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Gun Control Supporters Unhinged: New Republic Says "Ban Guns— All of Them"

Friday, December 11, 2015

Gun Control Supporters Unhinged: New Republic Says "Ban Guns— All of Them"

Inspired by last week’s New York Times front-page editorial calling for the confiscation of “large categories of weapons and ammunition,” a new article in the progressive-agenda magazine, New Republic, says that banning only some guns, but not all, is not enough. “It’s time to ban guns. Yes, all of them. . . . Get rid of guns in homes, and on the streets, and, as much as possible, on police. . . . Not just certain guns. Not just already-technically-illegal guns. All of them.”

Objectionable though they are, there’s nothing new about the Times’ and New Republics’ anti-gun opinions per se, however. It’s not news that some gun control supporters want all guns banned. It’s been that way for years. The difference is, gun control supporters used to pretend they were interested only in “reasonable” and “commonsense” gun control restrictions. Now they are telling everyone what they have always really wanted.

Things sure have changed. Consider the difference in the tactics of Democrat presidential candidates over the last several elections. When they were running for president, Bill Clinton, John Kerry and even Barack Obama tried to assuage voters’ concerns about their positions on guns by posing for photographs holding shotguns.

In 2008, Hillary Clinton did the same sort of thing in her run for the Democratic presidential nomination. CNN reported Clinton saying at the time, “You know, my dad took me out behind the cottage that my grandfather built on a little lake called Lake Winola outside of Scranton and taught me how to shoot when I was a little girl.”

But running for the Democrat nomination today, Clinton says that gun control opponents are like terrorists and shouldn’t be allowed to have their opinions. Asked during a debate with fellow Democrat candidates “which enemy are you most proud of,” Clinton responded, “the NRA,” along with “Republicans” and several others.

Time magazine note
s, Clinton is “calling for a ‘national movement’ to ‘stand up to the NRA’ and lambasting Republicans for voting against gun control legislation.” It quotes Clinton saying, “What is wrong with us, that we cannot stand up to the NRA and the gun lobby, and the gun manufacturers they represent? We need to act and we need to build a movement.”

It’s easy to see how things have changed. But why have they changed? For one thing, since his reelection, President Obama has dropped his pro-gun pretenses, coming out strongly for banning “assault weapons” and magazines that hold more than 10 rounds, requiring background checks on private sales, and banning the purchase of firearms by anyone on secret government lists.  Where an anti-gun president will go, his anti-gun adherents will certainly follow.

However, Time says the reason for the change in anti-gun tactics is even bigger than that. “The Democratic Party at large has shifted,” it says. Moreover, “gun control advocates are more organized and better-funded than at any time in at least the last two decades. Groups such as Everytown for Gun Safety, bankrolled by billionaire Michael Bloomberg, and Americans for Responsible Solutions, former U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords’ super PAC, are spending millions to counteract the NRA.” Anti-gun college professor Adam Winkler adds, “Democrats are starting to believe that a strong statement on gun control will motivate the [Democrat] base.”

Apparently, gun control supporters think this is their time in history, that they have the momentum, and that their victory is inevitable. Then again, something on the order of 100 million American adults, living in just under half of American households, own well over 300 million guns, including well over 100 million handguns and easily well over 10 million detachable-magazine semi-automatic rifles, such as the AR-15, which gun control supporters call “assault weapons.” And FBI data indicate that the annual number of gun purchases has been greater during the last four years than ever before.

If gun control supporters are unhinged now, imagine the state they will be in if that many gun owners come together to defeat Hillary Clinton and awake them from their anti-gun dreams on Election Day 2016.

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Biden’s Executive Order Targeting Gun Ownership

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Wednesday, March 15, 2023

Biden’s Executive Order Targeting Gun Ownership

On Tuesday, Joe Biden issued an executive order on gun control that could accurately be described as a mile wide and an inch deep.

Columnist thinks gun owners can be shamed out of their rights

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Monday, March 20, 2023

Columnist thinks gun owners can be shamed out of their rights

At least one of the joyless scolds that predominate in gun control circles thinks they’ve stumbled onto a novel anti-gun tactic. According to Colorado Newsline Editor Quentin Young, gun control supporters should try to shame gun ...

Updates to ATF Final Rule on Stabilizing Braces

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Monday, January 30, 2023

Updates to ATF Final Rule on Stabilizing Braces

On Monday, January 30, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives’ (ATF) published the final Factoring Criteria for Firearms with Attached “Stabilizing Braces” rule for public inspection in the federal register.

U.S. Taxpayers Funding “Red Flag” Gun Confiscation Orders

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Monday, March 20, 2023

U.S. Taxpayers Funding “Red Flag” Gun Confiscation Orders

Texans are paying for so-called “Red Flag” gun confiscation orders in New York. North Carolinians are bankrolling Extreme Risk Protective Orders (ERPOs) in New Jersey. Louisianans are footing the bill for gun confiscation orders in Maryland.

Washington: Senate Committee Hearing California-Style Gun Ban & Waiting Period Bills

Friday, March 17, 2023

Washington: Senate Committee Hearing California-Style Gun Ban & Waiting Period Bills

On March 23rd, at 8:00AM, the Senate Committee on Law & Justice will hear House Bill 1240, a comprehensive gun ban bill, and House Bill 1143, to impose a waiting period and training mandate for acquiring ...

Florida: Senate’s Constitutional Carry Passes Committee

Thursday, March 9, 2023

Florida: Senate’s Constitutional Carry Passes Committee

Today, the Senate Fiscal Policy Committee voted 11-6 to approve Senate Bill 150, constitutional carry, with an amendment aligning the language with the House’s version. It will now go to the full Senate for further consideration.

Michigan: Senate Passes Gun Control Schemes

Thursday, March 16, 2023

Michigan: Senate Passes Gun Control Schemes

Today, the Senate passed anti-gun bill packages to criminalize private transfers, require firearms be made unavailable for self-defense, and allow Second Amendment rights to be suspended without due process. They will now move to the House for further ...

The New Mexico Legislature Finishes Its 2023 Regular Session

Sunday, March 19, 2023

The New Mexico Legislature Finishes Its 2023 Regular Session

The New Mexico Legislature wrapped up at noon on Saturday, March 18.  Below is a list of gun control bills which passed and extreme anti-gun legislation which NRA-ILA worked to defeat with pro-Second Amendment lawmakers, members of the firearms ...

Washington: Updates on Anti-Gun Bills

Tuesday, February 28, 2023

Washington: Updates on Anti-Gun Bills

Three major anti-gun bills still remain active in the Legislature, while others are likely defeated for the session. The NRA provided testimony and strong, united opposition to these bills throughout the legislative process thus far.

Florida: House Judiciary Passes Constitutional Carry

Tuesday, February 21, 2023

Florida: House Judiciary Passes Constitutional Carry

Today, the House Judiciary Committee voted 17-6 to advance House Bill 543, the constitutional carry bill. It will now go to the House floor for debate.

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NRA ILA

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.