Virginia had an election in November which Democrats, including governor Terry McAuliffe, hoped would give them control of the state senate. They campaigned in part on gun control and lost, but that hasn’t stopped them from pushing their agenda.After failing to achieve their goals through the democratic process, top Democrats are enacting gun control measures at the executive level.The Washington Post reported:
Virginia to stop recognizing concealed carry gun permits from 25 statesVirginia Attorney General Mark R. Herring announced Tuesday that the commonwealth will no longer recognize out-of-state concealed handgun permits, part of a national push to circumvent legislatures opposed to tightening gun laws.Herring (D) said 25 states have lax laws compared with Virginia, where a history of stalking, drug dealing or inpatient mental health treatment can disqualify someone from carrying a concealed handgun. The move is in step with actions governors and attorneys general are taking to address gun violence without going through Republican-controlled legislatures.“While you are here, you are subject to the commonwealth’s gun laws,” Herring said during a news conference…In October, Gov. Terry McAuliffe (D) signed an executive order to ban firearms in state office buildings. And President Obama is considering using his executive authority to bypass Congress to expand background checks.“This has been where the gun violence prevention movement is going,” said Chelsea Parsons, vice president of guns and crime policy at the liberal Center for American Progress. “In much the same way President Obama said I’m not going to wait for Congress anymore, the same can be said for leaders at the state level to really use their authority to take strong meaningful steps on this issue.”
Here’s the governor discussing the issue with MSNBC’s Chris Matthews just before the election:
Republicans who maintained majority control think the governor should live by his own rules.
Bearing Arms reports (emphasis is mine):
VA GOP May Strip McAuliffe Of His Protective Detail Over Concealed CarryVirginia’s radically anti-gun Governor and Attorney General were probably quite pleased with themselves when they spitefully severed concealed carry agreements with 25 states, including all but one of its neighbors.They probably didn’t anticipate the backlash they’ve received, which includes calls to recall or impeach Attorney General Mark Herring, and pushes for legislation that will both strip elected officials of the ability to make such unilateral decisions, and get a little payback.
Herring’s announcement came three weeks before the start of the General Assembly session, which is controlled by Republicans. In November, a bill was filed that would require Virginia to recognize permits from other states. If approved, it would reverse Herring’s ruling.Carrico said he’ll address the issue come January.“A lot of the governor’s power is deferred to the General Assembly at that point and I’ll be getting with my collegues to circumvent everything this governor has done on this point,” he said. “I have a budget amendment that I’m looking at to take away his executive protection unit. If he’s so afraid of guns, then I’m not going to surround him with armed state policemen.”
That only makes sense, right? People on Twitter seem to agree:
That pretty much covers it.
Featured image via YouTube.
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