The GOP leadership is trying to block the Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act from being included in their 'compromise' gun bill...
There are now an estimated 19 million Americans with concealed carry permits. That number comes from a new research study published by the Crime Prevention Research Center, and represents a 1.4 million increase over their findings from last year.
More Americans than ever are choosing to exercise their right to bear arms. But even this data is incomplete. There are now 16 states that have adopted permitless carry laws, meaning that anyone legally allowed to own a firearm can also carry one without needing a permit or license first.
That means that the number put out by the CPRC is likely low. All told, there are likely more than 25 million Americans who carry firearms in public to defend themselves and others.
But just because someone can carry a concealed weapon in one state, doesn't mean it is honored in other states. Right now, it is impossible for any civilian to legally carry a firearm in all 50 states. I personally have three different concealed carry permits and even that only gets me 38 states of reciprocity.
Right now, more than a quarter of all Americans live in states that refuse to issue carry permits to their own residents. These also happen to be the states that refuse to honor carry permits from other states (New York, New Jersey, California, Maryland, Massachusetts, etc).
These anti-gun states believe that the 2nd Amendment simply doesn't apply inside of their borders...
But there is a bill moving through Congress that could fix this and restore the right to bear arms for tens of millions of law abiding Americans!
The legislation is called the Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act. This bill passed in the House during the last Congress, but Paul Ryan struck a budget deal with Democrats that ended up leaving it on the cutting room floor. Now, Conservatives are gearing up to try to push it through again.
Here is how the bill works. If you have a concealed carry permit, then that permit would be valid in all 50 states. If you are a law abiding citizen who lives in a permitless carry state -- where a carry permit isn't required -- then you would be able to carry nationwide simply by carrying your state-issued driver's license proving that you live there.
Anti-gun states would no longer be allowed to discriminate against out-of-state gun owners. They would have to treat carry permits the same way they treat out-of-state driver's licenses.
Imagine how chaotic it would be if every time you crossed a state line, you had to go to that state's DMV and take their driver's test before being allowed to keep driving. It would make traveling across the country impossible.
That is why your driver's license is honored by all 50 states. You still have to know the traffic laws when you travel around the country, but every state understands that if you have a license, that means you know how to drive.
That is how it should be for concealed carry permits too. If your state allows you to carry, then you should be allowed to carry nationwide. It is still up to you to research each state's self-defense laws. But states would no longer be able to discriminate against you based on where you live...
The Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act would do just that!
But the bill actually goes one step further. If you are one of the 26% of Americans who live in states that refuse to issue their residents carry permits, the CCRA creates a pathway for you to get around that ban!
Law abiding citizens would be allowed to obtain non-resident carry permits from states like Utah and Florida, and then use that permit to carry in their home state!
This is the biggest civil rights bill of our generation. For almost a century, anti-gun states like California, New York, and New Jersey have rejected almost all of carry permit applications that they receive. The result is that a quarter of all Americans are not allowed to bear arms. Their Constitutional Rights are being violated and only Congress can fix it.
Congress ratified the 14th Amendment to stop something just like this. States are not allowed to violate their people's rights and if they are caught, then Congress has the power to force them to respect the Constitution.
That is what the Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act would do. It would force states to honor the 2nd Amendment and allow law-abiding Americans to bear arms for self-defense.
Congress is still working on new gun legislation. For weeks, we have covered all of the anti-gun amendments that the Left, and the Right, have been trying to slip into the gun control package. We have fought like hell and stopped many of these radical bills from being pushed through.
But now, the GOP claims that the "timing isn't right" to pass this pro-gun bill. They are only interested in chipping away at the 2nd Amendment, not restoring it...
We have a chance, right now, to finally go on offense. We have an opportunity to not only protect the 2nd Amendment, but also to expand it by tearing down more than a century's worth of state-level gun control laws.
I am begging you to seize this moment!
Seize the moment!
Joe Otto
Conservative Daily
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