California Governor Gavin Newsom proposed adding an additional Constitutional amendment to restrict gun rights, and gun rights groups quickly snapped back.
Newsom’s proposal, while not repealing the Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms, would raise the federal minimum age to obtain a firearm from 18 to 21, mandate universal background checks to purchase firearms, create a waiting period for all gun purchases, and ban so-called “assault weapons.”
The amendment would also give Congress, states, and local governments the discretion to make additional gun control measures.
“Our ability to make a more perfect union is literally written into the Constitution,” said Newsom. “So today, I’m proposing the 28th Amendment to the United States Constitution to do just that. The 28th Amendment will enshrine in the Constitution common sense gun safety measures that Democrats, Republicans, Independents, and gun owners overwhelmingly support – while leaving the 2nd Amendment unchanged and respecting America’s gun-owning tradition.”
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Newsom’s proposal comes as a response to gun rights successes in the Supreme Court.
Newsom plans to campaign and build local support while lobbying other states, civic leaders, and “broad and diverse coalitions” to move towards a state convention under Article V of the Constitution.
“I am proud to introduce this resolution to protect the common sense gun reform legislation our Assembly Public Safety Committee has championed over the years,” Assemblymember Reggie Jones-Sawyer said. “We cannot stand idly while courts roll back our work and diminish the ability of our Legislature to keep Californians safe. This bold but fair resolution calls on other states to join us in protecting some of the most effective ways of reducing gun violence.”
Gun rights groups quickly condemned Newsom’s proposal as an attack on the Second Amendment.
“Newsom’s latest publicly stunt once again shows that his unhinged contempt for the right to self-defense has no bounds,” the National Rifle Association said in a statement. “California is a beacon for violence because of Newsom’s embrace of policies that champion the criminal and penalize the law-abiding. That is why the majority of Americans rightfully reject his California-style gun control.”
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“We’ve always warned those who cherish their God-given liberties that the ultimate goal of anti-gunners was the abolishment of the Second Amendment,” said Erich Pratt, senior vice president of Gun Owners of America (GOA).
“While they often try to hide behind legislative proposals and hush open talk of abolishing the Second Amendment, here we have a potential future presidential candidate now coming out and openly admitting what they’ve wanted to do all along,” Pratt said. “GOA will strongly oppose this proposal as we work to protect and restore the Second Amendment rights of all Americans.”
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