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Breyer: Second Amendment Not About 'the Right of an Individual to Keep a Gun Next to His Bed'
pjmedia.com ^ | 8/23/2017 | Bridget Johnson

Posted on 08/23/2017 9:19:16 AM PDT by rktman

Asked about his thoughts on the Second Amendment, Breyer recalled that in Article I of the Constitution "it gives to the Congress the power to call up and regulate state militias."

"There was a lot of concern, if you read the Federalist Papers, you will just get a feeling for it. There was a lot of concern and fear that Congress might do that and disband them, and replace the state militias after they had disbanded them with a federal army. And that, many people said, vote no on the Constitution because if they can do that, then the federal government can destroy your freedom," he said. "Well, said Madison, in a sense, if I paraphrase him, never fear. We will put in the Constitution an amendment which says Congress can't do that. It cannot call up and disband the state militias. Why? Because a well-armed militia is necessary for the security of a free state, i.e. a state militia."

"And therefore the right to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed. In other words, they were talking about that. That's what I thought they were talking about, which is not the right of an individual to keep a gun next to his bed."

(Excerpt) Read more at pjmedia.com ...


TOPICS: Constitution/Conservatism; Government; Philosophy; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: 2a; banglist; breyer; scotus
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To: rktman

Our rights to keep guns by our beds?
The 2nd is about bearing them in public.
Did this guy get his law degree at Costco?
Incredible.

“The Second Amendment: It Ain’t About Hunting”


21 posted on 08/23/2017 9:36:53 AM PDT by tumblindice (America's founding fathers: all armed conservatives)
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To: rktman

A country full of fidiots. Sadly, some are in positions of power.


And that never ends well.

I keep saying that the left likes to act out on the streets, burn some stores, steal some stuff. The right quietly watches and buys more ammo.


22 posted on 08/23/2017 9:38:25 AM PDT by robroys woman
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To: rktman

The intent of the founders with regard to the Constitution is clearly written in the Federalist Papers. Seems Bryer must have misplaced his copy. So many judges in this country are really nothing but ambulance chasers with a god complex.


23 posted on 08/23/2017 9:38:34 AM PDT by VR-21
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To: rktman
A Well Regulated Militia?

Lost in the gun rights debate, much to the detriment of American freedom, is the fact that the Second Amendment is in fact an "AMENDMENT". No "Articles in Amendment" to the Constitution, more commonly referred to as the Bill of Rights, stand alone and each can only be properly understood with reference to what it is that each Article in Amendment amended in the body of the original Constitution. It should not be new knowledge to any American the Constitution was first submitted to Congress on September 17, 1787 WITHOUT ANY AMENDMENTS. After much debate, it was determined that the States would not adopt the Constitution as originally submitted until "further declamatory and restrictive clauses should be added" "in order to prevent misconstruction or abuse of its (the Constitutions) powers". (This quote is from the Preamble to the Amendments, which was adopted along with the Amendments but is mysteriously missing from nearly all modern copies.) The first ten Amendments were not ratified and added to the Constitution until December 15, 1791.

In this Light: "A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed." What provisions of the original Constitution is it that the Second Amendment is designed to "amended"? THE SECOND AMENDMENT IS AMENDING THE PROVISIONS IN THE ORIGINAL CONSTITUTION APPLYING TO THE "MILITIA". The States were not satisfied with the powers granted to the "militia" as defined in the original Constitution and required an amendment to "prevent misconstruction or abuse of its powers. "(Again quoting from the Preamble to the Amendments.)

What was it about the original Constitutional provisions concerning the "Militia" that was so offensive to the States?

First understand that the word "militia" was used with more than one meaning at the time of the penning of the Constitution. One popular definition used then was one often quoted today, that the "Militia" was every able bodied man owning a gun. As true as this definition is, it only confuses the meaning of the word "militia" as used in the original Constitution that required the Second Amendment to correct. The only definition of "Militia" that had any meaning to the States demanding Amendments is the definition used in the original Constitution. What offended the States then should offend "People" today: "Militia" in the original Constitution as amended by the Second Amendment is first found in Article 1, Section 8, clause 15, where Congress is granted the power: "To provide for the calling forth the MILITIA to execute the Laws of the Union, suppress Insurrection and repel Invasions." Article 1, Section 8, Clause 16 further empowers Congress: "To provide for the organizing, arming, and disciplining, the MILITIA, and for governing such Part of them as may be employed in the Service of the United States, reserving to the States respectively, the Appointment of the Officers, according to the discipline prescribed by Congress;" Any "patriot" out there still want to be called a member of the "MILITIA" as defined by the original Constitution? Article 2, Section 2, Clause 1 empowers: "The President shall be Commander in Chief of the Army and Navy of the United States, and of the MILITIA of the several States, when called into the actual Service of the United States;" The only way the States would accept the "MILITIA" as defined in the original Constitution was that the Federal "MILITIA" be "WELL REGULATED".

The States realized that "THE SECURITY OF A FREE STATE" required that the "MILITIA" as originally created in the Constitution be "WELL REGULATED" by a "restrictive clause." How did the States decide to insure that the Constitutional "MILITIA" be "WELL REGULATED"? By demanding that "restrictive clause two" better know as the "Second Amendment" be added to the original Constitution providing: "THE RIGHT OF THE PEOPLE TO KEEP AND BEAR ARMS SHALL NOT BE INFRINGED." The States knew that "PEOPLE" with "ARMS" would "WELL REGULATE" the Federal "MILITIA"! Now read for the first time with the full brightness of the Light of truth: "A WELL REGULATED MILITIA, BEING NECESSARY TO THE SECURITY OF A FREE STATE, THE RIGHT OF THE PEOPLE TO KEEP AND BEAR ARMS SHALL NOT BE INFRINGED." For those still overcome by propaganda: The Second Amendment declares by implication that if the "MILITIA" is not "WELL REGULATED" by "PEOPLE" keeping and bearing arms, the "MILITIA" becomes a threat to the "SECURITY OF A FREE STATE." The "MILITIA" has no "RIGHT TO KEEP AND BEAR ARMS" in the Second Amendment, rather it is only "THE RIGHT OF THE ""PEOPLE"" TO KEEP AND BEAR ARMS (that) SHALL NOT BE INFRINGED."

