his own handgun and <a href="https://cwbchicago.com/2022/07/27-concealed-carry-holder-shot-man-who-opened-fire-on-his-car-at-mcdonalds.html">returned fire</a>, probably saving not only his life, but the life of his 11-year-old daughter who was sitting in the back seat. While police found bullet holes in the car&#8217;s passenger door, hood, and tire, miraculously, neither the man nor his daughter were harmed. The attacker, who had pending charges for carjacking, burglary, and aggravated battery, was found in a nearby parking garage with gunshot wounds to his hand, arm, and foot and was taken into custody.
* * *
These are just a few of the many defensive gun uses that occurred in July alone. This doesn’t include the <a href="https://www.fox13news.com/news/clearwater-woman-fatally-shoots-man-who-broke-into-her-bedroom-police-say">Clearwater, Florida woman who fatally shot a man attacking her in her bedroom in June</a>; the <a href="https://news4sanantonio.com/news/local/suspected-stalker-shot-dead-after-kicking-in-the-door-of-a-womans-apartment-police-say-houston-texas-investigation-handgun-investigators-detectives-evidence-witnesses">Webster, Texas woman who shot her stalker after he kicked in her front door in May</a>; or the <a href="https://www.nbcphiladelphia.com/news/local/man-shoots-kills-2-teens-who-tried-to-rob-him-officials-say/3224640/">Norristown, Pennsylvania man who shot two teens that tried to rob him at gun point in April</a>. 
What is clear is that despite the vast majority of time most legacy media outlets dedicate to covering the instances when firearms are used by criminals to hurt people, those instances pale in comparison to the hundreds of thousands — maybe millions — of times that peaceful individuals use firearms to protect themselves, their loved ones, or even strangers every day in this country. Any attempt to disarm these peaceful people, or any peaceful person in this country, is not only unconstitutional, but deeply immoral and dangerous.
Cody J. Wisniewski (<a href="https://twitter.com/TheWizardofLawz">@TheWizardofLawz</a>) is a Senior Attorney for Constitutional Litigation with <a href="https://www.firearmspolicy.org/">Firearms Policy Coalition</a>. His work has appeared in the Washington Times, the Washington Examiner, National Review, Daily Wire, and more. He primarily focuses on Second Amendment issues but is happy so long as he is reminding the government of its enumerated powers and constitutional limitations.
The views expressed in this piece are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.

v2 Wisniewski – 5 Defensive Uses of a Gun

4 Times An Armed Civilian Used A Firearm In Self Defense – Last Month Alone

Gun Laws

Readers Pass

The <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/u-s-house-of-representatives">House of Representatives</a> voted largely along partisan lines Friday to pass a <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/gun-control">ban</a> on certain semi-automatic firearms, though the bill is not expected to make it through the Senate. 
The <a href="https://www.congress.gov/bill/117th-congress/house-bill/1808/text">bill</a>, entitled the “Assault Weapons Ban of 2022,” was passed by a vote of 217-213 and is intended “to ensure that the right to keep and bear arms is not unlimited.” The bill would reinstate the assault weapons ban that was in place from 1994 to 2004 and prohibit the sale or manufacture of certain rifles (including AR-15s), shotguns, and pistols based on their features.
Several Democrats, <a href="https://apnews.com/article/gun-violence-politics-shootings-congress-fd91c092aef91a992ee959399ba6f222">including</a> Rep. Henry Cuellar (D-TX), Jared Golden (D-ME), Vicente Gonzalez (D-TX), Ron Kind (D-WI), and Kurt Schrader (D-OR) voted against the bill, while Republican Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA) and Rep. Chris Jacobs (R-NY) voted in favor.
“Today, House Democrats acted by unifying to pass an assault weapons ban to keep weapons of war off our streets, save lives in this country, and reduce crime in our communities,” Biden <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2022/07/29/statement-from-president-biden-on-house-passage-of-assault-weapons-ban/">said</a> in a statement. “The majority of the American people agree with this common sense action.”
The bill is unlikely to pass the Senate since it would require the support of 10 Republican senators to get past the filibuster. 
Many House Republicans called the bill an attempt to crack down on the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/second-amendment">Second Amendment</a>. 
“This is the first time in American history, I believe, that a chamber of the Congress will pass a bill openly defying the Supreme Court’s explicit declaration of the rights of the American people,” <a href="https://twitter.com/RepDanBishop">said</a> Rep. Dan Bishop (R-NC) on the House floor, pointing to Supreme Court rulings such as D.C. v. Heller, which held that American citizens had the right to own firearms under the Constitution. 
Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) said that, if signed into law, the legislation would ban millions of guns that Americans already own, while Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX) pointed to the border crisis as one reason why Americans need to stay armed. 
“We shouldn&#8217;t be talking about disarming the American people, when it is my colleagues on the other side of the aisle that are leaving the American people exposed to dangerous cartels and dangerous narcotics flying to our communities, and dangerous criminal gang members, and criminals that are coming in and harming the American people, including people that are affiliated with terrorist countries and organizations,” the Texas Republican <a href="https://roy.house.gov/media/press-releases/rep-roys-remarks-hr-1808">said</a>. 
Rep. Guy Reschenthaler (R-PA) called the legislation a “gun grab.” 
Last month, Biden <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/biden-signs-most-expansive-gun-control-bill-in-decades-into-law-following-republican-support">signed</a> the most expansive gun control legislation in decades following support from Republicans in the House and the Senate.

