An Unusual Pro-gun Ruling From An Unusual Source

Here are two posts on the legality of illegal aliens owning guns here in the United States. In the first post, Olivia Murray, at the American Thinker is outraged. I can't say I blame her, for the government seems to be doing everything in its power to make it more difficult for citizens to own guns. But here they are practically giving illegal...note ILLEGAL...aliens gun rights. Murray's post can be found at Obama-appointed judge rules that the 2A applies to an illegal, and he has a right to keep his illegally-possessed firearm.

The lawless free-for-all created by the political establishment and an apathetic voting class has me seriously considering renouncing my American citizenship—just think about all the possibilities!

You don’t pay income tax. The government hands you prepaid debit cards loaded with thousands of dollars. You get “free” trips to swanky enclaves like Martha’s Vineyard, only to be treated like guests of honor. You’re provided with “free” room and board at high-end hotels, or you’re given the leeway to squat in an American’s home. And now, leftist judges tell you that you have Second Amendment rights which cannot be infringed upon, and you can keep your guns no problem, even if you were breaking the law with them—I mean, these are perks and privileges we second-class real citizens aren’t afforded.

...snip...

But for some reason, Judge Sharon Johnson Coleman, an Obama-appointed judge of the Northern Illinois District Court, decided that the text of the Second Amendment applied to Carbajal-Flores, ruling in favor of the illegal being able to retain his personal firearm(s).

...snip...

I think she got it a little backwards—this amendment was written so that citizens could arm themselves to repel an invasion… it was never meant for arming the invaders! Furthermore, how did an illegal even get a gun, since he’s not allowed to buy one, especially in Illinois? I thought the state had strict gun control measures in place to ensure that criminals (every illegal is automtically a felon) didn’t get their hands on firearms?

Perhaps I am reading Murray wrong here, if so I apologize. But I detect an undercurrent of belief that this Obama-appointed judge is simply trying to create ever more chaos in order to "tranform the United States" into a facsist system, with those who are superior to us rubes clinging to our guns and religion. What if it is true? Or, the judge may be applying Bruen hyper-exactly thinking to show up the Supreme Court.

The second post is at Bearing Arms by Tom Knighton entitled Gun Ban for Illegal Immigrants Ruled Unconstitutional takes a more face value approach to the ruling. Knighton notes that the founding documents were based on a theory of God given natural rights, possessed by every human being no matter where they were.

But that brings about the question of illegal immigrants. Do they forfeit their rights when they enter the United States illegally, or do they maintain their rights as they've not actually been convicted of a felony or anything else?

For a long time, the official line is that they don't get to have guns. Period.

Yet a federal court has decided something quite differently.

The Second Amendment protects people’s ability to own a gun even if they’ve entered the country illegally.

That’s the ruling handed down by US District Judge Sharon Johnson Coleman on Friday. She found the federal prohibition on illegal immigrants owning guns is unconstitutional, at least as applied to Heriberto Carbajal-Flores. She ruled the ban did not fit with America’s historical tradition of gun regulation as required under the Supreme Court’s landmark New York State Rifle and Pistol Association v. Bruen ruling.

“The noncitizen possession statute, 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(5), violates the Second Amendment as applied to Carbajal-Flores,” Judge Colman wrote in US v. Carbajal-Flores. “Thus, the Court grants Carbajal-Flores’ motion to dismiss.”

The ruling is the latest fallout from the new standard for Second Amendment cases set in Bruen. Since the landmark case was decided in 2022, a wide swath of state and federal gun restrictions have come under increased scrutiny in the courts. Among the most commonly recurring questions raised by the new standard is who can be barred from owning guns, and the Carbajal-Flores case is among the first to examine whether people who entered the country illegally are among them.

Judge Coleman, a Barack Obama appointee, initially found the gun ban for illegal immigrants was constitutional back in April 2022. However, she agreed to reconsider the case in light of rulings from the federal appeals courts in the Third and Seventh Circuit that questioned whether those convicted of non-violent crimes could be permanently disarmed after the High Court handed down Bruen in June 2022. She concluded breaking misdemeanor immigration laws alone is not enough justification to strip somebody of their gun rights under the new test.

