Top Ten Threats to Gun Rights in 2017

Donald Trump’s victory in the presidential election was seen as a huge win for America’s gun owners. Not only is Mr. Trump expected to fill the vacancy on the United States Supreme Court with a defender of the Second Amendment, but his outspoken pro-gun rhetoric on the campaign trial gives gun owners hope that, for the foreseeable future, the right to keep and bear arms is relatively safe.

That isn’t to say that pro-gun advocates can sit back, relax and enjoy the next four years. As we’ve learned in the past, letting our guard down for a moment can have dire consequences.

After all, millions of Americans live under draconian gun control laws in California, Connecticut, Massachusetts and several other states. We also have politicians and others doing everything within their power - in some cases even working in the gray areas of the law -to destroy the private ownership of guns.

In a year that began with Donald Trump being sworn in as President, it’s clear that fighting complacency in the pro-gun community will be a daunting task. It seems like gun owners have forgotten the how close we came to having Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton appoint an anti-gun Justice to the Supreme Court and swing the court against gun rights for decades to come.

In that case, the leaders of the pro-gun community quickly identified the threat and fought to make sure that gun rights were protected.

By identifying the threat, they were able to formulate a plan to stop the anti-gunners in their tracks. By remaining vigilant we can identify the best place to utilize the pro-gun community and other resources in order to protect the Second Amendment.

With no further ado, here are the top ten threats to our rights to keep and bear arms:

10. Former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg - Over the years, Bloomberg’s place on this list has ebbed and flowed, but one thing remains constant. Mayor Bloomberg’s willingness to throw money at different gun control groups to get them to do his dirty work had largely been a failure. He lost the recall elections in Colorado despite outspending the other side nearly ten to one. But that all changed in November of 2016 when Bloomberg’s plan to destroy gun rights at the state level led to successful ballot initiatives that crippled gun-rights in Nevada, California and Washington.

9. The Environmental Protection Agency – Continued attacks on the ammunition used by gun owners are a direct threat to the practical use of the right to keep and bear arms. Bans on lead, the ability of the EPA to use environmental rules to shut down ranges, ban inexpensive bullets and ban hunting in areas in areas that are allegedly environmentally sensitive can chase people out of gun-related hobbies. A Trump presidency helps, but there are still countless bureaucrats who will continue the assault on gun rights.

8. Internet Forum Keyboard Commandos – Internet gun boards and other internet based gun meeting places can be a great place for gun owners to exchange information and discuss the gun hobby. Sadly, there is a small element who use the power of the Internet to attack fellow gun owners and spout misguided false opinions. The small group of overbearing and often abusive keyboard commandos chase off people new to the gun hobby, and sow resentment among firearms enthusiast who exert energy fighting each other instead of fighting anti-gun coalitions.

These are the same misguided souls who criticize the National Rifle Association and Buckeye Firearms Association when a pro-gun law passes because, in their eyes, anything short of constitutional carry or a complete repeal of all gun laws is somehow an abject failure.

7. The Establishment Media – In the Trump era, the mainstream media has already been marginalized, and to that end, they will do whatever it takes to remain relevant. One way to stay in the limelight is to ratchet up the anti-gun rhetoric under the guise of keeping President Trump honest. Recently, the mere suggestion of a bill to loosen restrictions on suppressors sent the establishment media into a tizzy. As more pro-gun bills come to light, the establishment media is likely to dig in and fight without regard to what is fair, or what is true.

6. Democratic Mayors – Chicago Mayor Rahm Emmanuel is likely to continue to blame guns for his failure to stem the tide of violence plaguing one of American’s greatest cities. Despite nearly 50 years of open attacks on the Second Amendment by the government and police department, parts of the city remain a shooting gallery. Instead of accepting responsibility, Emmanuel’s modus operandi is to blame law-abiding gun owners for the gang-related murders that plague the city. New York Mayor Bill de Blasio is another anti-gun mayor who refuses to accept the fact that guns aren’t to blame for crime in his city. At this point in the battle over gun rights, anti-gun mayors across American remain the only untouchable anti-gun politicians. In nearly every other case, being anti-gun is a liability when it comes to electoral success. Yet, in certain cities, that isn’t the case - a situation that gives some of American’s most rabidly anti-gun advocates unfettered access to the American’s largest media markets due to a complicit establishment media.

5. The Republican Party – With complete control over the apparatus of government, the Republican Party can pass just about any pro-gun law without compromise. Gun owners are expecting quick and decisive action on several important pieces of gun legislation. One of the most anticipated is the national concealed carry reciprocity bill that will require states to treat concealed carry licenses like a driver’s license. But that is merely the tip of the iceberg.

