U.S.A. – -(Ammoland.com)- “[T]here is a push to pass an ‘assault weapons’ ban via a ballot initiative to amend the State Constitution,” a Monday Florida Shooters Network report warns. “This is being spearheaded by Ban Assault Weapons NOW (BAWN), a bipartisan group of gun-grabbers made up of Republican and Democrat authoritarians that want to see Floridians disarmed.”
“BAWN has partnered with the prominent Republican donor Al Hoffman and his gun-control-advocacy organization, Americans for Gun Safety Now!, which is made up almost entirely of Republicans who support an assault-weapons ban,” a cited advocacy puff piece masked as political reporting from The Atlantic notes. Here is what they want to do, at least for now:
“BAWN’s assault-weapons ban, which exempts military or law-enforcement members, would make possession of the defined weapons a third-degree felony. It would also give Floridians who already own these weapons a year to register them before their possession becomes illegal.”
And, of course, once registered, why should we believe the people who want them banned won’t press for Phase Two?
So who are these “Republicans”?
On the political scene, as the saying goes, follow the money”
“Hoffman also made waves on his own in March by publicly pledging to donate money only to Republicans who supported banning assault weapons—leading him to back only two candidates in 2018, Brian Mast and Carlos Curbelo.”
True, they’re congressmen and this is a state measure, but they head the list of “prominent” names demanding a Florida ban, and you know they’d do the same to the rest of the Republic if they could. Cases in point, Mast co-sponsored a Democrat “raise the age” bill on semi-auto rifles, and Curbelo is a proven Bloomberg lackey.
As for state-level politicians, we can return the Florida Shooters Network report:
“Senate President Bill Galvano (R) wrote the gun control bill that was signed into law by Governor Rick Scott last year and he even took $200k from Bloomberg’s Everytown Gun Control Group. As Senate President, he isn’t clamping down on fellow Republicans that support gun control because he’s a gun control supporter himself. The House isn’t any better since House Speaker Jose Oliva gave Galvano’s SB 7026 a standing ovation when it passed last year and he’s doing much the same.”
“Who else are they going to vote for?” the late Lee Atwater, former head of the Republican National Committee is reputed to have asked about gun owners. Whether the attribution is true or not, that’s the type of arrogant attitude some of us have seen play out over the years, and for good reason as far as turncoats are concerned. If there’s no cost to pay for betrayal what can’t they get away with, especially with so-called “pragmatic” apologists offering lesser-of-two-evil excuses to rationalize being cuckolds? If that sounds harsh, face it — that’s exactly what a gun owner who “forgives” an unrepentant cheater is setting himself up to be.
“But if you don’t vote for them a Democrat will win, and they’ll be even worse!” we are warned. Hey, we wouldn’t be in this mess if people would have insisted on principles from the very beginning. And now we’re expected to believe our only way out is to continue enabling the enemies inside the gates?
The only way to stop Republican infidelity is to show the GOP that betrayal will not be rewarded. If it takes them losing a seat here or there, they’ll ultimately get the message.
“But if the Democrats win, we’ll lose our gun rights!” is the typical rejoinder. What those bleating that really mean is they’ll surrender theirs. If all it takes to eradicate the right to keep and bear arms is the passage of a law or a ballot measure, then the Second Amendment isn’t worth the parchment it’s written on.
What BAWN and Principle-Devoid Republicans for Tyranny fail to recognize is that in spite of their wretched subversions, there’s one inconvenient truth they’ll ultimately need to deal with:
WE WILL NOT DISARM.
About David Codrea:
David Codrea is the winner of multiple journalist awards for investigating/defending the RKBA and a long-time gun owner rights advocate who defiantly challenges the folly of citizen disarmament.
He blogs at “The War on Guns: Notes from the Resistance,” is a regularly featured contributor to Firearms News, and posts on Twitter: @dcodrea and Facebook.