“[C]arbajal-Flores has never been convicted of a felony, a violent crime, or a crime involving the use of a weapon. Even in the present case, Carbajal-Flores contends that he received and used the handgun solely for self-protection and protection of property during a time of documented civil unrest in the Spring of 2020,” Judge Coleman wrote. “Additionally, Pretrial Service has confirmed that Carbajal-Flores has consistently adhered to and fulfilled all the stipulated conditions of his release, is gainfully employed, and has no new arrests or outstanding warrants.”

Knighton comes down after some discussion to the notion that by coming across the border illegally, illegal immigrants have put themselves outside the political community, for whom the 2nd Amendment was written. I suspect that this ruling will eventually be overturned.

True Masculinity

 I don't usually just have a video to watch, but this video at Townhall.com by Larry O'Connor is must see. The video can be found at Chief's Kicker Harrison Butker Drops Some Truth Bombs About Masculinity.

We hear so much about supposed "toxic masculinity." It does exist, particluarly in gang culture. But there is also true masculinity that provides leadershipby example, that sacrifices self for others. That sort of masculinity is what Christ showed the world. Gentle people, please go watch it.

Disrupting Terrorist Plans

At Bearing Arms today, Tom Knighton has piece entitled Terrorism Is A Threat. Constitutional Carry Is The Solution. He notes that much of the protection of society at large depends on police, fire departments, and the military. Each of these units can be factored into terrorist plans. They can get inside the OODA (observe, orient, decide, act) loop and overwhelm them. What they cannot factor in is the random armed citizen. They don't know where he or she may turn up.  They don't know what he or she will do. He is not a professional, so is unpredictable in every way.

If you want to combat terrorism, there are a lot of things you shouldn't do and trust that it'll keep the bad guys off balance.

For example, gun control.

Terrorist networks can get around any anti-gun restriction you care to throw at people. They can move personnel and munitions across the globe with relative ease, so they'll bypass all the restrictions you want.

Knighton goes on to cite Lee Williams at the Gun Writer blog, who noted that FBI Director Christopher Wray has warned of the terrorist threat:

Wray’s warning, however, was dire. He told the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence that known or suspected terrorists were infiltrating the country across the wide-open southern border using counterfeit documents. One of the smuggling networks, he said, has ties to ISIS. Add to this the thousands of unknown border crossers from countries that hate us, and the more than 80,000 military-age males from China, and you have a terrorist hellbroth just waiting to bubble over.

...snip...

We should thank Director Wray for his timely information and for his candor. This is precisely why we have fought so long and so hard to restore our Second Amendment rights, so that law-abiding Americans no longer have to bend a knee and beg the Crown to sell them back their constitutional rights in the form of a permit to carry defensive arms. Constitutional carry levels the playing field, making it easier for the good guys and gals to lawfully carry arms.

In the 29 states that now offer some form of constitutional carry, when a terrorist rears their ugly head — be they a card-carrying ISIS member or a lone-wolf jihadist — Americans can take immediate action without waiting for First Responders to arrive, assess the situation, plan and then respond.

Let us call the hordes of illegal migrants coming across our Southern and now Northern border exactly what it is: an invasion. As such, this is exactly what our Second Amendment was designed for. Our governments, at all levels have studiously ignored the militia, in hopes, one supposes, that we would just forget about it. But here we are, and in at least 29 states, armed citizens of the unorganizeed militia could be anywhere at any time. They can therefore disrupt any plans the terrorists make.

Pray, Vote, Prepare

 I have run this story before, but new data has come to light, and it bears repeating in any case.  The government, never your friend, is spying on you, and particularly on people considered in opposition to the regime.  Of course, the Constitution prevents them from spying directly, but, if they can get the banks and other corporations to do it, or get a sister agency in another country's government (Five Eyes) to do it, and just hand it to them, well then...  It is still illegal.  They can not get another party to do something they have no legal right to do.  But they are doing it anyway.

Larry Keane of the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF) has the story at Ammoland entitled House Committee Tackles Federal Government Weaponization. Keane has helpfully included video of the hearings conducted by U.S. House of Representatives Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government.

The Hearing on the Weaponization of the Federal Government delved into questions of why the federal government spied, and lied, about the lawful purchases by Americans by the U.S. Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN). The U.S. Treasury admitted that it collected information on Americans’ purchases of firearms and ammunition, shopping at several sporting retailers, including Cabelas, and even tracked people using search terms that include “Bible.”

