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Cities Seek to Close Gun Stores, Claim Exercise of Second Amendment Rights “Non-Essential”

Friday, March 20, 2020

Cities Seek to Close Gun Stores, Claim Exercise of Second Amendment Rights “Non-Essential”

In San Jose, California, police have ordered a gun shop to close. Local officials insisted it is a “nonessential” business and therefore may not operate during the “shelter in place” directive currently affecting the area. Philadelphia officials are now making similar claims, even as buyers flock to local gun sellers. But make no mistake: the “essential” character of the right to keep and bear arms was settled in 1791, and no public official has the authority to revisit that decision.

Law enforcement agencies across the country are announcing steps to reduce enforcement or even free convicted criminals, supposedly in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Philadelphia, in particular, has gone further than most, announcing an end to arrests for offenses as serious as burglary and auto theft (a message relayed – we can’t make this up – by Police Commissioner Danielle Outlaw).

It is ironic, to say the least, that police somehow have time to focus on duly-licensed gun stores, even as officials are essentially offering amnesty to actual criminals.

Americans aren’t dumb. And many are old enough to have learned lessons from history.

As the coronavirus pandemic continues to unfold, there are plenty of stories of people working heroically to respond, as well as innumerable acts of kindness and charity occurring between neighbors and community members that will never be reported. Today’s heroes are as likely to be truckers, grocers, nurses, and farmers as credentialed talking heads.

But for many in media and politics, the episode is just one more opportunity to try to score points against the president and his supporters and to opportunistically advance an old agenda. The same elite who have squandered their credibility with one false accusation and prediction of impending doom after another have found they have no rhetoric left to describe what real catastrophe looks like. The biggest disaster they can imagine is already befalling them, and that is the loss of their own prestige.

So Americans struggle as best they can to extract reliable information from the noise, even as they wonder how their kids will be educated, their families will be fed, and the roof kept over their heads.

In that landscape, it is entirely predictable and, yes, essential that people revert to the basics that have sustained this nation since its founding, including faith, family, and the Bill of Rights. And there is no more basic imperative, in good times and bad, than providing for the safety and security of families and loved ones. The record-breaking activity in firearm sales is evidence that Americans will never be scolded, intimidated, or browbeaten into abject dependence.

The United States Supreme Court could not have been clearer in its landmark Heller decision. “The very enumeration of the right takes out of the hands of government—even the Third Branch of Government—the power to decide on a case-by-case basis whether the right is really worth insisting upon,” the court wrote.

In other words, the “essential” character of the Second Amendment is not up for debate.

For 149 years, the National Rifle Association and its members have withstood every challenge that has tested America, including world wars, natural disasters, disease pandemics, and social upheaval. More recently, we have stood up to coordinated efforts by corrupt officials to use their authority to try to discredit and destroy us, because they know our combined strength stands in the way of their plans to subvert basic freedoms in America.

The United States, the NRA, and America’s gun owners will prevail in the current crisis with our rights and our heritage as the freest nation on earth intact. The liberty of our children and future generations depends on our actions now, and we will not shrink from doing our duty to protect and defend the Constitution and your right to defend yourself.

We will also remember how overreaching officials – like those in San Jose and Philadelphia – exploited the crisis to assail the right to keep and bear arms. Those memories will only steel our resolve in the never-ending campaign to secure our liberties.

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Colorado: Mandatory Storage Bill Passes General Assembly and Semi-Auto Ban Temporarily Removed from Calendar

Tuesday, March 26, 2024

Colorado: Mandatory Storage Bill Passes General Assembly and Semi-Auto Ban Temporarily Removed from Calendar

In a temporary reprieve for Colorado gun owners, the semi-auto ban HB24-1292 has been removed from the calendar. But we cannot let our guard down as gun control advocates can bring it up for a vote at ...

The U.S. Supreme Court Looks at Government “Blacklists”

News  

Tuesday, March 26, 2024

The U.S. Supreme Court Looks at Government “Blacklists”

Much of the attention this past week in the United States Supreme Court was the oral arguments in National Rifle Association of America v. Vullo, No. 22-842, a First Amendment case on whether government officials ...

Colorado: Semi-Auto Ban Passes Committee and Sensitive Places Bill Hearing Rescheduled for Today!

Wednesday, March 20, 2024

Colorado: Semi-Auto Ban Passes Committee and Sensitive Places Bill Hearing Rescheduled for Today!

Yesterday the House Judiciary Committee held a hearing on House Bill 24-1292, the semi-auto ban, that lasted over 12 hours where hundreds of patriotic Coloradans overloaded the committee with opposition testimony. The hearing concluded with an ...

NRA Files Amicus Brief Asking Supreme Court to Hear Antonyuk v. James

News  

Second Amendment  

Monday, March 25, 2024

NRA Files Amicus Brief Asking Supreme Court to Hear Antonyuk v. James

In response to the NRA’s victory in Bruen, which secured every American’s right to carry arms, NY passed the “Concealed Carry Improvement Act,” severely restricting carry throughout the state. The 2nd Circuit upheld many of ...

25 years and one PLCAA Later, Chicago is Still Harassing Gunmakers

News  

Tuesday, March 26, 2024

25 years and one PLCAA Later, Chicago is Still Harassing Gunmakers

On March 19, the city of Chicago filed suit against handgun manufacturer Glock. Seeking to shift responsibility for the city’s woeful governance, Chicago’s lawsuit blames the popular firearm manufacturer for the third-party criminal misuse of ...

Washington: Governor Signs Anti-Gun Legislation

Wednesday, March 27, 2024

Washington: Governor Signs Anti-Gun Legislation

Today, Governor Inslee signed five anti-gun bills into law that were recently passed by the Washington State Legislature. The bills include:

Anti-gun Democrats Seek to Undermine Law Passed to Protect Veterans’ Rights

News  

Tuesday, March 19, 2024

Anti-gun Democrats Seek to Undermine Law Passed to Protect Veterans’ Rights

Last week we reported on a major breakthrough on behalf of veterans who risked losing their Second Amendment rights because of a long-running scheme by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to report certain beneficiaries ...

Colorado: Semi-Auto Ban Scheduled for Floor Vote Today!

Thursday, March 21, 2024

Colorado: Semi-Auto Ban Scheduled for Floor Vote Today!

Today, the House is scheduled to vote on HB24-1292, the ban on semi-automatic firearms. Please contact your legislators today by using the button below and urge them to OPPOSE HB24-1292!

Louisiana: Firearms Bills on the Move - Take Action Now!

Monday, March 25, 2024

Louisiana: Firearms Bills on the Move - Take Action Now!

A number of firearm-related bills, including enhanced preemption, are moving in the Louisiana Legislature. It's critical that NRA members and Second Amendment supporters get involved to keep the momentum going!

Pennsylvania: Senate Committee Passes Full Inclusion Sunday Hunting

Wednesday, March 20, 2024

Pennsylvania: Senate Committee Passes Full Inclusion Sunday Hunting

On Wednesday, the Senate Game & Fisheries Committee voted 7-4 to pass Senate Bill 67 to the Senate floor for a vote. 

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Established in 1975, the Institute for Legislative Action (ILA) is the "lobbying" arm of the National Rifle Association of America. ILA is responsible for preserving the right of all law-abiding individuals in the legislative, political, and legal arenas, to purchase, possess and use firearms for legitimate purposes as guaranteed by the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.