Gun Control Framework Update

The gun control deal “framework” in the Senate was an agreement in principle and that they still had to write legislation which was going to be difficult because the devil is always in the details. It is proving to be the most difficult of times for the gun banners likely because of the pressure gun owners are putting on their senators. Some apparently are now having second thoughts about violating the Constitution. Gun banning Senator Chuck Schumer has made it clear he wants to pass legislation before the Independence Day break but there are two sticking points - the red flag funding, basically the bribery money to states to pass red flag laws. There is disagreement in who gets to have it and if a state already has red flag or its state chooses not to adopt red flag, do they still get access to the government money. That appears to be a big sticking point according to comments that Texas Senator John Cornyn told radio host Dana Loesch. The other sticking point is the made-up fictional boyfriend loophole and how they determine what constitutes a domestic relationship.

Also, of interest to gun owners, the nomination of Steve Dettelbach, the second Biden pick be director of ATF. There is a big effort to confirm the nominee after the Uvalde school shooting. Yesterday Senator Schumer said he was going to make sure the nomination moves through the Senate rapidly in an attempt to get the first permanent director of the ETF in a couple decades. The Senate Judiciary Committee took up the vote on the nominee and as with David Chipman, it in a deadlock, which means that he moves forward without a recommendation. Then yesterday Schumer rushed through a procedural vote so that he could take a final confirmation vote. Then procedural vote went through 52 to 41. Two Republicans sided with the Democrats in favor of moving forward. Susan Collins of Maine and Rob Portman of Ohio, are the two Republicans that sided with the Democrats. With this procedural vote, it appears that Dettelbach will be confirmed. Dettelbach is as bad as Chipman. What we will now have is a gun banner in charge of the federal agency that regulates the firearms industry.

Finally, we are still waiting on the Supreme Court to issue their ruling in New York State Rifle and Pistol Association (NYSRPA) vs. Bruen. The Court has announced that the next dates for rulings will be Tuesday and Thursday next week. VSSA joined an amicus brief in favor of our sister organization NYSRPA last year. We will post the ruling on the VSSA blog when it is finally released by the Court.

Another Crush'n Clays in the Books

 On June 11, VSSA and the Arlington-Fairfax IWLA hosted the 23rd Annual Crush'n Clays benefitting St. Jude Childrens Research Hospital.  While it looked like the event would be soggy, by the time the first squads stepped to the field to shoot, only a slight drizzle remained from the early morning showers.  As the day progressed, the sun even came out periodically.

As usual, the Annie Oakley event was a hit and several of the youth shooters on hand performed better than the adults. In the photo below the shooters receive instruction on the Annie Oakley shoot before beginning.

It was great to see so many young shooters, many of which were members of the Trigger Time 4-H Shooting Education Club.

Over the last 23 years, the event has raised over $360,000 for St. Jude.  This is such a worthy charity and one of the few that is not afraid to be associated with a shooting sport event.  A big thank you to this year's sponsors - Northwest Financial Advisors, Whiting-Turner, Suburban Electric, CAC Associates, Tony's NY Pizza, D&F Construction, and Mid-Atlantic Bowhunters.  As always, we could not do this event without the volunteers and partnership with our affiliate club Arlington-Fairfax IWLA.  And finally, a special thank you to Bob Brino at Arlington-Fairfax IWLA who every year donates the clay targets that are used during the event.

Dan Bongino on Matthew McConaughey's Plea for Gun Control at White House

Yesterday, talk show host Dan Bongino said that actor Matthew McConaughey delivered an impassioned speech at the White House. In this clip, Bongino breaks down the good, the bad and the VERY ugly parts about it.

Dana Loesch Pushes Back on Media Reporting On Mass Shootings

 Radio Host and pro-rights advocate Dana Loesch spoke with Fox News' Jesse Watters on how the media miss reports mass shootings, including shootings involving gangs violence, to make it look like we have many more than we have.  She talks about how they inflate school shooting numbers by including shootings that occurred off campus, but the victim may have ran and died on school property.

