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

Coronavirus

David Hogg

Donald Trump

Gun Control

Rashida Tlaib

Second Amendment

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

Guns

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

Gun Laws

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>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
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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>
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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>
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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;
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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>
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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!).”
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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>
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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>
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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;
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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>
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&#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;
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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>
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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;
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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>
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&#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;
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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>
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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;
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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>
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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>
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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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<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>
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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;
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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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Virginia State Senator Warns Gun Owners About Upcoming Rally: ‘We Are Being Set Up’

Donald Trump Jr. slammed incoming Florida Senate President Bill Galvano, a Republican, for siding with extreme anti-Second Amendment advocate and communist China <a href="http://nymag.com/intelligencer/2019/12/michael-bloomberg-china-pbs-climate-xi-dictator.html">sympathizer</a> Michael Bloomberg.
On Friday, Breitbart Second Amendment columnist AWR Hawkins called <a href="https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2020/01/17/floridas-gop-sen-leader-grateful-money-bloomberg-gun-control/">attention</a> to two massive contributions totaling <a href="https://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/politics/fl-ne-florida-nra-influence-20200117-nxzo5kmgtncytnuklr75rdkvf4-story.html">$500,000</a> that Bloomberg&#8217;s far-left group Everytown for Gun Safety Action Fund gave to Galvano&#8217;s political committee, the Innovate Florida committee, after the tragic shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in February 2018.
Galvano <a href="https://www.tampabay.com/florida-politics/buzz/2018/09/17/nra-blasts-bill-galvano-over-donation-from-gun-control-group-our-second-amendment-rights-were-sold/">responded</a> to the contribution by saying in September 2018 that he &#8220;will make no apologies&#8221; for supporting gun control championed by Bloomberg, and said that he was &#8220;grateful for the support&#8221; from Bloomberg&#8217;s group.
In a statement to The Daily Wire, Trump Jr. slammed Galvano for siding with Bloomberg, who is running for president as a Democrat and on the issue of stripping Americans of their Second Amendment rights.
“Any supposed ‘Republican’ who proudly accepts money from Mini Mike Bloomberg and is supportive of his gun control agenda is nothing more than a stone cold RINO,” Trump Jr. told The Daily Wire. “The last thing Florida Republicans need is a liberal, gun-grabbing Bloomberg minion leading them in the State Senate.”