Speaker Pelosi Holds Her Weekly Press Conference On Capitol Hill

‘Gun Grab’: House Passes Bill Banning Certain Semi-Automatic Guns

House Passes Bill Banning Certain Semi-Automatic Rifles, Pistols

Chip Roy

U.S. House of Representatives

<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/gun-control">Gun control advocates</a> and left-wing media figures are in a twist over the labeling of an armed hero who stopped a mass shooting at Indiana mall on Sunday as a ‘Good Samaritan.’
Elisjsha “Eli” Dicken, 22, likely saved lives by shooting down a man who had killed three people and wounded two more in Greenwood Park Mall, according to police and local officials. But Dicken, who was carrying his gun legally, is not being hailed as a hero by everyone and some took exception to the biblical accolade. 
“The term, ‘Good Samaritan’ came from a Bible passage of a man from Samaria who stopped on the side of the road to help a man who was injured and ignored,&#8221; local CBS 4 traffic anchor Justin Kollar <a href="https://twitter.com/kollarjustin/status/1548832235905863680">tweeted</a>. &#8220;I cannot believe we live in a world where the term can equally apply to someone killing someone… my God.&#8221;
<a href="https://twitter.com/kollarjustin/status/1548832235905863680">https://twitter.com/kollarjustin/status/1548832235905863680</a>
Dicken, a resident of nearby Seymour, was shopping with his girlfriend when the man began shooting, firing off 24 rounds, according to police. The Daily Wire does not name mass shooters as part of a policy to deprive them of the attention they often crave. Dicken fired 10 rounds, injuring no one else, but killing the shooter.
While shoppers at the mall were no doubt grateful to Dicken, Leftists were not.
“I don’t know who needs to hear this but when a 22-year-old illegally brings a loaded gun into a mall and kills a mass shooter armed with an AR-15 after he already killed three people and wounded others is not a ringing endorsement of our implementation of the Second Amendment,&#8221; <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/us/gun-control-advocates-stunned-man-allegedly-shot-indiana-mall-shooter-labeled-good-samaritan">wrote</a> Shannon Watts, founder of the gun control advocacy group Moms Demand Action.
Contrary to Watts’ claim, authorities have confirmed that Dicken was lawfully carrying the handgun he used to end the massacre, and said he was fully cooperating with the ongoing investigation of the incident. According to a report by <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2022/07/18/greenwood-mall-shooting/">the Washington Post</a>, just last month, Indiana removed a permit requirement to carry a handgun in public, over objections by police officials. The author of the bill to waive the permit requirement argued that doing so would allow “Mr. and Mrs. Lawful Hoosier” to “defend themselves in public.”
Dicken was in violation of a mall policy which banned customers from bringing guns inside, but in official statements the Greenwood Park Mall does not seem overly concerned by that, instead praising the young man for his life saving actions.
&#8220;We grieve for the victims of yesterday’s horrific tragedy in Greenwood.” a spokesperson for the mall <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/us/gun-control-advocates-stunned-man-allegedly-shot-indiana-mall-shooter-labeled-good-samaritan">said</a> in a public statement. “ Violence has no place in this or any other community. We are grateful for the strong response of the first responders, including the heroic actions of the Good Samaritan who stopped the suspect,&#8221; 
Mark Meyers, the mayor of Greenwood, echoed that sentiment in his own public statement.
 &#8220;Someone we are calling the ‘Good Samaritan’ was able to shoot the assailant and stop further bloodshed,&#8221; he <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/us/gun-control-advocates-stunned-man-allegedly-shot-indiana-mall-shooter-labeled-good-samaritan">wrote</a>, before Dicken’s name was <a href="https://www.therepublic.com/2022/07/18/greenwood-police-identify-victims-shooter-and-good-samaritan-in-mall-shooting/">released</a> by authorities. &#8220;This person saved lives tonight. On behalf of the City of Greenwood, I am grateful for his quick action and heroism in this situation.&#8221;
Police described Dicken’s actions as “nothing short of heroic,”, noting that the young man had no police or military training but still stepped forward and ended the bloodshed two minutes after it began. This is in stark contrast to the increasingly excoriated response of law enforcement in Uvalde, who left an active shooter alone in a room full of elementary students <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/watch-uvalde-police-chief-tried-to-negotiate-with-shooter">for over an hour</a> despite outnumbering the gunman by  <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/egregious-poor-decision-making-nearly-400-cops-gathered-at-uvalde-school-before-anyone-did-anything">376 to 1</a>.
While outlets such as the Washington Post and<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2022/06/22/us/shootings-police-response-uvalde-buffalo.html"> The New York Times</a> have characterized the ‘good guy with a gun’ as a “rare occurrence,” <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/paulhsieh/2018/04/30/that-time-the-cdc-asked-about-defensive-gun-uses/?sh=7df5cd66299a">data from the CDC</a> suggests that Americans use firearms defensively as many as 3 million times per year.

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