Is the Growth of Constitutional Carry Enough?

By Jennifer Hill

The landscape on Second Amendment issues is changing, and like most things in our nation, becoming even more polarized. As the federal government and national media focus on limiting gun ownership conservative leaning states are discovering their power and voice, pushing back within their borders. But is the change coming fast enough, and will Republicans have the fortitude to push the envelope far enough to save us from federal gun law overreach?

Many states have decided to take their own steps to protect 2A rights by transitioning to Constitutional Carry, which allows gun owners to carry arms without first getting permission or being required to carry and pay for a permit. There are currently 21 states with Constitutional Carry on their books and five others debating it. The Constitutional Carry trend is a relatively new phenomena. In fact, until 2011 the only state with permit free carry was Vermont.

While our right to bear arms slowly reestablishes many freedom advocates have begun to wonder how to protect citizens from federal agents attempting to enforce federal gun laws within their 2A friendly borders. Of course if you primarily source your news from “mainstream” sources you’d never know this is happening, as they seem to prefer silencing stories that show people taking back their power from the state. Earlier this month Wyoming passed SF102 prohibiting Wyoming law enforcement from enforcing unconstitutional federal restrictions on the Second Amendment. Breaking the new regulation could leave law enforcement facing one year in jail and a fine of up to $2,000. Wyoming Republicans had the opportunity to reach even farther with Libertarian Representative Marshall Burt’s amendment which would have added more teeth by following the money. The amendment was designed to prevent state and local law enforcement from using federal grant money to enforce federal gun control laws as well as place ban on deputizing local law enforcement as federal task force agents enforcing federal gun control laws. Unfortunately the Wyoming Republican controlled House failed to produce the cahones required make a big statement and voted to remove the amendment.  

The growth of Constitutional Carry is a big move in the right direction of preserving American rights, but if we are ever going to establish ourselves as a free nation that values our Constitution we will need elected leaders willing to make big, bold statements, even if it risks isolating them from their D.C. cronies. While Wyoming Republicans were prepared to make a statement about the general value of the second amendment we need leaders who will shout it at the top of their lungs.