Free Republic

Virginia’s House passed a ban an “assault weapons” ban last week and the Senate followed suit on Wednesday of this week, which means an “assault weapons” ban is now headed to Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s (R) desk. Breitbart News reported that the ‘assault weapons’ legislation, House Bill 2 and companion bill Senate Bill 2, targets semiautomatic centerfire rifles and semiautomatic centerfire pistols with threaded barrels and semiautomatic shotguns, if the shotguns have “a pistol grip that protrudes conspicuously beneath the action of the shotgun … the ability to accept a detachable magazine … [or] a fixed magazine capacity in excess of...

As we’ve been watching Washington state slowly turn from pro-gun to anti-Second Amendment, no one was much surprised that many lawmakers there want to be so-called assault weapons. These are much-vilified guns and a symbol of gun rights supporters–a movement typically and understandably associated with the American right. However, it seems liberal gun owners in Washington state are concerned about at least some ramifications of an assault weapon ban. Washington is about to become the 10th state to ban assault weapons. Under the new law, expected to be signed by Governor Jay Inslee shortly as the bill was passed by...

The 9th Circuit, acting on a June 10 appeal filed by Atty. Gen. Rob Bonta, put Benitez’s ruling on hold pending a full-blown decision. “This leaves our assault weapons laws in effect while appellate proceedings continue,” Bonta said said in a tweet. “We won’t stop defending these life-saving laws.” The 9th Circuit judges on the panel issuing the stay were Barry G. Silverman, a Clinton appointee, Jacqueline Nguyen, an Obama appointee and Ryan D. Nelson, a Trump appointee. Benitez, appointed by former President George W. Bush, said the weapons ban unconstitutionally infringed on the rights of California gun owners and...

I was gravely disappointed with Judge Robert Benitez’s California federal court ruling that the Golden State’s ban on “assault weapons” like AR-15s is unconstitutional. It manifestly is unconstitutional, but the judge’s ruling does not go far enough. He should have found that our Constitution requires every healthy, law-abiding adult citizen to have a real assault rifle like an M16 – or, because diversity is important, an M4 – to defend his community and his country from all enemies both foreign and domestic. That’s my modest proposal du jour – make our peaceful and secure society’s free riders carry their own...

When California legislators enacted the country's first ban on military-style rifles in 1989, they gave no weight to the fundamental right of armed self-defense guaranteed by the Second Amendment: a right the U.S. Supreme Court did not explicitly acknowledge until nearly two decades later. But as U.S. District Judge Roger Benitez observed in his ruling against California's "assault weapon" ban last Friday, it should now be clear that the outright prohibition of such firearms cannot pass constitutional muster. California's Assault Weapons Control Act, which is similar to laws enforced by a handful of other states, originally applied to a list...

Judge Roger Benitez’s opinion provides a perfect primer for Americans seeking to understand the law and the gun fallacies leftists push.On Friday, a federal judge struck down California’s assault weapon ban in Miller v. Bonta. In the nearly 100-page opinion, District Court Judge Roger Benitez dissected post-Heller Second Amendment jurisdiction, while scrutinizing the state’s claimed justification for banning ownership of so-called “assault weapons,” before enjoining enforcement of several sections of California’s Assault Weapons Control Act (AWCA). Yet for 30 days Judge Benitez also stayed the execution of the declaratory judgment and permanent injunction to allow the named defendant, California Attorney...

Most gun owners aren't lying on background check forms and dumping our firearms willy-nilly in trash cans by schools. Even if we were, none of Biden's anti-gun pipe dreams would stop us.Although President Joe Biden would rather monologue about infrastructure than talk about this and Kamala Harris will deny it, a power-hungry Biden administration in cahoots with a Democrat-controlled Congress is working hard to enact sweeping gun control. Capitalizing on tragic shootings, this administration is bypassing Second Amendment infringement and has opted instead to just stomp it right out.During his first press conference more than two full months into office,...

Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden vowed on his campaign website to ban online gun and ammo sales, limit gun sales, ban “assault weapons,” force gun owners into buybacks or registration, and various other restrictions. Biden has expressed his anti-gun ideas, but his website spells out the specific measures he intends to take if he wins the election and assumes the presidency, which he describes as “constitutional, common-sense gun safety policies.” “Biden will enact legislation to once again ban assault weapons,” Biden’s website says. “While working to pass this legislation, Biden will also use his executive authority to ban the importation...

Gun control did not become politically acceptable until the Gun Control Act of 1968 signed into law by President Lyndon B. Johnson. The law's primary focus was to regulate commerce in firearms by prohibiting interstate firearms transfers except among licensed manufacturers, dealers and importers. Today's gun control advocates have gone much further, calling for an outright ban of what they call assault rifles such as the AR-15. By the way, AR stands for ArmaLite Rifle, which is manufactured by Colt Manufacturing Co. As for being a military assault weapon, our soldiers would be laughed off the battlefield carrying AR-15s. Let's...