Andrew Pollack, who lost his daughter in the Parkland tragedy, slammed Galvano in a tweet, writing: &#8220;Democrats exploited the murder of my daughter. I never imagined a Republican would do the same, but that’s exactly what Bill Galvano did He took $500,000 from Bloomberg &amp; tried to reinstate disgraced Sheriff Scott Israel This boils my blood! #FixIt&#8221;
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Democrats exploited the murder of my daughter.
I never imagined a Republican would do the same, but that’s exactly what Bill Galvano did
He took $500,000 from Bloomberg &amp; tried to reinstate disgraced Sheriff Scott Israel
This boils my blood! <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/FixIt?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#FixIt</a> <a href="https://t.co/d2xLFKQDR5">https://t.co/d2xLFKQDR5</a>
— Andrew Pollack (@AndrewPollackFL) <a href="https://twitter.com/AndrewPollackFL/status/1218724826187210752?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 19, 2020</a></blockquote>
In a separate tweet, Pollack highlighted the money that Galvano got from Bloomberg&#8217;s far-left group, writing: &#8220;Florida Senate President @BillGalvano is bought and paid for by Michael Bloomberg. He’s accepted over $500k from Bloomberg’s anti-gun PAC. He’s constantly working against Governor Desantis and the Republican Party. He’s a RINO #FixIt&#8221;
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Florida Senate President <a href="https://twitter.com/BillGalvano?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@BillGalvano</a> is bought and paid for by Michael Bloomberg.
He’s accepted over $500k from Bloomberg’s anti-gun PAC.
He’s constantly working against Governor Desantis and the Republican Party.
He’s a RINO <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/FixIt?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#FixIt</a> <a href="https://t.co/47Yeu4Qu42">pic.twitter.com/47Yeu4Qu42</a>
&mdash; Andrew Pollack (@AndrewPollackFL) <a href="https://twitter.com/AndrewPollackFL/status/1218272346081021954?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 17, 2020</a></blockquote>
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The past donations from Bloomberg&#8217;s far-left group to Galvano garnered attention because Galvano led a Senate panel this last week to ram through Bloomberg&#8217;s gun control agenda in Florida.
News 4 Jax <a href="https://www.news4jax.com/news/florida/2020/01/14/florida-senate-panel-backs-gun-control-measure/">reported</a>:
<blockquote>A Senate panel Monday unanimously signed off on a far-reaching measure that would close the gun-show “loophole,” create a record-keeping system for private gun sales and set aside $5 million to establish a “statewide strategy for violence prevention.” The proposal (SB 7028) is a priority of Senate President Bill Galvano, R-Bradenton, as evidenced by the Senate Infrastructure and Security Committee’s consideration and passage of the measure the day before the 2020 legislative session begins.
The sweeping legislation would require background checks and a three-day waiting period for firearms sold “on property to which the public has the right of access,” such as “a flea market, a gun show, or a firearm exhibit.” The measure would also mandate that guns be securely stored in households and other places where minors under age 18 &#8212; up from the current threshold of 16 &#8212; could have access to the weapons.</blockquote>
Former NRA President Marion P. Hammer responded at the time by indicating that Galvano betrayed those who voted for him, <a href="https://www.nraila.org/articles/20180917/florida-alert-galvano-committee-gets-200k-from-everytown-group">saying</a>, &#8220;Looks like our Second Amendment Rights were sold for a large contribution from anti-gun former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg.&#8221;
Hammer <a href="https://www.nraila.org/articles/20200115/alert-florida-republican-senators-vote-for-massive-gun-control-bill">said</a> that the gun control bill advocated for by Galvano this week, SB-7028, was &#8220;the worst I have ever seen&#8221; and &#8220;is clearly meant to simply ban all private sales of firearms through red tape and fear.&#8221;
&#8220;This bill contains so much red tape and nonsense that there is almost no way a law-abiding person could comply,&#8221; Hammer continued. &#8220;The only thing we know for sure is that this bill will only stop law-abiding people from exercising a constitutional right, and it will be completely ignored by criminals.&#8221;
&#8220;Voting in favor of this bill is like a doctor giving a patient an antibiotic for a virus. The doctor knows an antibiotic won’t cure the illness, but at least he can make people think he’s &#8216;doing something,'&#8221; Hammer added. &#8220;Supporting a bill so you can say you’re doing something is &#8216;political eyewash.'&#8221;