The admission came by letter to U.S. Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) just one day after Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen refused to answer questions from Congress if the surveillance occurred.

The letter would appear to implicate the federal government with violating Americans’ Fourth Amendment rights protecting against illegal search and seizure, as the activity was conducted without a warrant.

Chairman Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) laid out in his opening statement the grave concerns Congress has with this intrusive and potentially illegal search and seizure of Americans’ private financial data.

I will admit that every time I read about this I get in a state of cold fury. I am well beyond white hot, to cold. That this goes against the very document all these administration people took and oath to defend and protect should be obvious. Between censorship, and combing our bank records looking for gun purchases and and things like Bibles...Bibles?...violate the first, second, fourth and fifth, and probably the ninth amendments. This si just so outrageous. Since the process is done secretly, nobody knows if he is being targeted, so no standing to sue. And Congress holds hearings, but does little else, while the courts often display a cowardice that is appalling.

I pray that we can stop the Democrat-fascists before it is too late, but the hour is late. The Democrat-fascists will do anything to gain total control. Of course, vote, prepare, and pray.

Another Gadsden Flag

Intreped investigative journalist James O'Keefe is at it again. This time O'Keefe Catches DoD Official Stating Support for Mass Gun Confiscation according to Cam Edwards at Bearing Arms.

Investigative journalist James O'Keefe released his latest undercover video on Wednesday, in which a Defense Department official named Jason Beck detailed (among other things) his distaste for gun ownership and his belief that the Second Amendment should be repealed. Beck, who works as an Associate Director, Total Force Requirements & Sourcing Policy in Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin's office, went so far as to tell O'Keefe that the National Guard could be tasked with rounding up the 400 million or so firearms in the hands of American citizens.

"I wonder if you would see a similar solution to like, school integration," Beck mused. "You know, where they did have to mobilize the National Guard."

"How many people in the National Guard, you know, maybe were personally opposed to integration, but still followed orders and made it happen," he continued.

...snip...

What Beck wants to see is far more akin to what Faubus did than Eisenhower's decision; using the military to block the exercise of a fundamental right instead of ensuring that right can be exercised. Of course, that's right in line with the Massive Resistance to the Bruen decision we've seen from blue state governors like Gavin Newsom, Kathy Hochul, and Phil Murphy; who have defied the Supreme Court's decision in Bruen just like their fellow Democrats did in the deep South with Brown v. Board of Education in the 1950s and 60s.

It doesn't surprise me that a D.C. bureaucrat, even one who works in the Department of Defense, has such contempt for his fellow Americans that he thinks it would be a good idea to call up citizen soldiers and demand they carry out a mass confiscation of firearms. According to an October 2023 Gallup Poll, almost half of all Democrats nationwide support a ban on handguns, and I wouldn't be surprised if a majority of Democrats in the D.C. area would be in favor of repealing the Second Amendment.

O'Keefe's latest undercover investigation may not be all that shocking but it's still a timely reminder of the disdain that's endemic on the left when it comes to our right to keep and bear arms, not to mention the dystopian fantasies they have of disarming tens of millions of American citizens. Not by themselves, of course. They'd task others with doing their dirty work for them. Beck might have revealed himself to be an idiot when it comes to mass gun confiscation, but based on the video he's smart enough not to want to be the one knocking on the door of a home and demanding the residents inside hand over their firearms.

The Left is as old as humanity itself, and these people have always believed that they are special. In ancient times they claimed to be the sons of gods. They believe that they are wiser and more knowledgable, and better able to direct the lives of the rest of society better than anyone has done it before. Nevermind that they haven't really studied actual history, the Bible, the canon of Western civilization, or human nature. That last can be deduced from the fact that they uniformly believe that man can be perfected and they can bring about heaven on earth. Either that or they are cynical liars trying to convince us to willingly give up power.

Just as in the previous post, this report by O'Keefe should be understood by the Left as another Gadsden Flag

MTG Warns Dems "Don't Push To Far"

 Tom Knighton at Bearing Arms asks Did Marjorie Taylor Greene cross line with Second Amendment comment? Lt's have a look, shall we?

