Massive Gun Control Repealed

I am so grateful for all your support and activism on behalf of Gun Owners of America’s work on Capitol Hill.

GOA just forced President Biden to DEFUND the ATF by $122 million and to STOP enforcement of the veterans gun ban!!!

Yes, you read that right. This is a HUGE win for gun rights even though there is a Democrat in the White House and a Democratic majority in the Senate.

Backed by your barrage of emails and phone calls, GOA’s team of federal lobbyists forced the House and Senate to pass language protecting veterans last year, and it was inserted into the government funding bill which just became law today.

For over 20 years, Veterans Affairs has been sending veterans’ names to the NICS system, simply for having an advisor appointed to manage their finances. But the GOA-backed language prevents this from happening.

Anti-gunners are furious this ban has been defunded, and they’re calling the veterans gun ban repeal a “poison pill.” But they’re just upset that GOA beat them in Congress.

GOA wants to thank our grassroots activists for taking action on our alerts—especially at a time when the gun ban repeal language was getting watered down. Your loud voice, coupled with GOA’s lobbying team on Capitol Hill, forced legislators to maintain the original repeal language that passed.

Thanks also to Sen. John Kennedy (R-LA) who sponsored the amendment and fought to make sure the protection for veterans remained intact. And thanks to House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) who fought to keep the $122 million cut to the ATF.

GOA-Backed Constitutional Carry passes in Louisiana

GOA Louisiana Director Joshua Barnhill (left) with Constitutional Carry author, State Senator Blake Miguez (R)

Two states just recently enacted permitless carry legislation. Louisiana’s was the strongest, as it restores the ability of law-abiding gun owners, 18 years and older, to carry a concealed handgun in Louisiana without having to first ask the Louisiana government for permission.

GOA would like to thank Louisiana bill sponsor, Senator Blake Miguez (R), and Gov. Jeff Landry for teaming up to enact one of the best Constitutional Carry laws in the nation.

Finally, we are grateful to all of GOA’s members and supporters who have donated their time and resources to help make this victory possible.

South Carolina also enacted a similar law, although it amounts to only a partial victory, as the bill raises penalties for non-licensed individuals who carry in various Gun Free Zones around the state.

GOA Appeals to the U.S. Supreme Court

GOA has had the honor of representing Ivan Antonyuk (left), and we are appealing this important concealed carry rights case to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Regarding Concealed Carry. GOA recently petitioned the Supreme Court for a writ of certiorari in our challenge to New York’s mistakenly named “Concealed Carry Improvement Act.”

This sweeping law was passed after the Supreme Court rebuked the state’s may-issue concealed carry permitting scheme. But frustratingly, this new statute is more onerous and restrictive than the one overturned in the Bruen decision.

After its passage, GOA immediately challenged this new law in federal court, where Judge Glenn Suddaby repeatedly sided with GOA by blocking several of its major provisions. Unsurprisingly, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals was eager to intervene on behalf of anti-gunners, keeping much of the challenged law in place, which has led to the recent filing with the Supreme Court.

Readers should note that this case is not just about helping New York residents, as a win in this case has implications for every state in the union. Many states have followed the Empire State’s lead in turning many parks, bars, places of worship, etc. into “sensitive areas”—aka, Gun Free Zones—where people can’t carry. Stay tuned for further updates in this important case.

GOA Discusses Bump Stock Ban on OAN

Regarding Bump Stocks. GOA also filed an amicus brief with the Supreme Court in Garland v. Cargill, a case challenging the ATF’s ban on bump stocks.

In fact, GOA’s brief was so compelling, it forced Biden’s Solicitor General to specifically address our arguments in an attempt to salvage the administration’s case.

GOA’s amicus reminded the Justices that the language of the Second Amendment protects both firearms and accessories, “even those [items] that were not in existence at the time of the founding.”

So fearing a full-blown, 2A challenge by GOA, the government is trying quickly and quietly to convince the court that there is no Second Amendment issue.

The High Court held oral arguments in February and is expected to render a decision this summer.

GOA in the News

GOA duking it out with the ATF. GOA has been fighting the ATF in court over the agency’s Zero Tolerance policy, which threatens to put gun store owners out of business over mere clerical errors. GOA joined Bearing Arms’ Cam & Co this week to discuss our legal efforts, with news of how the ATF is trying to weasel its way out of our lawsuits.

This is what compromise leads to! Need evidence that compromise hurts our 2A rights? Check out this episode of One in the Chamber, and see how Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) sold out gun owners and helped Joe Biden get a big win for the anti-gun left.

3D Printing makes gun control obsolete. In this episode of State of the Second, GOA’s hosts (John and Kailey) interview special guest Print Shoot Repeat to talk guns, printing, and secret identities. Come for the story behind the mask and stay for the breakdown on how 3D printing has made the tradition of making your own firearms more attainable for many in the 21st century. We get PSR on the record talking about the Undetectable Firearms Act and how it affects the printed gun community.

AR-15s Save Lives. On Nov. 5^th 2017, a deranged man attacked a church in Sutherland Springs, TX, killing 26 people and wounding 22 others. Stephen Willeford, a local resident who is now a GOA spokesman, used his AR-15 to shoot and critically wound the attacker. This is his story.

Thanks again for all your support and activism. We can’t be effective without your help!