Donald Trump Jr.

Trump Jr Blasts FL Republican Bill Galvano Over Past Support From Anti-Gun Extremist Bloomberg

Florida

The Virginia Supreme Court has upheld Democratic Gov. Ralph Northam&#8217;s ban on guns on Capitol grounds ahead of a massive pro-gun rally on Monday.
The ban took effect Friday at 5 p.m. and will remain in place through Monday. The state&#8217;s high court refused to overturn the ban, saying pro-gun lawyers failed to make a case for doing so.
“The only information we have on which to resolve the weighty issues raised by the parties are pleadings accompanied by cursory attachments. Accordingly, the petition is refused,” six of the court’s seven justices wrote.
President Donald Trump on Friday weighed in on the ban in Virginia. “Your 2nd Amendment is under very serious attack in the Great Commonwealth of Virginia,” Trump wrote on Twitter. “That’s what happens when you vote for Democrats, they will take your guns away. Republicans will win Virginia in 2020. Thank you Dems!”
Democrats took over both chambers of the Virginia legislature in November, and quickly pushed anti-gun laws through the assembly.
On Thursday, lawmakers in the state Senate passed the first pair of bills in a wave of gun-control legislation that is set to come up for votes. One bill would restore the state’s previous one-handgun-a-month rule, while the second would allow local governments to ban guns in public buildings, parks and at permitted events &#8212; including political protests. The vote was straight party line, 21-19.
Northam, who was recently ensconced in a controversy over whether he once wore blackface while in college, announced the gun ban on Wednesday, citing “credible intelligence” that some groups plan to get violent at the rally.
&#8220;We have no intention of calling out the National Guard,&#8221; Northam said. &#8220;We&#8217;re not going to cut off people&#8217;s electricity. We&#8217;re not going to go door to door and confiscate people&#8217;s weapons. We&#8217;re going to pass common sense legislation that will keep guns out of dangerous hands and keep Virginia safer.&#8221;
A Virginia judge on Thursday ruled that a firearms ban can remain in place during the pro-gun rally on the Capitol grounds in Richmond and gun rights advocates immediately appealed the ruling to the Supreme Court.
&#8220;Without relief from this court, petitioners and thousands of other rally participants will be irreparably denied their right to bear arms,&#8221; the groups&#8217; attorneys argue in their appeal.
But Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring on Friday urged the state Supreme Court to reject the appeal.
“Determined to prevent another tragedy, the Governor issued a carefully limited Executive Order. The Order does not prevent anyone from speaking, assembling, or petitioning the government. Instead, it temporarily precludes private possession of firearms in a sensitive public place during a specified time to protect public safety and safeguard the rights of all citizens to peacefully speak, assemble, and petition their government,&#8221; Herring said in a legal brief.
&#8220;The plaintiffs argued the firearms ban violates the First and Second Amendments and that Northam didn&#8217;t have the authority to impose it. According to The Associated Press, Judge Joi Taylor said in her ruling the governor has the authority under state law to take action related to the &#8216;safety and welfare&#8217; of the state. Taylor also cited rulings from the U.S. Supreme Court that the right to bear arms can be subject to limits,&#8221; <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/lobby-day-richmond-virginia-gun-rally-ralph-northam-firearm-ban-backed-by-judge-today-2020-01-16/">CBS News</a> reported.
With Democrats in control of both legislative chambers and the governorship, Republicans are powerless. “Ladies and gentlemen, this is probably the first assault on the Second Amendment. And we’re going to see many after that,” said Republican Sen. Bill Stanley. He argued that the bill giving localities control over guns in public spaces would create “little pockets here and there where guns are good and guns are bad.”

