It’s a lovely sentiment, but with Ralph Northam as governor and anti-gun lawmakers in control of the state legislature for the first time in 26 years, the Second Amendment is not going to be left alone. No, we’re looking at major infringements instead. That didn’t stop thousands of gun owners from attending the 45th Annual Richmond Gun Show over the weekend, and many of them were looking to buy what is soon to be banned, including Jimmy Ashburn, a gun owner from the Richmond suburb of Chesterfield.
“We’re scared that for the weapons that we’ve had for 20 years and the various toys that we’ve had for years and that all of a sudden we’re going to become felons and for what?” said Ashburn.
Ashburn believes there are enough laws on the book to keep Virginians safe.
“You’ve got background checks if you’re a felon you can’t possess a gun,” said Ashburn. “We need to enforce what we’ve already got out here.”
Sorry Jimmy, but it’s not about better enforcement of the laws on the books. It’s about “doing something” about legal gun ownership, not focusing on violent criminals.
Many gun-owners who showed up did so to buy as many weapons as possible before the new legislature takes office in January 2020, but people like Mark Fahed says they are open to the idea of gun reform.
“I’m not fearful or anything I’m just trying to buy what I want to buy while I still can,” said Fahed. ”Hopefully, it will be common sense laws things like that and they won’t go after guns altogether.”
I’ve got bad news for Mark Fahad; they’re definitely going after guns altogether. From a ban on so-called “assault weapons” and magazines over 10-rounds to imposing a one-gun-per-month rationing law, Northam and anti-gun Democrats have no shortage of bills that will impact the ability of law-abiding Virginians to exercise their right to keep and bear arms. Northam is even “working on” a compensated confiscation plan.
When asked directly about whether he is supportive of confiscating “assault weapons from gun owners” Northam replied, “That’s something I’m working [on] with our secretary of public safety. I’ll work with the gun violence activists, and we’ll work [on] that. I don’t have a definitely plan today.
Based on the thousands of attendees that crammed into the Richmond Gun Show over the weekend, gun owners aren’t planning on complying with any mandatory “buyback” of the firearms and magazines that they own, even if Northam and anti-gun lawmakers decide to move in that direction. That’s why it’s important not just to continue to purchase firearms, but to begin planning our response to the gun control bills headed our way.
I expect that we’ll start to see some movement towards some Virginia counties adopting “Second Amendment Sanctuary” resolutions this week. I know I’ll be at my next county commissioners meeting, and I’ve already had a couple of conversations with my local officials about the movement and why my county should declare itself a safe haven for the right to keep and bear arms. The Left has taught us over the past three years that’s its okay to #Resist the party in power, and I have a feeling that Virginia Democrats are going to discover that many gun owners in the state have taken that lesson to heart.
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