Early on Tuesday morning, a 25-year-old woman was waiting at a bus stop in South Chicago when she was approached by a 19-year-old man.
He pulled out a gun and attempted to rob her at gun point. Had this happened a few years ago, the woman would have been powerless and either robbed or killed (or both). You see, Illinois used to have a blanket ban on concealed carry. Only law enforcement officers could legally carry a gun in public.
That law was found unconstitutional and in 2013, the Illinois legislature was forced to legalize concealed carry.
It just so happened that this young woman at the bus stop happened to be a licensed concealed carry permit holder, and when the man tried to rob her, she drew her weapon and shot him in the stomach. Police later found him bleeding out in a stairway and he was declared dead at a hospital not long after.
Had it not been for concealed carry, this woman would have become just another statistic... Illinois and Chicago are safer today because law abiding citizens are allowed to carry concealed weapons. But a quarter of all Americans still live in states that refuse to honor the 2nd Amendment's right to bear arms at all...
Senator John Cornyn (R-TX), along with a few dozen other Senate Republicans, just re-introduced the Constitutional Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act (S.69) last week.
Here, the GOP is trying to compromise with Democrats in order to get this life-saving legislation through.
The concept is simple: if you have a resident concealed carry permit, that permit would automatically be valid in all 50 states. Right now, it is up to states to decide which out-of-state carry permits they honor. Not surprisingly, the most liberal states in the country refuse to honor ANY non-resident permits. It is currently impossible for any civilian to carry a gun in all fifty states.
The GOP's "compromise" is that in order to get reciprocity, gun owners need to be permitted in a state they live in.
If passed, that a Texan would be allowed to carry in California, but California's 'may-issue' laws blocking their own residents from carrying would be allowed to stay in place. This legislation purely deals with reciprocity.
The argument is that when forced to let non-residents carry, states will face even more pressure to allow their own residents to do the same. If a Pennsylvanian can carry in New Jersey, then it doesn't make sense to stop New Jersey residents from carrying too.
We had a much better piece of legislation last year. The Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act would have granted reciprocity to any carry permit holder, even if he or she got the permit from a state they didn't live in. I had to do this when I lived in New Jersey. I was going to school across the river in Philadelphia, so I got a Utah non-resident carry permit to allow me to defend myself while out of state.
Paul Ryan had the votes to push this bill through last year and could have forced the Senate to consider it. Instead, he abandoned conservatives and struck a budget deal with the Left. Instead of prioritizing concealed carry reciprocity, he pushed through new gun control amendments in order to win Democrat votes. Rep. Richard Hudson has reintroduced his House version this year -- H.Res 38). But if we're going to make progress, it is going to have to start in the Senate.
In 2013, Sen. Cornyn was able to get 13 Democrats to support this common-sense bill. With today's balance of power, we only need seven Democrats.
It is up to you to force the GOP to make this a priority and force it through!
The Constitutional Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act isn't perfect. But we can't allow perfection to be the enemy of good.
This bill respects the rights of states while reaffirming the 14th Amendment's promise that Congress would intervene anytime states violate the liberties of citizens.
The Supreme Court has already ruled that the 2nd Amendment protects a right to carry firearms. Once again, it is up to Republicans to force Democrat States to respect Americans' civil rights...
Cornyn is making a push to force a vote on the bill. His goal is to get the legislation tacked onto whatever bill Congress uses to re-open the Federal government. But he needs your help to pressure Democrats and Republicans alike!
Cornyn has gotten the green light from McConnell, which is how the bill got such a low legislative number (69). But it is going to be up to you to hold Congress' feet to the fire and force the vote!
A right delayed is a right denied. Don't let the GOP stall any more!
Sincerely,
Max McGuire
Advocacy Director
Conservative Daily
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