VA Governor Northam Holds Press Conference To Address Racist Yearbook Photo

Virginia Supreme Court Upholds Dem Governor’s Gun Ban On Capitol Grounds

Ahead of planned protests against Virginia Democrats&#8217; four new gun control bills, the FBI has arrested three people who are allegedly members of a racist and anti-Semitic group &#8220;preparing for a race war.&#8221;
The charges against the alleged members of the white ethno-nationalist group include federal gun charges as well as alien-harboring charges related to helping one of the suspects, a Canadian citizen, get into the country illegally.
&#8220;The charges announced Thursday grew from an investigation of a collection of online extremists who refer to themselves as &#8216;the Base,&#8217; which is the English translation of al-Qaeda,&#8221; <a href="https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/fbi-arrests-alleged-members-of-white-supremacist-group-the-base/ar-BBZ1t9m">The Washington Post</a> reports. &#8220;According to experts who track hate groups, its members promote racist views and seek to unite different hate groups in preparation for a race war.&#8221;
&#8220;Officials said Brian Mark Lemley Jr., 33, and William Bilbrough IV, 19, both of Maryland, were charged with transporting an alien and conspiring to harbor an alien,&#8221; the Post reports. &#8220;Lemley is also charged with transporting a machine gun. Also charged is Patrik Mathews, 27, who has been living in Newark, Del. He is accused of transporting a firearm and ammunition with the intent to commit a felony.&#8221;
The Post reports that Mathews is a former member of the Canadian army reserve who went missing in August, having allegedly crossed illegally into the U.S., meeting Lemley and Bilbrough in Michigan before they traveled back to Maryland and Delaware. Lemley also served in the military, as a U.S. Army scout.
&#8220;Lemley, Mathews, and Bilbrough are members of a white supremacist organization named &#8216;The Base,'&#8221; the complaint against the suspects reads. &#8220;Within The Base’s encrypted chat rooms, members have discussed, among other things, recruitment, creating a white ethno-state, committing acts of violence against minority communities (including African-Americans and Jewish-Americans), the organization’s military-style training camps, and ways to make improvised explosive devices.&#8221;
The complaint states that an FBI agent witnessed Lemley firing a &#8220;machine gun&#8221; he and Mathews constructed at a gun range in Maryland on Jan. 2.
The arrests come ahead of protests planned to begin Monday at the state&#8217;s capital, protests which will reportedly include pro-Second Amendment protesters from both the left and the right.
While Second Amendment protesters are frequently assumed to be from the right, as <a href="https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/akwv4k/why-antifa-is-siding-with-thousands-of-pro-gun-conservatives-in-virginia">Vice</a> reports, members of the far-left Antifa say they also are planning to attend the rally next week in Richmond — but not because they intend to harass the &#8220;right-wingers.&#8221;
&#8220;Antifa Seven Hills, based in Richmond, are opposing the slew of gun bills introduced by the newly Democratic Legislature since November, because they say those types of laws are used primarily to criminalize poor people, minorities, and leftists — and to bolster law enforcement’s power,&#8221; Vice reports.
A spokesperson for the group, who requested anonymity, told Vice, &#8220;I think it’s been pretty important for us to focus on the fact that gun control in America has a legacy of racist enforcement. Like taking guns away from black people, because black people were perceived as a threat to property and the sanctity of the state.&#8221;
&#8220;The local antifa chapter’s engagement in this issue is another example of the resurgence of pro-gun leftists in America and yet more evidence that the gun-rights debate is growing increasingly politically diffuse and nuanced beyond simply being a GOP issue,&#8221; Vice notes.

FBI Seal

FBI Arrests Alleged Members Of Group ‘Preparing For Race War’ Ahead Of Virginia Gun Rally