VSSA Endorses State Senator Bryce Reeves for GOP 7th District Nomination

 VSSA is proud to endorse State Senator Bryce Reeves for the GOP Nomination for the 7th Congressional District.  Besides being a strong advocate for our rights in the Virginia General Assembly, Senator Reeves is a long time VSSA member.  We are proud to endorse one of our own to represent Virginia's 7th District in Congress.  It was Senator Reeves who led the effort to overturn Attorney General Mark Herring's 2015 attack on concealed carry reciprocity.  He has also voted against the extreme agenda of the gun ban lobby including voting against red flag laws that violate our due process rights, so-called "universal" background checks that would criminalize private transfers of firearms, standard capacity magazine bans, and voted against handgun rationing.  VSSA urges all gun owners in the the 7th Congressional District to vote for State Senator Bryce Reeves in the June 21 GOP Primary.  

 

State Senator Joe Morrissey Plans Gun Ban in 2023 Session

Brandon Jarvis reports over on his Virginia Political Newsletter substack page that State Senator Joe Morrissey plans to introduce a so-called "assault weapons" ban during the 2023 session of the General Assembly.  You will recall that in 2020, anti-rights extremists led by Delegate Mark Levine tried and failed to pass HB961, which would have banned many commonly-owned rifles, shotguns, handguns and ammunition magazines that law-abiding citizens use for self-defense and sport. It was considered too extreme by some in that majority, and it was ultimately defeated by a bipartisan vote in the Senate Judiciary Committee. Watch for more on this as we get closer to 2023.

Wanted: Candidates for VSSA Board of Directors

VSSA needs individuals who are interested in serving on the Board to submit their name for consideration by the Nominating Committee. The deadline to submit your name and bio for consideration is June 1. If you are interested in running, please download and complete this fillable form and send it, along with a short bio (up-to 150 words), to the VSSA Office (address is on the form), or forward it by email. You must be a member for the last five consecutive years or a life member to be eligible to run. Members who are involved in a shooting program at their gun club, competitive shooting, or who are interested in growing the shooting sports and association membership to a younger and more diverse community are especially needed.

State Senator and VSSA Member Bryce Reeves Among Seven Candidates Running in 7th Congressional District Primary

With this past year's redistricting, the 7th Congressional District looks much different than it did the last 10 years, so much so that current 7th District Representative Abigail Spanberger does not even live in the district any longer (living in the district is not a requirement to be eligible to run).  She apparently has no intention of moving until after the election.

On the GOP side, there are seven Republicans registered in the June 21 primary seeking to challenge Spanberger later this year. The GOP candidates in the 7th are State Senator (and VSSA member) Bryce Reeves (Spotsylvania), Gary Adkins, Derrick Anderson, Gina Ciarcia, David Ross, Stafford County Board Chair Crystal Vanuch and Prince William Board Supervisor Yesli Vega.

State Senator Reeves has been a stalwart supporter of the right to keep and bear arms.  He is not just a supporter of the right, but he is a gun owner.  He is a VSSA member.  He has voted against red flag laws, so-called "universal" background checks, standard capacity magazine bans, and voted against handgun rationing.  Reeves is also a recipient of the Defender of Freedom Award from the NRA.  He also spoke at a recent VSSA Annual Meeting.

The June 21st primary is open to all voters.  Reeves has a great opportunity to defeat Spanberger.  As of now, the NRAPVF has not posted candidate ratings for the GOP candidates in this race, but we know how Reeves would vote as a congressman based on his record in the General Assembly.  VSSA members would have a fellow member in Congress if he were to win the primary and the general election.  You can find out more about Senator Reeves' campaign at https://www.brycereeves.com/. 

If you are going to be out of town on June 21st, you can vote early.

