Redstate

Posted at 11:54pm on Jul. 2, 2008 Barack Obama's Toothless Second Amendment

By Pejman Yousefzadeh

Jacob Sullum discusses. It's clear that Obama would have preferred D.C.'s tremendously onerous gun ban to remain in effect and if he becomes President, he will do whatever he can legislatively to restrict the right to keep and bear arms.

He'll also try to appoint people to the Supreme Court who would be willing to reverse or severely limit the Supreme Court's ruling in Heller. On this issue, it's important to turn the mike over to Robert Levy, who successfully litigated Heller:

Heller is merely the opening salvo in a series of litigations that will ultimately resolve what weapons and persons can be regulated and what restrictions are permissible. Near term, the Court will also have to decide whether Second Amendment rights can be enforced against state and local governments. Despite those remaining hurdles, it's fair to say that the court's blockbuster decision makes the prospects for reviving the original meaning of the Second Amendment substantially brighter. And given the unfolding presidential contest, it's also fair to say that the court's razor-thin majority conveys a crucial message: Judicial nominations matter.

Yes they do. And by extension, elections matter.

Posted in Barack Obama | Law | Second Amendment — Comments (2)/ Email this page » / Read More »

Posted at 10:30am on Jun. 23, 2008 Waiting For Heller

Is There A Gun In My Tea Leaves?

By Dan McLaughlin

The Supreme Court's Term is likely to end this Wednesay or Thursday. I noted last Thursday, with the usual cautions about this kind of thing, SCOTUSBlog's observation that Justice Scalia was the most likely Justice to be writing the Court's opinion in DC v. Heller, given that only he and Justice Souter had yet to write majority opinions from cases the Court heard in March. Well, this morning the Court handed down the other remaining case from the March sitting, and it was written by Justice Souter. So the odds would seem now to strongly favor Justice Scalia.

How good is that news for fans of the Second Amendment? Well, it's unlikely that a Scalia opinion will be a bad one when an express provision of the Constitution is involved, but bear in mind that (1) even if he does write the opinion, there's no guarantee that it will be a majority opinion; it could be a plurality that leaves matters more unsettled than ever (e.g., 4 Justices favoring a strong individual right, 4 supporting DC's position, and 1 - usually Justice Kennedy, under the Court's current alignment - refusing to join either side's analysis) and (2) it's very possible that the Court will decide only the scope of the right against federal interference under the unique legal status of the District of Columbia, and won't address the thornier issue of whether the Second Amendment prohibits gun control measures by state governments. And of course, the guesswork could simply be wrong - even if Justice Scalia was originally assigned the opinion, it could end up as a dissent if some Justices changed their minds before it was finalized.

In other words: we can guess all we like, but until we see the opinion we can't know.

Posted in D.C. v. Heller | gun control | Justice Scalia | Law | Second Amendment — Comments (6)/ Email this page » / Read More »

Posted at 11:55am on May 8, 2008 The Best Commentary You Will Read on Marvin Harrison and the Second Amendment

By Ben Domenech

This link to KSK has language that is NSFW. There, fair warning. Now go read it - it's the best response to silly anti-Second Amendment columns you're going to find: total ridicule.

Posted at 1:51am on Apr. 6, 2008 Charlton Heston Passes Away

A great actor and a believer in inalienable rights

By Ben Domenech

Here's my Charlton Heston story.

When I was a teenager, and a lowly intern for Human Events, I spent my days writing about all sorts of topics that were, let's face it, not interesting enough to the editors to assign real, paid journalists.

Once, I wrote an article about gun rights, and an attack on them via a bill before the House of Representatives. It was a slightly different attack than those usually employed by the gun-grabbers, as I recall, but the details are lost to me. In any case: I went to a few hearings, I talked to a few staffers, and I wrote about it.

About a week after the story ran, I came back to my desk to find a pink "While you were out" note from the office secretary. Someone from then-National Rifle Association President Charlton Heston's office had called, the note said, asking for copies of my article. Please return call for address.

I dialed the number. A man picked up. And I heard Charlton Heston say, "Hello?"

I was stunned into silence for a moment. I glanced at the note - it was a California area code. I realized it did not say Charlton Heston's office had called - that had been assumed. No, it was the man himself. I had no idea what to say.

"Uh...Mr. Heston, I'm calling from Human Events, and I heard you were interested in copies of my article?"

