United States – -(AmmoLand.com)- Should Congress be under pro-Second Amendment leadership after the November elections, Second Amendment supporters have a lot of choices to make. But perhaps the best offensive move is to play defense – at least through 2023 and 2024.
With NYSRPA v. Bruen taking out gun control laws, including magazine bans, anti-Second Amendment extremists are already making their moves. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse’s DISCLOSE Act could very well open up those willing to donate to pro-Second Amendment activism to harassment or worse. The White House also has attacked the justices who supported the outcome of Bruen on social media.
It’s not his first attack. Whitehouse has also attacked Citizens United, which greatly enhanced protections for the First Amendment rights we use to defend the Second Amendment. When it comes down to it, Whitehouse is arguably the most anti-First Amendment Senator – and Second Amendment supporters need to treat him as perhaps our most dangerous political adversary over the long term.
We must defend both our ability to make our case to the American people and protect the Supreme Court from him and others who seek to pack it – and that is done by making sure Whitehouse is always on the losing side of a vote for Senate Majority Leader. In other words, we are trying to stop Whitehouse from getting his shot at our rights.
In one sense, it’s probably the most productive use of our efforts at the federal level. We must recognize that anything but marginal pro-Second Amendment legislation is DOA until January 2025, provided Second Amendment supporters hold the House and Senate and retake the White House. So, with legislation off the table, what can federal lawmakers do? Play defense, and one way is to put sunlight on the efforts of anti-Second Amendment extremists to bypass the constitutional lawmaking powers via corporate boardrooms and that can be done with oversight.
In this case have a bunch of CEOs on the Hill, and start pressing them over financial deplatforming. Particularly see if certain state officials have pressed it. Andrew Cuomo is one name that comes to mind, but where there’s one, there are others. If we can’t access financial services, we’re in a world of hurt vis-à -vis defending our rights, much less exercising them.
Similar oversight can be aimed at bureaucratic rulemaking and any connections with Silicon Valley’s censorship. Again, the purpose is to defend our ability to make our case to the American people. If this effort is successful, Second Amendment supporters can look forward to consistently defeating anti-Second Amendment extremists at the federal, state, and local level via the ballot box for a long time to come.
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.
Yeah, don’t expect too much. If we win let’s not do too much beyond half steps or steps backwards. If we will just be patient we can succeed in losing. If we play nice eventually they won’t hate us. It is ironic that a man that always calls out for strategy seems unable to formulate a useful one.
To all of the other criticisms, please allow me to add that presuming Republicans gain control of both chambers, allowing them to do nothing (inertia is the natural state of politicians), you will encourage more of the same even once they gain supermajorities or we have a Republican president. Never reward bad behavior, Harold. And that includes inaction.
One seldom spends scarce resources on things where there is no perceived need. So it shouldn’t have been a surprise to anyone that prior to the 1920s or so, there was no organized pro RKBA community. Why organize to defend something that was not under attack? In any struggle, the attacker almost always has an advantage. They get to choose when and where to strike, whereas the defender has to gather his wits and move scarce resources around to defend any potential target within the attackers reach. I once read a story about a high school or small college who… Read more »
You can’t win by playing defense. Every time they want a new firearms restriction, we should demand repealing 10 restrictions – starting with the NFA. Harold seems to think that we have to be nice if we get control of the House, Sentate, and/or Presidency. That’s BS. It’s time to push on and railroad them like they have been doing to us for 100+ years. Burn the democrats to the ground and then salt the earth…
Stuff that in your ballot box, Harold!
With such a stupid article title you knew it had to be Harold.
HH writes:
“Should Congress be under pro-Second Amendment leadership after the November elections, Second Amendment supporters have a lot of choices to make. But perhaps the best offensive move is to play defense – at least through 2023 and 2024.”
Honestly Ammoland, get rid of this stooge. We’ve all had enough of do nothing RINO’s giving away our rights. If the Red Wave comes to fruition the only appropriate action is to lay waste to the entire libtard agenda as fast as humanly possible.