By Dave Workman
Editor-in-Chief
Stunning as it may seem, the Columbus Dispatch is reporting that Democrats in that Ohio city are calling on rival Republicans to enact what they consider “common-sense gun reforms.”
Democrats are citing recent polling data which showed strong public support for some gun control laws, including mandatory background checks for gun buyers (91.2%), mandatory training for concealed carry licenses (88%), and so-called “safe storage” (75.2%). The poll was conducted by USA Today and Suffolk University July 9-12 of 500 “likely voters.” The poll had a 4.4% margin of error.
But Republican State Senate President Matt Huffman was quoted by the Dispatch noting, “polls are interesting, but they’re not helpful in policy making often.”
This comes two months after the City of Columbus filed a lawsuit challenging a state law which the city claims prevents it from enforcing local controls.
According to the Dispatch, Senate Minority Leader Nickie Antonio contends “The majority in the legislature is out of touch with the majority of the people of the state of Ohio.”
The newspaper said the legislature, which is controlled by Republicans, has gone in the other direction. GOP lawmakers, the story said, “lowered requirements for teachers who want to keep guns in their classrooms, eliminated the legal duty to retreat before firing and removed all training requirements for carrying concealed weapons.”
Actually, Ohio became a permitless carry state in 2022. At the time, the Attorney General’s office posted an explanation of the law. In that statement, Attorney General David Yost observed, “Just because you’re not legally required to get training doesn’t mean it’s not a good idea. Using a firearm is not instinct, and watching TV shows is not training. Ohioans should learn how to handle their firearms from a qualified instructor. A trained citizen is a safe citizen.”
Democrats opposed the “constitutional carry” statute.
According to the Dispatch article, majority Republicans contend the changes to state law have protected the Second Amendment. While Democrats dislike a pro-rights state statute prohibiting local control, they have supported statewide gun control measures, such as Senate Bill 260 introduced during the 2017-2018 session of the General Assembly which would have banned so-called “assault weapons.” The bill’s definition of an “assault weapon” would have prohibited any “semi-automatic firearm capable of accepting a detachable magazine with the capacity to accept ten or more cartridges, and a semi-automatic firearm with a fixed magazine with the capacity to accept ten or more cartridges.” There were no caliber specifications, so this measure would have applied to popular .22-caliber rifles such as the Ruger 10/22, for which after-market 25-round magazines have been produced.