If the GOP leadership gets cold feet, however, they are able to bottle up every pro-gun bill introduced before mid-term elections.

If you don’t think it can happen, a quick review of the last legislative session in Ohio will set you straight. Despite unchallenged control of the Ohio House of Representatives, the Ohio Senate and Governor’s Mansion, they only managed to pass one pro-gun bill, and gutted it of many meaningful reforms before doing so. The failure of the Ohio Republican Party to push reasonable pro-gun legislation wasn’t limited to just the last legislative session. Ohio lags behind every surrounding state when it comes to pro-gun reform despite complete Republican control for nearly every legislative session since 1991. Oddly enough, the biggest step forward for gun rights in Ohio took place during one of the short breaks in total Republican control. During Democrat Ted Strickland’s stint as governor, a sweeping pro-gun reform bill became law.

If gun owners are expecting to see immediate passage of pro-gun reform they need to consider Ohio’s failure - a cautionary tale that shouldn’t be lost on the nation’s gun owners.

4. Reactionary Gun Owners – We all have a friend or family member that buys into every crazy Internet-fueled anti-gun conspiracy. These are the people who are tricked every year by discredited tax form hoax that makes its way around the Internet. Not only do they waste their own time by running around like Chicken Little, they tell everyone who will listen about the next crazy anti-gun scheme they heard about via some dubious source that is reputable only in their conspiracy-addled mind.

This type of behavior creates artificial spikes in the price of guns and ammunition, often leading to shortages of both. When that happens it hurts shooters of modest means, who are priced out of the market, and limits training opportunities for others due to the high cost of ammunition. The problem also affects training schools that can be forced out of business due to a drop in revenue.

When a reactionary gun owner pushes the most recent anti-gun hoax they aren’t trying to create a damaging ripple effect throughout the hobby. But, regardless of their intent, it’s often what happens.

It also helps the anti-gun side and establishment media push the lie that most gun owners are misguided fear mongers.

3. Anti-Gun Gun Owners – Whenever a newly-introduced pro-gun bill is being covered by the establishment media, they always seem to find a “pro-gun” advocate to speak out against the proposal. We’ve all seen and heard someone claiming to be a “lifetime National Rifle Association member” and "lifelong gun owner" claim a bill is going too far. While it might seem like a biased reporter got an anti-gun advocate to lie and claim to be a gun owner, sadly, that’s usually not the case.

In most of these instances it’s a gun owner who uses his or her gun for a single purpose, like hunting or target shooting, and has the misguided belief that if handguns or black rifles are banned the anti-gun hoards will his hobby alone.

We know the vast majority of hunters and target shooters are die-hard advocates of the Second Amendment and will fight tooth and nail to protect the Second Amendment, but the gun owners that fell for the anti-gun lies do damage to the Second Amendment far in excess of their small number. That's because when the attack comes from the inside, it’s immediately given merit in the court of public opinion.

2. Lazy Gun Owners – Despite studies that show tens of millions of gun owners across America, only a small percentage take action to protect the right to keep and bear arms. Far too many gun owners are willing to let others fight the battle to protect and expand gun rights. While the lazy gun owners sit idle, a few dedicated advocates sacrifice time with their families, their finances and their free time to make sure that gun owners from every corner of America can enjoy their right to bear arms. The sad truth, however, is that the majority of gun owners won’t lift a finger to help pass a legal concealed carry law, or a law that keeps business from banning legally-owned guns from being kept in an employee’s personally-owned vehicle while at work. Of course they are the first to either take advantage of the law, or complain that it doesn’t go far enough.

1. The Complacent Gun Owners – Even worse than the lazy gun owner is the complacent gun owner. The difference might seem small, but the two are miles apart. A lazy gun owner might be motivated to act when gun rights are under siege, while a complacent gun owner simply refuses to acknowledge that constant vigilance is required to defend the Second Amendment. Now that we have a pro-gun President and a pro-gun majority in Congress, there are gun owners who think the fight is over for the next four years. But nothing is further from the truth. Now is the time to demand action from the candidates we supported during the last election cycle.

Otherwise, we run the risk of being taken for granted and having our agenda shuffled to the rear, or worse. A complacent gun owner expects the bills to move through Congress without being pushed. We live in a political world where fortunes can change on a moment’s notice, and that means constant vigilance is needed.

Complacency is not only dangerous, it is the primary threat to gun rights in the next twelve months, and possibly for the next four years.

Gerard Valentino is a co-founder of Buckeye Firearms Association and a member of the Buckeye Firearms Foundation Board of Directions. He also served in the United States Army as an Intelligence Analyst and Signals Staff Officer.