By Dave Workman
Editor-in-Chief
A PBS report regarding allegedly “loose” gun laws in Missouri possibly contributing to a mass shooting in Kansas City, and the unrelated killing of a police officer and process server, might raise some alarms among Second Amendment activists because the report seems to lament the lack of laws which critics say turns the right to keep and bear arms into a government-regulated privilege.
“The state does not require permits to purchase or carry,” writes reporter Gabrielle Hays, “and it does not require firearms to be registered or for gun owners to be licensed. For years, lawmakers have struggled to find bipartisan solutions to gun violence in the state.”
Nowhere in the Second Amendment or in Article 1, Section 23 of the Missouri state constitution is there any mention of licensing, registration or the necessity of a permit to purchase a firearm.
But gun control advocates traditionally contend such requirements and restrictions are necessary to prevent so-called “gun violence.”
The report states, “While some Republicans say the focus on gun policy is a knee-jerk reaction, state Democrats argue it’s common sense.”
Legislation filed in the aftermath of the shooting at the Kansas City Chiefs’ Super Bowl victory parade Feb. 14 included a proposal by state House Democrats to amend the state constitution, allowing local governments to adopt their own gun control measures. In the days following the shooting, two youths and two adults were reportedly arrested in separate actions.
Missouri is not the only state where Democrat politicians and the gun prohibition lobby have been working together to tighten gun control laws. In Oregon, Measure 114 adopted two years ago wolkuld have mandated permits-to-purchase firearms and other restrictions, but a Harney County circuit judge last year found the measure to be unconstitutional under the Oregon State Constitution.
A proposal to require permits to purchase in neighboring Washington State died in committee after strong opposition from gun rights organizations including the National Rifle Association and Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms.
In New Mexico, Democrat Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham inked a bill requiring a seven-day waiting period.
Rhode Island lawmakers are reportedly considering legislation later this week including one bill to require testing before purchasing a firearm.
On the plus side for gun owners is the fact that within days of one another, both Louisiana and South Carolina both adopted so-called “Constitutional Carry” laws, bringing the number of states with permitless carry to 29. Only 21 states, all under Democrat control, now still require a permit or licensed to carry a concealed firearm for personal protection. Some of those states—Hawaii, California, New York, New Jersey, and Maryland, for example—still make it as tough as possible for average citizens to obtain a license to carry.
Meanwhile, back in Missouri, PBS is reporting that Republican Rep. Ben Baker is sponsoring a bill to change state law, allowing licensed carry in places of worship, while State Sen. Nick Schroer has submitted a bill to allow licensed concealed carry on public transportation.
