By Dave Workman
Editor-in-Chief
Anti-gunners are fuming, especially in the reader comment section of the Washington Post, over the signing of legislation in Texas which bans enforcement of so-called “red-flag laws,” while relaxing rules on gun ownership.
Gov. Greg Abbott inked Senate Bill 1362 over the weekend to beat a veto deadline. While it prohibits enforcement of “red-flag” laws, it “does not apply to a protective order issued under the Family Code or the Code of Criminal Procedure or to a protective order issued under the laws of another state that is recognized or enforceable under the Family Code or the Code of Criminal Procedure.”
Fox News (KTBC) in Austin is reporting the two-page law “blocks…Texas agencies from accepting federal funds to enforce and implement emergency protective orders and calls for federal orders that violate Second Amendment rights to be unenforceable in the state.”
Language in SB 1362 says, “An entity described by Article 7C.002(a) may not accept federal grant funds for the implementation, service, or enforcement of a federal statute, order, rule, or regulation purporting to implement or enforce an extreme risk protective order against a person in this state.”
The new statute also states, “A federal statute, order, rule, or regulation purporting to implement or enforce an extreme risk protective order against a person in this state that infringes on the person ’s right of due process, keeping and bearing arms, or free speech protected by the United States Constitution or the Texas Constitution is unenforceable as against the public policy of this state and shall have no effect.”
It is this language which has infuriated WaPo leaders. More than 500 reader comments had been posted by Wednesday morning, ranging from sarcastic to angry, with some hostility towards the state of Texas mixed in. A small sampling includes a suggestion the state should be “given over to any Mexican cartel that is interested.” Another reader declared “Texans are known to lack reading and comprehension skills including their governor.”
Another measure signed by Gov. Abbott is Senate Bill 1596, which removes “short-barreled” rifles and shotguns from the state’s list of illegal firearms, although they remain illegal under federal law. Under federal statute, the minimum legal barrel length for a rifle is 16 inches, and 18 inches for a shotgun.
One comment at the WaPo which ran against the grain noted “Reasons cited by supporters of Red Flag laws are most often a smoke screen for a facet of wanting control over others. Red Flag laws give entirely too much power to police, who already have all the tools they need…”
A third law signed by Abbott was House Bill 3053, which prohibits so-called “gun buy-back” programs by local governments. Gun buy-backs have even been acknowledged by some gun control groups as ineffective in fighting crime, with the caveat they “get more guns off the street.” As noted by KTBC, “Supporters called the programs a waste of taxpayer money, while opponents called the bill government overreach.”
Anti-gunners are apparently already planning political retribution. KTBC quoted Nicole Gordon, executive director of Texas Gun Sense, asserting, “We will continue our work defeating dangerous legislation and holding our leaders accountable for eroding public safety by the passage of SB 1362 and SB 1596.”
