Buckeye Firearms Association president Linda Walker tells Bearing Arms that she's thrilled Donald Trump has tapped Ohio Senator J.D. Vance as his running mate, and not just because it means the Buckeye State could be represented in the White House next year. Walker has known Vance since 2021, when he first announced he was running for the U.S. Senate seat left open by then-Senator Rob Portman's retirement, and says he's the real deal when it comes to support for the right to keep and bear arms. 

Walker says Vance's then political director reached out to her and asked if she'd like to meet the candidate, who at that point was just one face in a crowded field. Walker agreed, and ended up spending about two hours chatting with Vance at a Panera restaurant. 

I knew nothing about J.D. I'd never watched Hillbilly Elegy or read the book. We sat and talked, and one of the first questions I asked him, I said 'hey, you were a never-Trumper', because I've been on Gun Owners for Trump national advisory board for all of the elections, and he kind of laughed and goes, 'well, that was before he became the greatest president ever in my lifetime.' He said he'd completely changed his thoughts on Trump.

So my next question, I said 'well obviously the Second Amendment is my cause. Where are you at on that?' He goes, 'Normally I go to the range every week. Right now, though, I only have time to go about once a month.'  Then he went on to tell me that his wife's family lives in San Diego, and the first time he went out to California to meet them, guess what he did? He took them to a range in California. So we had a really excellent conversation. I consider myself a Constitutional Conservative, and I walked away from J.D. that day going, 'this is the guy I'm going to support.' And with all his values, I'd peg him as a Constitutional Conservative as well.

Walker helped with Vance's Senate campaign in 2022, and says she was the second person he hugged when he walked off the stage after declaring victory on Election Day. Over the years, Walker says she's seen nothing that makes her regret or second guess her decision, and she thinks Vance will be an excellent voice for gun owners in the Trump administration. 

The Democrat-based media will focus a lot of time and attention on Vance's past criticisms of Trump, portraying him as someone willing to don a new ideology like a change of clothes, but Walker shared an anecdote that shows Vance didn't try to pass himself off as something he's not when talking to gun owners. 

It was about three months before the [Senate] election. He actually hosted a gun owners and sportsmen roundtable. There were about a dozen of us invited to it. And you know, a lot of people like to lump gun owners and sportsmen together. It's really two different things, big time. And J.D., was asking both sets 'what do you want me to do'. And he self-professed; he said, 'I'm not a hunter, I'm not a sportsman. I'm relying on you people to please, help guide me in the right direction on hunting issues and conservation issues.' He did mention during that roundtable, though, 'you ought to see my new AR-15.'

That's a much better approach to reaching out to sportsmen than, say, John Kerry's ridiculous attempt at goose hunting in 2004, and it suggests that, however Vance has evolved in his views on Trump (and red flag laws), he doesn't see the benefit in trying to pander to voters by pretending to be something he's not. 

Walker's been impressed by Vance's support for the Second Amendment over the years, and she has one suggestion for Donald Trump if and when he and his running mate are sworn in next year: "Maybe President Trump should put him in charge of hiring the next ATF director". A Trump/Vance victory in November would almost certainly be Dettelbach's political elegy, and I have a feeling that between Vance and his friend Donald Trump, Jr., the pair could come up with a short list of candidates who'd be more than acceptable to Second Amendment advocates. 

You can check out the entire conversation with Buckeye Firearms Association President Linda Walker in the video window below, and if you'd like to support Bearing Arms' Cam & Co I encourage you to take advantage of the huge sale on VIP or VIP Gold memberships that's running this week. Just use the promo code MAGA24 and save 60% off your VIP or VIP Gold membership!