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene isn’t everyone’s cup of tea. In her brief time in Congress, she’s managed to ruffle a lot of feathers, and not just among Democrats.

However, she’s always been a vocal supporter of the Second Amendment.

A couple of days ago, she laid out why the Founders made sure to preserve the right to keep and bear arms when she addressed some of Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams and her espoused positions on various issues.

Greene noted:

While not in agreement with Abrams’ stance on vaccinations, Greene then transitioned and moved onto the gubernatorial candidate’s stance on guns and the Second Amendment saying, “The next thing she talked about was grabbing people’s guns. She hates Georgia’s Second Amendment rights. She wants to stop constitutional carry,” Greene said.

Greene continued, offering advice to Georgia’s current governor and state lawmakers, urging them to pass and sign legislation to combat Abrams’ call for “grabbing people’s guns.”

She went on to say, “Ultimately, the truth is it’s our Second Amendment rights, our right to bear arms, that protects Americans and gives us the ability to defend ourselves from a tyrannical government,” she said. “And I hate to use this language, but Democrats, they’re exactly … they’re doing exactly what our Founders talked about when they gave us the precious rights that we have.”

Now, to most of us, this looks like Greene warning us that Democrats are acting tyrannical and reminding Democrats not to push things too far.

Sounds like it to me as well. But some Democrats took umbrage at her remarks. As Knighton says, it sounds like an "if the shoe fits" situation. Just like the colonials who flew the Gadsden flag, Greene was saying to the Left "Don't Tread On Me." Gentle readers can read the entire post. More people need to speak out. And Greene, as a member of Congress has a special platform. Good for her.

F-15s and Nukes, Oh My

 Mike McDaniel has a post at the American Thinker entitled How to provoke a real insurrection.

What’s the best way to provoke an insurrection, a second civil war? Try to disarm Americans.

Lawmakers should pass gun restrictions in order to prevent an “insurrection,” an academic paper argues.

This sort of totalitarian, anti-constitutional thinking has long been part of Democrat/socialist/communist (D/s/c) Party doctrine. They’re hot for preventing “gun violence” and “insurrection,” unless it’s against their political enemies: Normal Americans. Then, they’re ready to use F-15s and nuclear weapons, as Fang Fang bang bang Congressman Eric Swalwell said in 2018

Swalwell isn't the only one who is talking about strafing and bombing fellow citizens on American soil. Biden has said it several times. If anything, it shows how out of touch these people are. The idea that anyone in authority could ever authorize the use of such weapons on our fellow American citizens seems unbelievable. Sure we may have differences, but do these differences mean that the Government can declare war on half the population?

The truth of the matter is that it is the Democrats/socialists/communists who are doing everything in their power to provoke an insurrection. It isn't normal Americans, who want the Constitution to again be the law of the land, to live under the rule of laws that are applied equally to everybody, to defend our border and (again) follow the law. Also, I think we all want them to stop talking about "Our Democracy" because it was never a democracy.  As John Lott has noted:

Concealed handgun permit holders are “extremely law-abiding” and make up an insignificant portion of violations, John Lott told The Fix via email.

The Crime Prevention Research Center president said permit holders are convicted of firearms violations at thousandths or tens of thousands of one percentage point,” across the country. He pointed to a study he conducted that was published several month ago.

In particular, Lott took issue with the violence on January 6, 2021 being the basis for any gun regulation. “January 6th was not something anyone supports,” Lott told The Fix. However the evidence would seem to indicate political violence as stemming mainly from progressives he said, pointing to the 2021 Lafayette Square riot and the 2017 riots during President Donald Trump’s inauguration.

He also criticized the recommendation that people not be allowed to carry guns in polling places or government buildings. He shared a study, last updated in 2021 that found “23 states officially allowed people to carry guns in state capitols, and there were no problems reported,” Lott said.

He shared other research he conducted that questioned the value of “red flag laws.”

“If a person is a danger to themselves or others civil commitment laws are much better ways of dealing with these problems,” he told The Fix.

What I believe, but can not prove, is that the Democrats, most of them, have been bought off by the globalist international communists. Not a few Repbulicans have also succumbed. Our "representatives" no longer represent us. They instead represent their masters who have bought them. So it is no surprise they see us as "the other" and would use F-15s and nukes on us.