This is a weird story on a couple of different levels, starting with the fact that the Left is apparently monitoring the TikTok videos posted by Lauren Boebert’s 8-year old son. That’s all kinds of creepy, but it’s not stopping Salon from highlighting the clips in an attempt to portray the Colorado Republican as a bad mom and an unsafe gun owner.

Reporter Zachary Petrizzo bases his story on a pair of videos uploaded to the social media platform in July and August that feature Boebert’s son in what appears to be his parents’ bedroom. According to Petrizzo, guns can be seen in the background of both clips, leading him to argue that Boebert is violating Colorado’s new gun storage law, which requires gun owners to store their firearms in a safe or with a locking mechanism when the owner “knows or should reasonably know that a juvenile or a resident who is ineligible to possess a firearm can gain access to the firearm.”

In the July 25 video, Boebert’s son is seen dancing alone in that same bedroom, close to a weapon that appears to be one of the same rifles seen loaded during the February Zoom call. It’s in a different position in the July video, leaning casually against the headboard of a bed, near what appears to be a handgun lying on the floor.

Boebert did not return Salon’s request for comment on this story.

That high-powered rifle is still visible in a video posted by Boebert’s son in late August, in which he shows off his abdominal muscles. Several TikTok videos viewed by Salon reveal that Boebert’s son was playing in the bedroom, at times with two young friends, but with no parental supervision.

Boebert appears to have been home during the weekend her son posted the video showing the rifle. On July 24, she appeared at the Mesa County GOP Lincoln Day Dinner with Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio. On the morning of Sunday, July 25, Boebert spoke at Faith Heights Church in Grand Junction, Colorado, about an hour away from her home in Silt.

Now, nowhere in the TikTok videos does Boebert’s son ever appear to handle, touch, or even acknowledge a firearm, but of course that’s not Salon’s point. Their claim is that the mere presence of a firearm outside of a gun safe or without a visible trigger lock is a violation of Colorado law. As it turns out, however, there’s an exception within the state’s gun storage law that could easily apply here.

Violators of the new law could face a Class 2 misdemeanor offense, which carries penalties of fines and, in rare instances, jail time. People charged with the crime can argue that the gun wasn’t safely stored because a juvenile needed to gain access to the weapon for the purpose of self defense or to defend livestock.

Even if a prosecutor wanted to charge Boebert with violating the state’s gun storage law, she and her husband could simply argue that they’ve taught their four sons how to be safe and responsible around firearms, and they want them to have access to a gun if necessary for the purpose of self-defense.

I’m not opposed to keeping your firearms secured, but I’m also of the opinion that a one-size-fits-all law complete with criminal penalties for non-compliance is neither constitutional nor effective at preventing accidents or negligent discharges. Parents have the right to decide for themselves when their child is responsible enough to be around a firearm, and in fact they’re in a far better position to make that determination than state legislators.

I highly doubt that Salon’s hit piece is going to lead to Boebert facing charges for violating Colorado’s storage law, though it might prompt Boebert herself to impose some new household rules on posting to social media. After all, you never know what weirdos might be closely monitoring the TikTok account of an 8-year old boy, or what they’ll do with the videos he posts.