BELLEVUE, WA – Anti-gun New York Gov. Kathy Hochul’s signature on legislation requiring new merchant codes for firearm and ammunition purchases with credit cards is typical Democrat nonsense—penalizing honest gun owners for crimes they didn’t commit—the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms has determined.
Gov. Hochul signed S745/A439 while her office and media allies maintain the legislation will reduce gun-related violent crime. According to a news release from Hochul’s office, “This gives law enforcement the opportunity to find out exactly who may be stockpiling ammunition. And this is an indicator that something untoward could be happening, so it’s an important data point for us to have.”
“Invading the privacy of law-abiding firearms owners and tracking their purchases is Orwellian,” said CCRKBA Chairman Alan Gottlieb, “and is unlikely to accomplish anything other than multiple daily violations of the Fourth Amendment. The very nature of this legislation automatically suspects every gun owner in the state of planning a violent crime and allows their privacy to be violated. This is 2025, not 1984, and ‘Big Brother’ should not be watching anybody.
“The irony here is stunning,” he continued. “Democrats are constantly harping about things they say are a threat to democracy. Shredding the Constitution is the ultimate attack on our democracy.
“The legislation presumes criminals will buy their guns and ammunition using credit cards,” Gottlieb observed. “It is yet another manifestation of the anti-gun liberal mindset that most criminals get their guns and ammunition through traditional retail outlets, which underscores how detached from reality these people are. This will only further drive the real criminal market for guns and ammunition further underground.
“Contrary to what gun prohibitionists must believe,” he added, “New York firearms owners enjoy all constitutional protections, not just rights protected by the Second Amendment. By signing this legislation, Gov. Hochul has reinforced the belief that she and other Democrats consider gun owners to be second-class citizens whose every move, and every purchase, must be monitored and regulated by a government that treats them with fear and disdain. We are left to wonder which constitutional right Hochul and her colleagues will erode next.”