White Supremacy

In a first under Colorado&#8217;s controversial new &#8220;red flag&#8221; law, a judge has denied a request to confiscate a Colorado resident&#8217;s firearms.
Colorado&#8217;s hotly contested &#8220;Zackari Parrish Violence Prevention Act&#8221; — named after a sheriff&#8217;s deputy shot in the line of duty by a heavily armed, mentally ill man — went into effect at the start of the new year, and, since, at least four &#8220;temporary extreme risk protection orders&#8221; (ERPOs) have been filed in the state. All of the requests have been thus far approved, until the latest one, filed in Limon, the most populous city in Lincoln County, Colorado.
As detailed by the <a href="https://www.denverlawreview.org/dlr-online-article/colorados-proposed-red-flag-gun-bill-extreme-risk-protection-orders">Denver Law Review</a>, under the proposed law, &#8220;a family member, law enforcement officer, or law enforcement agency (the Petitioner) may petition the court for an &#8216;Extreme Risk Protection Order&#8217; (ERPO) that would require the subject of the petition (the Respondent) to surrender his or her firearms to law enforcement for a period of time.&#8221; A judge then determines whether or not the protection order request will be granted. If it is, law enforcement are authorized to temporarily confiscate the respondent&#8217;s firearms.
<a href="https://denver.cbslocal.com/2020/01/12/colorado-judge-red-flag-confiscation-request/">CBS Denver</a>, which obtained a copy of the protection order, reports that the ultimately rejected request was filed by a woman from Limon, who says a man with whom she had a relationship had made &#8220;verbal and physical threats&#8221; with a handgun against her. The man, the woman says, struggles with alcohol and marijuana abuse.
The request was submitted to a Lincoln County judge, who determined that it should not be granted. Lincoln County, CBS notes, is &#8220;one of the many counties that has indicated it would not honor the red flag law.&#8221;
According to the outlet, this is the first time a request has been rejected under the brand new law, which went into effect on Jan 1, 2020. &#8220;At least four requests have been filed since the first of 2020; CBS4 is aware of them being filed in Denver, in Larimer County and this one — in Lincoln County,&#8221; the outlet reports.
The denied request, says state Rep. Alec Garnett, who co-sponsored the controversial bill, is proof that the law is &#8220;being applied properly,&#8221; CBS reports.
But some local gun owners disagree. CBS spoke to a few at a local shooting range about their perspective on the law and was met with deep skepticism about how the law would be implemented.
“Red flag laws just allow for harassment of legal gun owners,” one gun owner told CBS. That this fourth request was denied, he suggested, is a &#8220;good thing,&#8221; explaining, &#8220;I think any other new law you’re going to have a lot of case law to determine exactly where the lines are.&#8221;
“I don’t think it’s going to be applied fairly,&#8221; another gun owner told the outlet. &#8220;Anybody can say pretty much what they want about anybody else.&#8221; Another local gun owner partly defended the law, telling CBS that people are &#8220;sick in the head&#8221; shouldn&#8217;t be allowed to have guns.
Ahead of its implementation, <a href="https://denver.cbslocal.com/2019/12/31/colorado-red-flag-law/">CBS Denver</a> interviewed Denver Police Department Division Chief of investigations Joe Montoya about the controversial new law. “I think the intention is good and we just want to make sure we handle it the right way,” said Montoya. “We broke down the laws we got a firm understanding of the interpretation and we did a lot of scenarios, built out a lot of scenarios and went through the what if’s how should we do this,” the police chief said.“I understand why people are concerned about it especially on the gun rights side of things and it’s all in how we handle it,&#8221; he added. &#8220;I think there is that general fear that we are going to be going in seizing guns at the drop of a hat and really that’s not what we want to do.&#8221;
The <a href="https://www.denverlawreview.org/dlr-online-article/colorados-proposed-red-flag-gun-bill-extreme-risk-protection-orders">Denver Law Review</a> summarizes the main arguments of both those who support Colorado&#8217;s red flag law and those who oppose it, primarily over the fundamental right to due process. Excerpt below (formatting adjusted, footnotes removed):
<blockquote>Opponents of the Bill primarily contend that the Bill violates the Respondent’s due process protections. The due process clause, which is found in the Fourteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution, ensures that no state will “deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law.” There are two kinds of due process: procedural and substantive. Procedural due process sets forth the procedures that must be followed before the government deprives an individual of “life, liberty, or property” and generally includes such as things as proper notice and a meaningful hearing before an impartial magistrate. Substantive due process tests whether the government “has adequate reason for taking away a person’s life, liberty, or property.” In conjunction with proper procedure, substantive due process dictates that a governmental action that deprives a “fundamental right” must be necessary to a compelling government interest.
In an effort to address the opponents’ due process concerns, the drafters of the Bill have included additional procedural protections. For example, in addition to numerous other procedures outlined in the text, the Bill mandates that the Respondent be provided with legal counsel for the hearing, a feature that goes beyond what similar “red flag” laws provide for. Additionally, when compared to other “red flag” laws, the Bill provides the Respondent with a longer period to re-examine the validity of his or her ERPO. Despite these proposed protections, the Bill is still expected to be one of the most “hotly-debated” items in the Colorado General Assembly this year. In 2018, a similar bill was rejected by the republican-controlled General Assembly, but this year the Bill is being introduced to a democratic majority.
</blockquote>

‘Red Flag’ Law First: Colorado Judge Denies Gun Confiscation For First Time Under Law

