http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/montana-second-amendment-sanctuary-fight-biden-federal-gun-laws
By Carly Ortiz-Lytle
The Washington Examiner
April 24, 2021 02:09 PM
Montana has barred state and local law enforcement from enforcing federal restrictions on firearms, making it the latest in a slew of Republican-controlled states to adopt Second Amendment protections.
Greg Gianforte, the state’s Republican governor, signed the bill on Friday, which bans the enforcement of federal bans on firearms, magazines, or ammunition. The bill applies retroactively to Jan. 1, 2021, a period that covers all of President Joe Biden’s term in office.
Similar bills were vetoed by former Gov. Steve Bullock, a Democrat, in 2013, 2015, and 2017. Republicans gained control of every statewide office after the November election and held its existing majorities in the Montana House of Representatives and state Senate after the 2020 elections, wins that paved the way for this bill to be made into law.
Biden has promised an ambitious gun control agenda, and states across the country have approved Second Amendment sanctuary laws in an effort to preempt any federal gun control legislation or rulemaking.
Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey signed a similar bill in early April prohibiting law enforcement in his state from enforcing federal gun laws that are inconsistent with existing state law. The Utah Senate has also given its approval to a similar statute. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said that gun sanctuary legislation would be coming to his state imminently.
“This is what I’m seeking for Texas — a law to defy any new federal gun control laws. It will make Texas a Second Amendment Sanctuary State,” the governor wrote in response to Ducey signing the Arizona legislation.
After Democrats were victorious in Virginia’s 2019 state elections, dozens of counties became Second Amendment sanctuaries. Gov. Ralph Northam signed sweeping gun control legislation in the state in April 2020, which established a "red flag" program, limited purchasers to one handgun per month, and required background checks for all gun sales in the state.
After mass shootings in Colorado and Georgia, Biden unveiled a series of gun control measures. The administration announced that “ghost guns,” which are self-assembled weapons that can be purchased without background checks, would now be classified as firearms under the Gun Control Act. Manufacturers of the kits will be required to issue serial numbers for “key parts” of the kit, and buyers will be subject to background checks.
The federal government will also incentivize states to create their own red flag laws, which can be used to remove firearms from a person deemed to be a danger to themselves or others.
Democrats in the House and Senate have reintroduced multiple pieces of gun control legislation. The bills would make most gun transfers unlawful if a background check is not completed and extend the time that law enforcement officers have to complete a background check from three to 10 days.
The essential American soul is hard, isolate, stoic, and a killer. It has never yet melted. ~ D.H. Lawrence
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