Leftist response to Texas, Virginia highlight importance of Ohio’s 2020 election
By now, everyone is aware of two major stories – one Dec. 29, 2019, at a Texas church, where a good guy with a gun quickly stopped a bad guy with a gun, and one brewing in Virginia with Second Amendment sanctuary counties, cities and towns.
But the response to these scenarios demonstrates the importance of our own state’s 2020 elections.
Let’s start with Texas.
A 43-year-old entered West Freeway Church of Christ in White Settlement, Texas, and opened fire, killing two.
Jack Wilson fired one shot, killing the attacker and ending a tragedy that could have been much worse. Wilson is a volunteer security guard at the church and is a former reserve deputy sheriff and U.S. Army veteran, according to Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. He saved the lives of several parishioners.
But the circumstance could have been much worse if not for a state law change in 2017, authorizing concealed-carry license holders to carry their weapons into places of worship.
As President Donald J. Trump tweeted Dec. 30, the attack “was over in 6 seconds thanks to the brave parishioners who acted to protect 242 fellow worshippers. Lives were saved by these heroes, and Texas laws allowing them to carry arms!”
What did former Vice President and current presidential candidate Joe Biden say?
“It is irrational, with all due respect to the governor of Texas, it’s irrational what they’re doing. … And we’re talking about loosening access to have guns? Being able to take them into places of worship, store them in schools, it’s just absolutely irrational,” he said.
With “all due respect” to Biden, his comment is irrational.
Let’s switch to Virginia.
Next year, Democrats will take over the legislature and the governorship, and State Sen. Dick Saslaw, a Democrat, has introduced Senate Bill 16, which would make it “unlawful for any person to import, sell, manufacture, purchase, possess or transport an assault firearm.” Violators would be guilty of a Class 6 felony, punishable by imprisonment for up to five years. The bill also takes aim at several rifles, pistols and shotguns.
From a National Rifle Association Institute for Legal Action piece Dec. 30:
The first hearing of the Senate Courts of Justice Committee is January 13th, where lawmakers could hear the first slate of bills to restrict our freedom into oblivion. It’s critical that law-abiding gun owners are heard on this day, because waiting even one week to make our voices heard, whether individually or at an organized event, will simply be too late. Anti-gun zealot Gov. Northam wants the entire package of gun control bills fast-tracked for passage in the first week of the short session. We must defend freedom at the very first hearing on the 13th and show the new bought and paid for anti-gun majority that our rights are not for sale – to Bloomberg or anyone else. Join us!
In response, several counties, cities and towns are banding together to declare Second Amendment sanctuaries.
As Walter E. Williams, professor of economics at George Mason University and frequent conservative talk show fill-in put it in his Fox News column:
I am proud of my fellow Virginians' response to the attack on their Second Amendment rights.
Firearm owners in the state have joined with sheriffs to form Second Amendment sanctuary counties. That means local authorities will be required to protect Second Amendment rights in the face of any attempt by Virginia's General Assembly to abrogate those rights.
Eighty-six counties – over 90 percent – in the Virginia commonwealth have adopted Second Amendment sanctuary resolutions. Spotsylvania County's board of supervisors voted unanimously to approve a resolution declaring that county police will not enforce state-level gun laws that violate Second Amendment rights.
According to the Virginia Citizens Defense League, in all, 114 counties, cities and towns will be sanctuaries.
In typical hypocritical response from the left, many Democrats, most of whom don’t mind skirting federal law to protect illegal aliens from prosecution and to provide benefits that aren’t afforded to many U.S. citizens, are singing a different tune when it comes to Virginia’s 2A sanctuaries.
Congressman Gerry Connolly went even further than Gov. (Ralph) Northam. He pushed for prosecution of police officers that refuse to enforce the proposed unconstitutional laws.
“I would hope they either resign in good conscience, because they cannot uphold the law which they are sworn to uphold, or they're prosecuted for failure to fulfill their oath,” Connolly told the Washington Examiner. “The law is the law. If that becomes the law, you don't have a choice, not if you're a sworn officer of the law.”
Democratic Virginia Rep. Donald McEachin proposed cutting off state funds to counties that pass Second Amendment sanctuary ordinance. He wants to do what is tantamount to blackmail to force these localities to enforce gun laws that violate their citizen's rights.
“They certainly risk funding, because if the sheriff's department is not going to enforce the law, they're going to lose money. The counties' attorneys’ offices are not going to have the money to prosecute because their prosecutions are going to go down,” McEachin said.
What does all of this mean for Ohio?
2020 is a big election year for state legislators. Ohio has 99 House members and 33 Senators. Of those, 16 Senate seats and all 99 House seats are up for election.
Several current legislators have been very open in their support for gun control, and with the likes of community-infiltrating Moms Demand Action and financier Michael Bloomberg, they’ll have backup.
Over the next few months, Buckeye Firearms Association (BFA) will assess all candidates’ positions and do our best to point out who’s willing to support and defend the Constitution and who’s willing to trample on it – after taking an oath of office to do otherwise.
In addition, BFA will be hosting 2A Election Workshops and gun control debates at locations around Ohio to get gun owners more involved in the outcome of the election.
More to come.
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