U.S.A. –(AmmoLand.com)- Representative Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.) is no friend of law-abiding gun owners. That much was pretty clear when he announced that he favored an Australia-style “buyback” of certain semi-automatic rifles. Well, on November 16, he went a bit further.
In a Tweet, he reiterated his support for an Australia-style ban he called for in a USA Today op-ed published in May. Then, when it was pointed out by a combat veteran that a confiscation law could potentially spark an armed uprising (there is historical precedent – look what happened when the British tried to confiscate guns from the colonists around Boston in 1775). The person who pointed that possibility out said, “You’re outta your [expletive] mind if you think I’ll give up my rights and give the gov all the power,” Swalwell responded with a stunning tweet.
“And it would be a short war my friend. The government has nukes,” Swalwell tweeted back. He very quickly drew tons of fire on Twitter for his comments. Even the NRA is piling on, noting, “This inflammatory and decisive rhetoric will inspire gun owners to fight harder to protect their rights.”
Before we go any further, it should go without saying that no rational or reasonable person wants to see a second civil war tear the United States apart. Such an event would be long, bitter, and catastrophic for not just the United States, but potentially the world. So, let’s dispense with the eagerness when we discuss such irresponsible fantasies.
But there are some things that do need to be taken away from this. First of all, what is most notable about Swalwell’s push for an Australia-style gun ban is the fact that there has been no pushback outside of Second Amendment supporters. Second, when he did get a lot of pushback, he started to claim he was just being sarcastic.
But don’t let the claims of sarcasm distract you from something very real: Anti-Second Amendment lawmakers and advocates are again openly calling for the confiscation of guns. I say again because Nelson “Pete” Shields famously called for a complete ban on handguns in the 1970s – even outlining his process, which included gradually adding restrictions. Then, of course, there is Dianne Feinstein’s “Mr. and Mrs. America, turn them in” comments on 60 Minutes.
For the record, rifles of all types, not just the modern sporting rifles, not just the AR-15, which is being turned into a “boogie rifle,” but ALL rifles are used in killings about 25 percent as often as knives, according to Justice Department data. People are also more likely to be clubbed to death or killed by someone using their bare hands than to be killed by ANY sort of rifle. That also holds true for shotguns, with an even greater disparity than rifles in 2017. The rarity of the misuse of long guns for killing isn’t just for last year, it’s been the case for years on end.
For all of Swalwell’s stupidity on this issue, though, this also was a potentially serious unforced error on the part of the person who called him out over the semi-auto ban. The facts and logic on this issue were more than enough to make Swalwell look like an idiot. Instead, he got the chance to paint Second Amendment supporters as insurrectionists. These are fights we can do without, especially when Bloomberg has the ability to drop millions in ad money.
It’s never enough to just fight hard for our rights, we must fight smart.
About Harold Hutchison
Writer Harold Hutchison has more than a dozen years of experience covering military affairs, international events, U.S. politics and Second Amendment issues. Harold was consulting senior editor at Soldier of Fortune magazine and is the author of the novel Strike Group Reagan. He has also written for the Daily Caller, National Review, Patriot Post, Strategypage.com, and other national websites.