24 posted on 08/23/2017 9:39:12 AM PDT by Mat_Helm
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To: rktman

I would love to see a state , maybe Texas or Arizona pass a law naming every citizen of that state a member of their Militia.


25 posted on 08/23/2017 9:39:19 AM PDT by Lurkina.n.Learnin (I'm tired of the Cult of Clinton. Wish she would just pass out the Koolaide)
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To: tumblindice
“The Second Amendment: It Ain’t About Hunting”

Correct. It's about killing tyrants. All the other good uses of "arms" are just along for the ride.

26 posted on 08/23/2017 9:40:00 AM PDT by NorthMountain (The Democrats ... have lost their grip on reality -DJT)
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To: rktman

Praying for more liberal Supreme Court openings and mid term elections in Patriots favor......


27 posted on 08/23/2017 9:41:28 AM PDT by Kalamata (Inside Every Liberal is a Totalitarian Screaming to Get Out - D. Horowitz)
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To: bankwalker; All
it’s for hunting ... /s

Right! And to leave in canoes and whatnot for 'accidents'
28 posted on 08/23/2017 9:44:13 AM PDT by notdownwidems (Washington D.C. has become the enemy of free people everywhere!)
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To: rktman

He’s an ass. His lie, and that’s what it is a lie, means the States sent the Constitution back to its authors to add an amendment to grant the federal government authority to call up the States’ militias which is in total contradiction with the 10th amendment. What an asinine argument. Only an ass substitutes “right of the people” for “authority of the federal government”. Hack. Shill. Jackass.


29 posted on 08/23/2017 9:46:40 AM PDT by Justa
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To: ChildOfThe60s

I’ve ‘got a feeling’ that the federalists were implying that activists touchy feely judges should be banned because they aren’t reliable enough when it comes to objective law—


30 posted on 08/23/2017 9:46:54 AM PDT by Bob434
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To: rktman

Purty sure the Minutemen of Revolutionary times had something close to that. The pistols of the era weren’t very good, so they would have mostly had rifles.


31 posted on 08/23/2017 9:47:37 AM PDT by HiTech RedNeck (Tryin' hard to win the No-Bull Prize.)
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To: Justa

Or a consummate socialist... it’s an everlasting irony that “people’s republics of whatever” tend to be less free because there is a self-appointed umpire class.


32 posted on 08/23/2017 9:49:32 AM PDT by HiTech RedNeck (Tryin' hard to win the No-Bull Prize.)
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To: rktman

This “Justice” must feel like a pretzel, what with that twisted thinking!


33 posted on 08/23/2017 9:50:57 AM PDT by JimRed ( TERM LIMITS, NOW! Building the Wall! TRUTH is the new HATE SPEECH.)
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To: Mat_Helm

[[The States knew that “PEOPLE” with “ARMS” would “WELL REGULATE” the Federal “MILITIA”!]]

Sure- the government will sometimes back down from armed confrontations with citizens (sometimes)- but then the government WILL railroad those citizens by arresting them and keeping them in prison for many years without a trial like they did to bundy and his associates- Heck- the government will even set up ambushes and murder some of them like they did to Lavoy Finicum


34 posted on 08/23/2017 9:50:59 AM PDT by Bob434
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To: rktman

What about the gun under my pillow?

What a genius. FU Breyer!


35 posted on 08/23/2017 9:51:38 AM PDT by unixfox (Abolish Slavery, Repeal the 16th Amendment)
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To: rktman
"And therefore the right to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed. In other words, they were talking about that. That's what I thought they were talking about, which is not the right of an individual to keep a gun next to his bed."

Breyer wants government to go into your bedroom, next to your bed, and take your means to defend yourself.

36 posted on 08/23/2017 9:52:10 AM PDT by FreeReign
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To: rktman

Yeh uh no Steve that’s not what it means. The right to keep and bear arms is pretty self explanatory and is backed up by comments from Jefferson, Samuel Adams and most other founding fathers.


37 posted on 08/23/2017 9:53:57 AM PDT by Georgia Girl 2 (The only purpose of a pistol is to fight your way back to the rifle you should never have dropped)
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To: Lurkinanloomin
Leftists like to muddy the water with the preamble, which simply explains why “the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed”.

Correct. The first part simply recognizes the need for and desirability of a citizen militia. It does nothing to restrict the right acknowledged to that militia.

38 posted on 08/23/2017 9:54:17 AM PDT by JimRed ( TERM LIMITS, NOW! Building the Wall! TRUTH is the new HATE SPEECH.)
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To: rktman

Still thinking that a law degree required smarts?

Bwahahahahaha.


39 posted on 08/23/2017 9:54:18 AM PDT by Da Coyote
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To: rktman

So, this piece of crap will recuse himself from any Second Amendment cases in the future?


40 posted on 08/23/2017 9:54:54 AM PDT by ZULU (DITCH MITCH!!! DUMP RYAN!! DROP DEAD MCCAIN!! KIM FATTY the THIRD = Kim Jung Un)
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