Member Discount Available at Kind Sniper LLC

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Kind Sniper LLC is pleased to offer VSSA members a non-expiring 5% discount (COUPON CODE: KS-VSSA-2022!) on everything in Kind Sniper’s online stores: Kind Sniper Boutique (https://kindsniper.com) and Kind Sniper Mall (https://mall.kindsniper.com). This is a great opportunity to acquire an amazing firearm that would live in the family through generations at an amazing price. They also offer the best financing terms in the industry. For any questions, please feel free to email them at sales@kindsniper.com 

Gutowski: What's in Biden's "Ghost Gun" Kit Ban

 (Editor's note: The article discussed here is part of the Member Exclusives at TheReload.com)

Earlier today, The Reload founder, Stephen Gutowski posted an analysis of what's in Joe Biden's rule that redefines the definition of a firearm under federal law and thus expanding ATF’s power.  According to Gutowski, the bulk of the rule did not change much from when he posted a leaked draft of the rule last year. He notes that ATF did modify significant portions, and clarified others, however. He wrote that in some things, ATF has pulled back, while expanding their "theoretical" authority in others. Below is a list of things included in the new rule that Gustowski discusses:

Expanding the ATF’s Power to Determine What is a Receiver or Frame:

The most significant change is in vastly expanding the definition of what could constitute a regulatable “firearm” under federal law. While this hasn’t gotten nearly as much attention in the political sphere, it is really the core of this new rule. That’s because, in recent years, the ATF and Department of Justice have run into legal trouble over how they’ve long applied the definition of “firearm.”

Banning “Ghost Gun” Kits:

The other aspect of the definition change in the rule deals with an even greater expansion of the ATF’s authority. This time into the territory of determining what’s “readily convertible” into a firearm frame or receiver. The target is unfinished and unserialized “ghost guns.”

Homemade Guns Are Transferable, Even Sellable:

Somewhat surprisingly, the rule also explicitly states that homemade guns (which they call Privately Made Firearms or PMFs) are legal to both make and sell. The ATF points out that people who are not otherwise prohibited from possessing guns due to a disqualifying criminal or mental health record can legally build them in most states. They can even give or sell them to other people depending on the circumstances.

Increasing How Long Gun Dealers Have to Keep Background Check Records:

If the PMF serialization requirement sounds like extra work, mainly for licensed dealers, that’s because it is. The same is true for the new record-keeping requirements in the rule.

Reducing Silencer Regulation:

The rule isn’t all about implementing more burdens on gun owners and the industry, though. The ATF is also seeking to reduce the amount of paperwork and regulation involved in silencer manufacturing, dealing, and ownership. Instead of treating every part of a silencer, often called suppressors, the same as a fully completed and functional silencer, the ATF wants to pick just the outer tube as the regulated part.

Gutowski closes by noting that while Biden announced the rule last week, it has not been published in the federal registry. After the publication, it is going to face lawsuits from multiple pro-rights organizations that could delay the rule's implementation or repeal it out right.

Th article expands on each of the topics beyond what is shared above.  If you want to read the entire article and full analysis, as well receive more of his member exclusives, you can subscribe to The Reload.

Rob Pincus Talks Privately Made Firearms with NPR

On April 18, after Biden announced his new rule related to the private manufacture of firearms, NPR talked to several gun ban advocates, including failed ATF nominee David Chipman, and also spoke interviewed firearms trainer Rob Pincus.  You can hear Pincus's comments by clicking here.  NPR led off with Chipman and San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria, and at around the 18 minute mark, they play the pre-recorded comments of Rob Pincus.  Because his part was pre-recorded, Rob had no opportunity to discuss anything that had been said before and no opportunity to defend himself when Chipman took cheap shots when he was asked what he thought of Pincus' comments.  Chipman demonstrated once again why he never should have been nominated to head ATF.  Rob did a great job explaining why regulating kits used to build privately owned firearms should not be regulated by the federal government.  If you are interested, in the entire program, you can find that by clicking here.