White House Finally Clarifies Biden's Gun Ban Comments

On Thursday, during a brief visit to a Nantucket firehouse, President Joe Biden said what we have always known, that he wants to ban all semi-automatic firearms:

Number two, the idea — the idea we still allow semiautomatic weapons to be purchased is sick.  It’s just sick.  It has no, no social redeeming value.  Zero.  None.  Not a single, solitary rationale for it except profit for the gun manufacturers.

While the media tried to cover for him and reported he really meant to say so-called "assault weapons", it's right there in the official White House document of what he said, and it took until yesterday for the White House to come out with an official clarification:

Q    A couple questions about the lame duck agenda.  The President said last week that he was going to try to ban assault weapons during the session.  What does that look like?  Is he making calls?  Is he taking meetings on this?  Has he tasked the team with working on this?  And does he think that 60 votes are actually possible here, that’s within reach somehow?

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  So I’m so glad you asked the question, Mary, because this morning, when I was in the Oval Office in a meeting with the President, he actually brought this up himself, because he knows how his comments were reported over the weekend.  And he wanted to be very clear, and he said that, you know, he believes that it’s important to keep this issue — in banning assault weapons — at the front of minds of Americans.

The problem with Biden is he says exactly what he thinks, and because he said semi-automatic instead of "assault weapons" that is what he really wants to do.  As Jim Geraghty over at National Review wrote today, if Democrats feel they are unfairly accused of wanting to ban almost all privately owned firearms, it might help if the president would stop sayings these type of things in front of television cameras and saying he wants to ban almost all privately owned firearms.

Minneapolis Mayor: Easier to Buy a Gun than a Fresh Apple

 And you thought only Barack Obama was the only one who said stupid stuff like that.  Remember back in 2015 when then President Obama said this:  

There are neighborhoods where it’s easier for you to buy a handgun and clips than it is for you to buy a fresh vegetable.

So here is what Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey's said:

“The underlying issue is that there are areas in the Twin Cities, in Minneapolis, where it is easier to buy a gun than a fresh apple,” Frey said. “Why is that? There aren’t gun shops in Minneapolis.”

What was even more priceless than the comment was Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison's reaction to the comment.

I’m dying at Keith Ellison’s reaction 😂 https://t.co/sYdTn1lMKQ pic.twitter.com/WwrIqfQrrG

— Dustin Grage (@GrageDustin) October 5, 2022

You can't make this stuff up.  Hat-tip to the Daily Wire.

Supreme Court Denies Bump Stock Case, Sends Massachusetts Gun Ban Back to Lower Court

Yesterday was the first day of the new session of the United States Supreme Court. The Court considered two gun-related cases on Monday. The court decided not to hear Aposhian v. Garland and GOA v. Garland, which challenged the Trump Administration’s reclassification and ban on bump stocks. The decision leaves the lower court rulings upholding the ban in place.  On Sunday, Aposhian talked about his case with Tom Gresham on Gun Talk Radio.  The conversation starts at the 5:28 mark.

Cam Edwards over on Bearingarms.com had this to say about the bump stock ruling:

To say this is a disappointing result would be putting it mildly, and there most certainly will be consequences to the justices’ refusal to hear either case. The Biden administration has already used the same executive authority that then-President Trump used to direct the ATF to craft its bump stock ban to target unfinished frames and receivers sold in DIY gun-making kits, and the Court’s inaction will only embolden anti-gun officials and the gun control lobby to further abuse the scope of executive branch authority to impose even more gun control laws that don’t have enough support to win congressional approval.

The Court also sent a Massachusetts misdemeanor handgun ban back to the lower court in light of this past June's Bruen case.  The Reload has the story:

This one comes out of Massachusetts and challenges a state law barring those convicted of certain misdemeanors, even non-violent ones, from ever buying guns again. In Morin v. Lyver, a First Circuit panel used a two-step test to find the state’s refusal to issue either gun carry or pistol purchase permits to people convicted of gun-related misdemeanors was consistent with the Second Amendment. On Monday, the Supreme Court granted an appeal of the decision, vacated the previous ruling, and sent it back down to be reheard under its new standard for gun cases.

“The petition for a writ of certiorari is granted,” the court said in its order list. “The judgment is vacated, and the case is remanded to the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit for further consideration in light of New York State Rifle & Pistol Assn., Inc. v. Bruen.”

The remanding signals a new area of Second Amendment litigation the Court wants to see developed under its new Bruen standard. The Court had already sent cases related to AR-15 bans, magazine limits, and open carry permitting back down to lower courts. Now it seems the Supreme Court also wants to explore lifetime gun bans, especially for non-violent minor offenses.

Annual Raffle Winners

Yesterday, VSSA held the 2022 Annual Meeting at Piedmont Sportsman Club in Gordonsville.  Members gathered for an afternoon of shooting followed by dinner, and remarks by Bearingarms.com's Editor, Cam Edwards, and closed out with the Annual Meeting of Members.  Cam talked about the Bruen case that was decided in June, and how New York and California are trying to circumvent the decision.  Members had great questions after Cam's remarks.  The drawing for the Annual Member Raffle was also held.  The winners were as follows:

1st Prize: Smith & Wesson CSX 9mm micro compact pistol. Winner: Lewis W. Charlottesville, VA

2nd Prize - $250 Cabela's Gift Card - Winner: Alan H., Covington, VA
3rd Prize - $100 Cash - Winner - Carolyn M., Huntington, MD

Thanks to all of our members who supported VSSA by purchasing raffle tickets, and to members who participated in this year's annual meeting.  A great time was had by all.  See you next year!

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.