Colorado

John Rodgers, a long-time Democratic lawmaker from the state that brought us socialist Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), proposed a law this week to ban anyone under 21 years of age from using or possessing a cell phone in Vermont. 
“The use of cell phones while driving is one of the leading killers of teenagers in the United States,” reads the <a href="https://legislature.vermont.gov/Documents/2020/Docs/BILLS/S-0212/S-0212%20As%20Introduced.pdf">text of the bill</a>. “According to the United States Department of Transportation, cell phones are involved in 1.6 million automobile crashes each year, causing half a million injuries and 6,000 deaths.”
The text of the bill then focuses on teenage cell phone usage, noting that “young people frequently use cell phones to bull and threaten other young people, activities that have been linked to many suicides.” Furthermore, the bill states, cell phones are the primary means people use to access the internet and social media, which “are used to radicalize and recruit terrorists, fascists, and other extremists,&#8221; and that mass shooters have used cell phones to conduct “research” on mass shootings. If the bill becomes law, unlawful cell phone users could be fined $1,000. 
While Rodgers acknowledges that the bill is unlikely to pass, the state senator told the local <a href="https://www.timesargus.com/news/local/bill-would-ban-cellphone-use-for-those-under/article_2e4064f1-892f-5a83-95a2-d8a4272942d9.html">Times Argus</a> that he was just using the proposal to make a point about the safety of cell phones. 
“I have no delusions that it’s going to pass. I wouldn’t probably vote for it myself,” said Rogers, a Second Amendment supporter who believes that cell phones present a bigger threat than guns. Vermont recently passed a law banning adults under 21 from purchasing a gun unless they pass a course in hunting safety, reports the news agency. 
“In light of the dangerous and life-threatening consequences of cell phone use by young people, it is clear that persons under 21 years of age are not developmentally mature enough to safely possess them, just as the General Assembly has concluded that persons under 21 years of age are not mature 10 enough to possess firearms, smoke cigarettes, or consume alcohol,” concludes the bill. 
<a href="https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2019/08/23/most-u-s-teens-who-use-cellphones-do-it-to-pass-time-connect-with-others-learn-new-things/">Pew Research Center</a> reported last year that approximately nine out of 10 teenagers use cell phones to “pass time,” and that roughly 43% of teenagers use cell phones to “avoid face-to-face interactions.” Researchers also found that 56% of teenagers “associate the absence of their phone with at least one of three emotions: Loneliness, being upset, or feeling anxious.” 
The study also found that more than half of teenagers are concerned that they “spend too much time on their phone.”
According to the <a href="https://www.nhtsa.gov/risky-driving/distracted-driving">National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration</a>, “sending or reading a text” while driving at 55 miles per hour for five seconds is similar to “driving the length of an entire football field with your eyes closed.”
While the overwhelmingly Democratic State Senate in Vermont has not approved the proposal to ban teenage cell phone usage, <a href="https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/2019/06/vermont-adopts-most-comprehensive-single-use-plastics-ban/#close">National Geographic</a> reported last June that the state had taken strong steps to ban plastic products. 
According to the news agency, “the nation’s broadest restrictions yet on shopping bags, straws, drink stirrers, and foam food packaging” will go into effect in July 2020.

Apple Inc. iPhone X Goes On Sale

Lawmaker Proposes $1,000 Fine For Underage Cell Phone Use To Make Point About Gun Bans