A former police officer made a bold proclamation during a congressional hearing Wednesday regarding a proposed assault-weapons ban: she would not comply. Dianna Muller, who served in the Tulsa Police Department for 22 years and is the founder of gun advocacy group The DC Project, was among the witnesses at the House Judiciary Committee hearing. The session on an otherwise contentious issue flew largely under the radar amid the Trump-Ukraine controversy and Democrats' impeachment push. But reflecting the gun control divide in the country -- amid a spate of deadly mass shootings that prompted renewed calls for strict laws --...

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) indicated an “assault weapons” ban and other gun controls would be “front and center” when the Senate reconvenes in September....

Owners of assault weapons living in Deerfield have until June 13 to remove the firearms from village limits or face daily fines after a ban was approved Monday night. The Village Board of Trustees unanimously approved a ban on certain types of assault weapons and high-capacity magazines, amending a 2013 ordinance that regulated the storage of those items. The new ordinance prohibits the possession, sale and manufacturing of certain types of assault weapons and large capacity magazines within the village, according to the legislation. One change from the law as it was originally discussed exempts retired police officers, according to...

Former President Bill Clinton said Tuesday that more people would have died in the terrorist attack at a nightclub in Orlando over the weekend if clubgoers had been armed and shot back at the lone gunman. In an interview with Bloomberg TV, the former president was asked to respond to Donald Trump’s claim that fewer people would have died at the club if they had firearms. “Did you see how dark it was?” Clinton said. “It’s likely that more people would have been killed.” A gunman of Afghan descent, who claimed to have been inspired by the Islamic State in...

resident Obama held a press briefing, updating the nation on the threat posed to us by the Islamic State. He said that first and foremost, our minds are with those who have suffered unbearable loss and grief in the wake of the Orlando attack on Sunday. He reiterated that the victims are not alone. The American people, our allies, and friends all over the world stand with them. FBI Director James Comey updated the president on the terror investigation, saying that there is no credible evidence that a foreign terrorist organization ordered this attack, but repeated the point that the...

Shows willingness to compromise on gun rights. It could be the most damaging “Dear John” letter of the 2016 presidential primary race. A letter from former President Bill Clinton disclosed just days before the Ohio primary is causing Ohio Gov. John Kasich problems on the campaign trail. Kasich tells GOP voters he can “get things done” by working with Democrats but also stresses he is a “defender of the 2nd Amendment.” The letter from Clinton shows Kasich made a deal to restrict the Second Amendment rights of American “on one of the most critical votes on guns ever,” according to...

John Kasich Doesn’t Regret Voting for Assault Weapons Ban, Regrets Law Didn't Have Desired Impact. Fox News Sunday Video at link.

Whenever I’m asked about gun control and “assault weapons,” my first instinct is to steer people to the scholarly work of John Lott or the practical analysis of Larry Correia.Unfortunately, some politicians in Washington haven’t gotten the message.Here are excerpts from an article in the Pacific Standard, starting with a claim from Senator Feinstein that gun control works. In the 10 years since the federal assault weapons ban expired, Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-California) has kept trying to renew the law, which she authored. In a press release this month honoring the 20th anniversary of the ban, she wrote, “The evidence...

Though her ban on certain styles of rifles lapsed a decade ago, Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D., Calif.) continues to push for its reinstatement and tout its effectiveness. A new fact-check from Pro Publica found Feinstein’s Clinton-era assault weapons ban had no noticeable effect on crime. In the ten years since the federal assault weapons ban expired, Sen. Dianne Feinstein has kept trying to renew the law, which she authored. In a press release this month honoring the 20th anniversary of the ban, she wrote, “The evidence is clear: The ban worked.” But gun violence experts say the exact opposite. “There...

(VIDEO-AT-LINK) Sen. Harry Reid (D-Nevada) mocked Second Amendment rights activists while announcing his support for a ban on assault weapons and limits to high-capacity magazine clips on the Senate floor today. REID: In the 1920s, organized crime was committing murders with machine guns. So Congress dramatically limited the sale and transfer of machine guns. As a result, machine guns all but disappeared from the streets. We can and should take the same common-sense approach to safeguard Americans from modern weapons of war. That is why I will vote for Senator Dianne Feinstein’s assault weapons ban – because we must strike...

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) said that he will support the Assault Weapon Ban against what he calls conspiracy theorists, black helicopters and false flags: “I’ll vote for the ban because saving the lives of police officers, young and old, and innocent civilians, young and old, is more important than preventing imagined tyranny,”