"Oh, yes!" he replied. Could I send a few copies of the issue over to him, he asked? But of course. He gave me his address, ending with, "and that most hideous of zip codes, 9-0-2-1-0."

I still didn't know what to say, but figuring this was the only time I'd end up with the actor on the phone, I just added: "And sir, let me say as a fan, thank you so much for all the amazing work you've done on screen."

He laughed, and said "No, thank you, I appreciate it."

Made my week, that did.

R.I.P.

Posted in Charlton Heston | Hollywood | NRA | Second Amendment — Comments (12)/ Email this page » / Read More »

Posted at 1:24pm on Mar. 26, 2008 Feddie v. Publius: Original Meaning and the Second Amendment

By Feddie

Dearest Publius:

While it is true that the "colonial era has passed," the colonial Constitution is still with us. You may recall that "we the people" entered into a compact of sorts vis-a-vis this Constitution, and agreed to certain terms. We also recognized certain natural rights "retained" by the people, some of which were enumerated. One of those rights was to right to "bear arms." And while I understand that you and others like to think that there is a case to be made for viewing the Second Amendment as a collective-based right (i.e., that the people only have the right to own guns as members of a militia), no legal scholar worth his salt really believes that to be the case. Heck, even Larry Tribe has conceded the obvious. But why take his word for it. Let's see what Justice Joseph Story has to say on the matter, shall we?:

Posted in Law | Originalism | Second Amendment — Comments (14) / Email this page » / Read More »

Posted at 2:38pm on Mar. 24, 2008 Attention DC Residents: Don't Let the Police In!

By Mark I

David Freddoso notes in The Corner that the authorities in Washington DC must be a bit nervous about the way the oral arguments in District of Columbia vs. Heller went at the Supreme Court last week. If they were confident that the District's handgun ban would survive the Constitutional challenge, why would they be implementing a new program to try and get as many guns as possible forfeited before the Court's ruling comes down in June?

A crackdown on guns is under way in the District. Police are asking residents to submit to voluntary searches in exchange for amnesty under the District's gun ban.

The program is starting in the Washington Highlands neighborhood of southeast Washington on Monday and will later expand to other neighborhoods. Officers will go door to door asking residents for permission to search their homes. (emphasis mine)

Now, we at RedState certainly don't want to advocate any lawbreaking, but I hasten to point out that the program is voluntary (see bolding). DC residents don't actually have to...you know...let the police in. Fourth Amendment and all that. No warrant = no entry.

Chances are good that by June, this "crackdown" will be a moot exercise anyhow.

Posted at 12:49am on Mar. 24, 2008 I'm Not Normally In The Habit Of Linking To Jack Balkin

By Pejman Yousefzadeh

He's a good guy, I am sure. It's just that we have . . . er . . . different views about some of the issues of the day.

But I guess that there must be a blue moon rising somewhere. How else to explain that for once, we agree? (Via InstaPundit.)

Posted at 2:46pm on Mar. 22, 2008 Cringeworthy

By Pejman Yousefzadeh

So, Dahlia Lithwick really missed the boat on the Heller case, nyet? There's been a lot of this; Lithwick is becoming rather famous for letting snark get in the way of substance. At some point, will Slate notice and ask her what is going on? I mean, the editors there do want her to get legal analysis right, don't they?

Posted at 12:33am on Mar. 19, 2008 D.C. v. Heller

By Pejman Yousefzadeh

Coming into today, I thought that the Court was primed in the Heller case to affirm that the Second Amendment is an individual right. But I thought that the Court would adopt the position taken by Solicitor General Clement stating that while the Second Amendment should be deemed an individual right, the right should only be protected by an intermediate standard of review. Such a standard would state that Second Amendment rights could be regulated if the regulation had a substantial connection to an important government interest, with the burden being on the government to show the connection.

Instead, after reading this and this, I am beginning to believe that there are five votes for Vice President Cheney's position, which states that Second Amendment rights ought to be protected by the highest possible standard of Constitutional scrutiny, one which states that regulations are only valid if they are deemed necessary to further a compelling state interest with no less restrictive means available to further the compelling state interest. Again, it would be the burden of the government to show that  its regulations met this standard. And you don't have to be a lawyer to examine the language of the two competing standards to see which one would be harder for any governmental regulation to overcome. Justice Breyer appears ready to provide a sixth vote in favor of the proposition that the Second Amendment protects an individual right, though he seems to favor the intermediate scrutiny protections advocated by the Solicitor General. But a majority of Chief Justice Roberts and Associate Justices Scalia, Kennedy (Kennedy!), Thomas and Alito appear to be ready to go further and if the decisions track the tone and tenor of the oral argument, they will.

