100,000 2nd Amendment advocates are expected to participate in a gun rally on the Virginia capital grounds in Richmond on Monday, January 20, 2020 with noted 2nd Amendment speakers following lobbying activities.
Democratic Virginia Governor Northam has declared a state of emergency and issued an executive order banning firearms, based on claims he received intel of out of state militia groups considering waging mischief during the event being conducted by the Virginia Citizens Defense League (VCDL).
100,000 participants are expected at the event, many of whom are coming armed and the question remains what they should do with their firearms in light of the 11th hour gun ban by the governor. Many hotels don’t allow guns on their premises and if word gets out that there are millions of dollars in firearms in the trunks of cars parked near the event, they could become prime robbery targets of opportunists ‘hitting the jackpot.’
But if people opt to bring firearms on to the capitol grounds, there could be a showdown between what 2nd Amendment advocates consider their 240-year constitutionally protected right to carry, vs. a newly minted new executive order.
Every year since 2002, VCDL has come to the Virginia General Assembly to peacefully assemble and lobby their elected officials on Martin Luther King Day. The difference this year is that the crowd size is expected to be significantly larger due to Democrat leadership promising to pass draconian gun control laws that would adversely affect law-abiding citizens and have minimal impact on criminals.
Organizers say the Governor claimed in his Executive Order that there had been credible intelligence gathered suggesting that the purpose of many of the participants in VCDL’s Lobby Day was not to peacefully assemble but instead to foment “violence, rioting, and insurrection.” Neither the Governor nor any of his law enforcement has informed provided VCDL with anything specific regarding any of the alleged threats.
The inflammatory rhetoric from Democrats (including the Governor, Attorney General, Congressman McEachin, Delegate Levine, and many others) regarding the Second Amendment Sanctuary movement and VCDL’s Lobby Day has 2nd Amendment advocates wondering if the liberal Democrat governor really wants the gun Lobby Day to go peacefully.
The glaring political temptation is for Democrats to find a way to break the tradition of 17 years of peaceful assembly of law-abiding gun owners to exploit their proposed current gun control measures.
A newsletter by even organizers asked the pointed question, “Has the Democrat leadership actually invited violent groups to attend for the purpose of disrupting our peaceful assembly?”
Furthermore, some mainstream news outlets are mischaracterizing the rally as being evenly split between ‘White Supremacists’ and ‘militia groups’ as ‘gun activists.’ Here’s NBC’s highly misleading opening 16-word sentence that earned a “Red Letter” headline on Drudge:
Four spokespersons from the Second Amendment Foundation are available to be interviewed to discuss the rally and current gun news, legislation, and gun sanctuaries.
Q&A:
1) Do you believe Governor Northam had the legal right to ban guns at this rally?
2) What difference do you feel rallies like this one in Virginia make?
3) Texas church shootings are in the news again this month with the latest being an assailant shooting and killing two parishioners before being gunned down by another armed parishioner. What are your thoughts on the actions of Jack Wilson, and the response of the church security team?
4) Do you believe, having seen the video, that all churches should be armed in this manner?
5) What about schools, should their teachers or custodians be armed?
6) What do you have to say to people who believe that stricter gun laws would prevent mass shootings from taking place?
7) In recent months, we have seen policy changes in states like Texas to solidify the people’s rights to carry firearms in certain places such as churches, however, we have also seen states push more radical gun control laws, as is the case in Virginia. What are your thoughts on the differences in policy choices in these states?
10) Where may people get more information on gun rights, gun training, gun safety, and the Second Amendment Foundation?
EXPERT GUESTS AVAILABLE TO INTERVIEW ON THIS TOPIC:
ABOUT MARK WALTERS (in Eastern Time):
Mark Walters is a national board member of the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms and a broadcast media spokesman for the Second Amendment Foundation.
Recipient of the 2015 Gun Rights Defender of the Year Award, Mark Walters is a weekly national columnist for Ammoland, and author of three books, Lessons from Armed America with Kathy Jackson: foreword by Massad Ayoob, Lessons from Unarmed America with Rob Pincus: foreword by Ted Nugent, and Grilling While Armed.
Mark is the host of two nationally syndicated talk radio programs, Armed American Radio, and Armed American Radio’s Daily Defense heard on hundreds of radio stations across the country, six days per week. In addition,
Mark has appeared on national and international radio and television on gun-related stories and is a popular podium speaker on firearms topics.
Mark is a husband and father of two children and resides in Georgia with his family.
ABOUT DAVE WORKMAN (In Pacific Time):
Dave Workman is an award-winning career journalist and senior editor of TheGunMag.com (formerly Gun Week). He also writes for Liberty Park Press, Conservative Firing Line and several firearms periodicals. He is also the communications director for the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms.
He has authored Op-Ed pieces in several major newspapers including the Chicago Tribune, Seattle Times and Atlanta Journal-Constitution. He has also co-authored seven books with Alan Gottlieb, founder of the Second Amendment Foundation.
Workman’s beat is firearms, from politics to the outdoors. He is widely considered an authority on firearms, concealed carry and gun politics.
ABOUT ALAN GOTTLIEB (In Pacific Time):
Alan is a strong advocate of defense. He’s a nuclear engineering graduate of the University of Tennessee, publisher of Gun Week, chairman of the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms, and Founder of the Second Amendment Foundation. He also serves on the Board of Directors of the American Conservative Union.
ABOUT THE 2ND AMENDMENT FOUNDATION:
The Second Amendment Foundation (www.saf.org) is the nation’s oldest and largest tax-exempt education, research, publishing and legal action group focusing on the Constitutional right and heritage to privately own and possess firearms.
Founded in 1974, The Foundation has grown to more than 650,000 members and supporters and conducts many programs designed to better inform the public about the consequences of gun control.
