VA Dems' Wish List: 'Assault Weapons' Ban, Expanded Gun-Free Zones

Virginia Democrats are expected to push numerous gun controls this legislative session, including an “assault weapons” ban, expanded gun-free zones for concealed carry, and gun lock requirements.

WTKR noted the Democrats will push for an “assault weapons” ban and for a requirement that a locking device be provided with every gun sold.

Democrats are also expected to pass legislation “[creating] liability for the owner of a gun if a minor uses it in a crime.”

The Washington Post pointed out Democrats are expected to push for a law to ban concealed carry in “restaurants that serve alcohol.”

These gun control efforts were on full display during Virginia’s Lobby Day, which coincided with Monday’s Martin Luther King, Jr., holiday. Pro-2A voices spoke outside the Virginia Capitol, as did anti-2A voices.

Virginia House Speaker Don L. Scott Jr. (D-Portsmouth) spoke outside the Capitol, referencing MLK and saying, “There is no honor in appropriating his memory for nefarious goals. So often his words are used by politicians … who stand in direct opposition to his beliefs or refused to take on the mantle of leadership toward racial inequality or toward income inequality or toward making sure our communities are safer.”

Scott did not mention MLK wanted to be able to carry a concealed handgun for self-defense but was denied such a permit in 1956 in Democrat-controlled Alabama.

Breitbart News observed Alabama had a “may issue” status for concealed carry at the time, which meant that ultimate approval for permits rested with the Democrat-run government apparatus.

Syndicated radio host Stacy Washington noted, “Martin Luther King Jr., was denied a concealed carry permit. His life was threatened a lot and he really wanted to protect himself with a concealed permit but he could not because he could not get one. This is hold-over racism from the Democrats and their Jim Crow era controls and all that.”

AWR Hawkins is an award-winning Second Amendment columnist for Breitbart News and the writer/curator of Down Range with AWR Hawkins, a weekly newsletter focused on all things Second Amendment, also for Breitbart News. He is the political analyst for Armed American Radio and a Turning Point USA Ambassador. He was a Visiting Fellow at the Russell Kirk Center for Cultural Renewal in 2010, a speaker at the 2023 Western Conservative Summit, and he holds a Ph.D. in Military History, with a focus on the Vietnam War (brown water navy), U.S. Navy since Inception, the Civil War, and Early Modern Europe. Follow him on Instagram: @awr_hawkins. You can sign up to get Down Range at breitbart.com/downrange. Reach him directly at awrhawkins@breitbart.com.