It should be noted that of all of the Presidential candidates, only John McCain supports recognizing the Second Amendment as affording an individual right with strict scrutiny protections. He signed on to the very same amicus brief Vice President Cheney signed onto. For voters interested in preserving and enhancing Second Amendment protections, that ought to mean something huge.

Posted in Law | Second Amendment — Comments (16)/ Email this page » / Read More »

Posted at 4:41pm on Feb. 15, 2008 Barack Obama on Gun Control

That 70s Show Continues

By Dan McLaughlin

Obama on gun control, after yesterday's shootings in his home state:

Before speaking to a rally here, Obama said the nation must do a "more effective job of enforcing our gun laws, strengthening our background check system, being able to trace guns that are used in violent crimes to unscrupulous gun dealers -- so that we can crack down on them -- closing gun show loopholes."

+++

Obama said he believes in the Second Amendment, but that there is plenty of room for added gun regulations. "There is an individual right to bear arms, but it's subject to commonsense regulation," he said.

Mentioning his home city, Obama said local entities should also have the ability to have their own more strict regulations.

"I think that local jurisdictions have the capacity to institute their own gun laws…The City of Chicago has gun laws, as does Washington, D.C.," he said. "I think the notion that somehow local jurisdictions can't initiate gun safety laws to deal with gang-bangers and random shootings on the street isn't born out by our constitution."

Hmmm, that should go over real well in the Texas primary on March 4. Just as the national Dems seemed to have learned their lesson on this issue, expect to hear a lot about guns if Obama is the nominee, for two reasons.

1. Guns are one of the few areas where McCain has a pretty solid conservative record. The NRA's leadership hates McCain due mainly to McCain-Feingold, but on the actual gun-rights issues he's voted pretty consistently for gun rights (e.g., he voted against the Brady Bill), although McCain has also clashed with the NRA over a gun show bill he co-sponsored with Joe Lieberman.

2. There is, nonetheless, a huge contrast to be drawn on this issue. Obama is about as anti-gun as you would expect from a Chicago politician - voted for assault weapons bans, voted to limit the number of handguns a person could buy, voted against lawsuit protections for gun manufacturers, supported a national ban on concealed carry, and worst of all voted against a bill protecting homeowners from being sued by burglars they shoot in their own homes.

Obama's not going to get a pass on that record from gun owners.

Posted in 2008 | 2008 Presidential Campaign | Barack Obama | John McCain | Obamafiles | Second Amendment — Comments (33)/ Email this page » / Read More »

Posted at 6:57pm on Jan. 14, 2008 Notice Anything Missing?

By Dan McLaughlin

CNN.com's list of "What to put between you and burglars" seems to be missing a particular home-security device - see if you can guess what it is. (Hint: it's the one mentioned in the Bill of Rights. It's also the only one left once the burglars are actually inside the house.).

Posted at 1:18pm on Dec. 14, 2007 Pro-Second Amendment Folks Should Make This Lady A Hero

By Martin A. Knight

I was not going to get raped. I was not going to get murdered.

If the NRA and other such organizations were smart, they'd rush to make this woman and her story as widely known as possible.

She strikes me as exactly the sort of gun owner that the MSM is generally very careful about giving too much publicity, prefering instead to feature people like that crazy looking i***t at the CNN/YouTube Clinton Garden Republican debate as the typical gun owner.

Posted at 8:47pm on Dec. 10, 2007 In Which We Are Reminded That Lawyers Can Be Good People

By Pejman Yousefzadeh

Consider this your reminder. This is some canny lawyering by an obviously smart guy. And if his case helps confirm an individual rights interpretation of the Second Amendment, this smart guy will rightfully be considered a hero.

Posted at 11:28pm on Nov. 26, 2007 JCG on the D.C. Gun Ban Case

By Alexham

Great minds think alike. My prediction is a 6-3 majority opinion, holding that Americans have an individual right to bear arms per the Second Amendment, with Souter and Kennedy joining the Court's conservatives.