BELLEVUE, WA – Monday’s release by Democrat presidential hopeful Martin O’Malley of his gun control agenda reads like a gun prohibitionist’s wish list, and if enacted, would reduce the Second Amendment to nothing more than a heavily-regulated government privilege, the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms said in response.
O’Malley is the former governor of Maryland who evidently wants to out-do Hillary Clinton’s anti-gun agenda. Among his agenda items are licensing and national registration, mandatory safe storage, rejection of national concealed carry recognition, a background check scheme that could discourage legal gun ownership,” a ban on so-called “assault weapons” and required microstamping on all firearms. The plan also prohibits handgun ownership for anyone under age 21, effectively disenfranchising young men and women who serve in the armed forces.
“Governor O’Malley’s proposal would not reduce violent crime,” observed CCRKBA Chairman Alan Gottlieb. “He’s putting forth an agenda that would ultimately destroy the Second Amendment, treating the right to keep and bear arms like a disease he’s trying to eradicate.
“His argument for intrusive background checks dredges up the ‘40-percent myth’ that has been thoroughly debunked by the Washington Post,” he added. “It’s time for gun control fanatics to stop this campaign of erosion against the Second Amendment.”
O’Malley’s plan also includes mandatory training and a waiting period, and would lengthen the time for a check by the National Instant Check System beyond the current 72 hours, and also eliminate the background check exemption for permit holders who must pass such a check in order to obtain a permit.
“O’Malley’s scheme reads like a blueprint for government demagoguery,” Gottlieb said. “If even partly enacted, it would discourage millions of law-abiding citizens from exercising their Second Amendment rights.
“This is a disturbing document for any number of reasons,” he observed. “It’s the kind of thing one might expect from the gun prohibition lobby, but not a serious candidate for the nation’s highest office. We strongly advise Gov. O’Malley to take his plan back to the drawing board, with a great big eraser.”