Democrat Gov. Ralph Northam suggested that the security decisions made regarding the Virginia Capitol grounds “de-escalated” a situation, even though no escalation preceded it.
Gov. Ralph Northam made his comments after the January 20, 2020, Second Amendment rally concluded without incident.
Northam tweeted, “We are all thankful that today passed without incident. The teams successfully de-escalated what could have been a volatile situation.”
The peaceful rally followed days of gun control groups, elected officials, and establishment media talking heads warning about extremist and/or racial undertones in relation to the rally and the Second Amendment Sanctuary movement.
Northam himself warned of “violent rhetoric” days before the rally occurred and went so far as to declare a “state of emergency” and suspend the exercise of Second Amendment rights on Capitol grounds. Yet no emergency arose, no violence, no mass arrests.
But Northam is proud of the steps taken under the “state of emergency” declaration, and he promises to continue working to provide safety for Virginians.
He tweeted, “I will continue to listen to the voices of Virginians, and will do everything in my power to keep our Commonwealth safe.”
Northam did not say whether pro-Second Amendment Virginians are among those to whom he will listen.
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. Follow him on Twitter: @AWRHawkins. Reach him directly at awrhawkins@breitbart.com. Sign up to get Down Range at breitbart.com/downrange.