Montana isn’t a state you think of when you think about gun control. The state is largely rural, and that tends to correspond to more conservative views. However, the state also elected a Democrat for governor.

Then again, the state also sided with President Trump over Hillary Clinton to the tune of 56.4 percent to 35.7 percent. The Democrats got trounced in 2016.

So, it would sound like while the state voted for a Democrat, they probably voted for one who was fairly conservative, right?

Well, you’d be wrong.

I am a hunter and a gun owner.

No hunter needs a 30-round magazine, a bump stock, or an assault weapon.

A large majority of Americans – Republican and Democrat – agree. https://t.co/kL48omojv6

— Steve Bullock (@GovernorBullock) October 21, 2019

More than a year ago, I asked Donald Trump what he's doing to end the gun violence epidemic in our country.

His answer wasn't good enough then — and his leadership isn't good enough now.
pic.twitter.com/MINv4190QQ

— Steve Bullock (@GovernorBullock) October 21, 2019

Alright, so let’s address these tweets one at a time. First, the idea that hunters don’t need 30-round magazines.

Bullock is right on that. Hunters don’t need 30-round mags.

However, the Second Amendment is an insurance policy on liberty. It’s a tool meant to make sure that the American people have the weapons necessary to defend their nation against all enemies, foreign and domestic.

For that purpose, people do need 30-round magazines and much larger ones too. We need anything and everything we can to make sure liberty is safe. That may mean safe from a foreign invader or a would-be tyrant duly elected by the American people. The Founding Fathers were quite adamant about that.

Next, let’s talk about his mention of the “gun violence epidemic” in this country. Mostly, let’s talk about how it doesn’t exist.

Now, I get that Bullock’s nephew was killed after being shot. That’s awful, and I’m not going to pretend otherwise. However, personal anecdotes do not make an epidemic. If so, there’s an epidemic of people losing power in the middle of the night because that happened at my house on Monday morning in the wee hours.

The fact is that violent crime is down and has been trending down since the 1990s. At the same time, so-called “assault weapons” became the most popular firearms in the country as well as the time when more people were carrying firearms concealed. If the anti-gun rhetoric Bullock seems inclined to embrace were to be believed, we should see more violence.

Hell, Bullock himself believes we’re in the midst of a gun violence epidemic, despite violent crime dropping and continuing to drop.

Then again, it’s important to remember that Bullock is running for president.

I know I was surprised to hear that too. So is most of the rest of the nation, apparently, since he’s polling at 0.3 percent according to RealClearPolitics.  To call that well within the margin of error is a bit of an understatement. When you look at Marianne Williamson and long for her numbers, you know you’re in trouble as a candidate.

So, he thought he’d throw around some gun control rhetoric, throw around his anecdote about his nephew, and pretend that he somehow matters in this discussion and campaign.

However, I’ll vehemently oppose any public figure calling for restrictions on the rights of ordinary Americans, especially when they’re peddling BS that directly infringes on our right to self-defense.

The only saving grace is that all Bullock can do is talk. He’ll never get the chance to follow through.