On Sunday, Donald Trump Jr. <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-jr-instagram-ar15-weapon-rifle-hillary-clinton-behind-bars/">decided to exercise</a> his Second Amendment rights at the local shooting range. And in an Instagram post, he shared an image of a very special magazine that was affixed to his AR-style sporting rifle.
&#8220;Nice day at the range,&#8221; Trump wrote on Instagram. &#8220;<a href="https://www.instagram.com/rarebreedfirearms/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">@rarebreedfirearms</a> and <a href="https://www.instagram.com/spikes_tactical/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">@spikes_tactical</a> adding a little extra awesome to my AR and that mag &#8230; .&#8221;
It turns out that the magazine was an image of former first lady, senator, secretary of State, and two-time failed presidential candidate Hillary Clinton &#8230; behind prison bars.
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 <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/B67J4TTlnDn/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" style=" color:#000; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:normal; line-height:17px; text-decoration:none; word-wrap:break-word;" target="_blank">Nice day at the range. @rarebreedfirearms and @spikes_tactical adding a little extra awesome to my AR and that mag&#8230;🔥🤣🔥🤣🔥</a>
<p style=" color:#c9c8cd; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; line-height:17px; margin-bottom:0; margin-top:8px; overflow:hidden; padding:8px 0 7px; text-align:center; text-overflow:ellipsis; white-space:nowrap;">A post shared by <a href="https://www.instagram.com/donaldjtrumpjr/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" style=" color:#c9c8cd; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:normal; line-height:17px;" target="_blank"> Donald Trump Jr.</a> (@donaldjtrumpjr) on <time style=" font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; line-height:17px;" datetime="2020-01-05T04:18:38+00:00">Jan 4, 2020 at 8:18pm PST</time>
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&#8220;The rifle was also adorned with a cross symbol used during the Crusades,&#8221; The Hill <a href="https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/477014-trump-jr-displays-gun-magazine-showing-hillary-clinton-behind-bars">reported</a>. &#8220;The Instagram post featured a variety of pictures of the AR-15 style rifle, which was made by Texas-based Rare Breed Firearms and named the Crusader. It remains unclear if Trump Jr. owns the weapon.&#8221;
&#8220;In response to some backlash online, a spokesperson for Trump Jr. told The Hill that the &#8216;Instagram post was strictly about him using a famous meme to mock Hillary Clinton, as he and many others have done on numerous occasions and will surely do again in the future, so long as it continues triggering humorless liberals,'&#8221; the outlet continued.
Trump Jr. is &#8220;an avid gun enthusiast and hunter,&#8221; as CNBC <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2020/01/06/donald-trump-jr-rifle-magazine-shows-hillary-clinton-cross.html">observed</a>.
As the Daily Caller <a href="https://dailycaller.com/2020/01/05/donald-trump-jr-ar-15-hillary-clinton-magazine/">noted</a>, the Clinton-behind-bars rifle magazine is a fairly direct reference to the &#8220;lock her up&#8221; chants that often dominated Trump presidential campaign rallies in 2016: &#8220;President Trump and his supporters have continued to chant &#8216;lock her up&#8217; at rallies when Clinton’s name is mentioned, something that was heard at nearly every rally when Trump was running for president in 2016.&#8221;
The Instagram post will only continue to stir up rumors about Trump Jr.&#8217;s possible future political plans. Politico recently <a href="https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2020/01/03/2024-presidential-election-candidates-091055">profiled</a> what it apparently considers the leading 2024 presidential contenders, and had this to say about Trump Jr.:
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While his sister Ivanka has earned a reputation as an ineffectual inside player who is ideologically out of step with her father and the Republican Party, Junior has been a caustic, partisan warrior on social media, and a rock star on the campaign trail for his father and congressional candidates. When speaking at a San Antonio event in October, a shout of “2024!” was heard from the crowd. One attendee told a reporter, “He’s just like his father and I can’t wait to vote for him someday too.”
That Trump voters would be intrigued by Trump Jr. should surprise no one. 
If Republican voters had a problem with a man born into wealth styling himself as a man of the people by lobbing verbal bombs at liberals and media figures, then Donald Trump, Sr., wouldn’t be president.
What to watch for in 2020: Will we see Donald Trump, Jr., get a prime-time speaking slot at the 2020 convention? Will we see the crowd launch into a “2024” chant? And if Pence does get dumped from the ticket, would Trump, Sr., replace him with someone who disavows interest in running for the presidency, making it easier to keep the Oval Office in the family?
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