Massie by Tom Reynolds
Testifying before the Senate, Representative Thomas Massie (KY) put out a spot-on defense of the 2nd Amendment when he said, “The simple and direct language of our Constitution is clear. The right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed. There are no qualifiers on who may keep arms, what types of arms they may keep, or for what purposes.”
Massie added, “The Second Amendment exists for one clear reason: defense. For the defense of one’s home, one’s family, and one’s community, for the defense of liberty and safety, not only from a lone assailant, but from the whole of tyrannical government…Our founders understood the greatest risks to liberty are not always found outside a nation’s borders… but oftentimes from within, when a corrupt and dangerous few grow too ambitious and attempt to subjugate the masses…The Second Amendment is the ultimate check on our government…When we look to our Constitution, remember it’s a document by our people for the purpose of constraining our government, not the other way around.”
Massie wasn’t just concerned about 2A but the entire Bill of Rights, “Any attack on those core tenets, whether it’s the Second Amendment, the First Amendment, or the Fourth Amendment, or any other provision of our Constitution, is dangerous and wrong.”
Massie didn’t just make a speech. He threw some positive steps on the table:
Repeal of the Gun-Free School Zones Act which only serves to disarm laws abiding citizens and has no impact on criminal murderers.
Lower the age to purchase a handgun from a federal firearms licensee (FFL) to 18 from 21. Massie justified this saying, 18 year-olds “are considered adults and can vote on important public policy issues. They can also form business contracts, get married, and serve in the military. As adults, these Americans should not be deprived of basic constitutional rights.”
Make Constitutional Carry the law-of-the-land. “29 states now recognize that the right to keep and bear arms should not require permission from your government to bear those arms.”
Wow! We could use more Representatives as straight-forward and eloquent as Massie, in defense of 2A. We have a few 2A defenders in New York State, but far too few. Let’s add a few more this November.
