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Coinciding with President Trumps recent visit to Warren, Second Amendment advocates held a Jan. 30 rally in Taylor to stand for gun rights.

Firearm owners gathered at Big Rock Archery across from Top Gun Shooting Sports to hear speeches on how state legislation could help or harm their cause.

Inside the lobby, information booths and merchandise tables were set up by various organizations, including the National Rifle Association, The Well Armed Woman and Gun Owners of America. While the event was not billed as a political rally, booths sold Trump gear and representatives from the Wayne County 12th District Republican Committee attended.

If we lose our Second Amendment, our First Amendment is next, NRA volunteer Lori Card said. Gun rights are under threat. Its happening in Virginia. There are different counties putting bans in place. Its definitely something we need to protect. Its a personal right to decide if you want to have a gun or not.

The Taylor rally came following tensions in Virginia, where a Democratic Legislature is moving forward on several pieces of gun control legislation, including universal background checks and red flag laws. On Jan. 20, roughly 16,000 Second Amendment supporters gathered at Virginias State Capitol while carrying their weapons. The protest stirred nationwide controversy, but the rally was largely peaceful, with no reported violence.

As members of Wayne 12th (Republican Committee), we are big Second Amendment supporters, group member Joseph Lenard said. With all the gun-grabbing going on, especially in Virginia, this event is of the utmost importance now.

Lenard said Michigans state elected officials pose a threat to gun rights.

Having Dana Nessel as the attorney general, she is not a Second Amendment-friendly person, neither is Gov. (Gretchen) Whitmer, he said. We have to be a little more on guard. Without the Second Amendment, all our other rights are unprotected. If you disarm your citizens, you can control your citizens.

Top Gun owner Mike Barbour began the event with some introductions and opening remarks.

Were all here for one reason, and thats to protect the Second Amendment, he said to applause. In Virginia, their gun rights are under attack like weve never seen before. This proves that we cant sit back and not go vote. Youve got to vote in every election.

In the 2018 midterm elections, Michigan Democrats took back the governorship, while Republicans maintained the state House and Senate.

I know some of you may be Democrats, but we want to work together and unite to protect our gun rights, Barbour said. With this event, we wanted to put on a united front for the Second Amendment.

Top Gun owner Mike Barbour talked about Michigan's laws and how they affect gun ownership.

Terry Johnson, an attorney specializing in firearm law, kicked off the nights presentations. He spoke at length about Michigan Senate Bill No. 156, or the Extreme Risk Protection Order Act, a red flag bill similar to what Virginia is moving forward with.

ERPO laws are designed to get guns out of the hands of individuals who are threats to themselves or others. Direct family members and law enforcement agents can file an ERPO, but more controversially, so can ex-spouses, people who have lived together in the past, and those in a dating relationship.

Johnson argued the action goes too far in allowing who can file under the red flag law, and that the action can be used by those who disagree with gun owners.

How many of you have had a roommate, and how many of you have left on bad terms with that roommate, Johnson asked. What do you think this opens up? This means someone who lived with you in college can file an action against you.

Johnson said another flaw with the Senate bill is the aspect of defendants rights. Once an ERPO has been filed, the firearm owner has 14 days to have a hearing, one attempt to modify or rescind the order, and 24 hours to surrender the firearm once approved by a judge.

Your ex-wife or first cousin can go down to the court, check a few boxes on a form, tell them you have a CPL, and they need to convince a judge that if they dont do something right now, youre going to do harm to yourself or others, Johnson said. You have to prove a negative. In most courtrooms, its on the plaintiff to prove the case; not with red flag.

Johnson said better alternatives to the ERPO bill are voluntary and involuntary commitment. He added that the bill takes the gun away from the person, not the person from the gun, and that someone could also do harm with a knife or another object.

This is a gun-grab bill thats disguised, he said. If it was a legitimate bill, it would not just be about firearms.

Firearm instructor Rick Ector, creator of Legally Armed in Detroit, specializes in training citizens, especially women, how to operate a gun and use it if need be. One of Ectors motivations for starting the group, he said, was the drastic rate of sexual assault in Detroit.

Its an epidemic, he said. Its an absolute shame that our women cant live out their day-to-day lives and functions and not be concerned about being rape victims. We need to train women to protect themselves with firearms. Im not talking about pepper spray, and Im definitely not talking about a whistle.

The Legally Armed in Detroit program started about 10 years ago and has grown drastically over the years. In 2019, the group trained 814 women how to use a firearm, Ector said. His next goal is to train 1,000 women in a single day at an event set for May 17 at Top Gun.

Registration will open at noon on May 10, he said. This event is too important for the safeguarding of our women.

Attorney Dean Greenblatt wrapped up the nights presentations with an overview of bills introduced in the Michigan House and Senate, and which would help or hurt gun rights.

Outside of the ERPO bill Johnson discussed, Greenblatt said Second Amendment lawmakers also are opposing House Bill No. 5094, which would impose a 10 percent tax on firearms and ammunition. Republicans have similar legislation, House Bill No. 4863, which exempts firearms and ammunition from the state sales tax.

One pro-gun bill that gun advocates expect Whitmer to sign is House Bill No. 4434, which provides a one-year window for someone to renew an expired CPL without criminal punishment. Currently, someone with a CPL that is expired by even a day is treated as if he or she never owned the gun legally, facing up to a five-year sentence if charged with possessing the pistol without a permit.

We currently have Republican control, but its getting to be razor thin, Greenblatt said. With the upcoming elections, if youre not supporting people that are paying attention to your rights, they could very easily slip away.

Greenblatt said the ERPO bills have the biggest chance of passing and are the biggest threat to firearm ownership. He stressed that taking political action is key to protecting gun rights in Michigan.

You need to vote, Greenblatt said. Call your representative and tell them how you feel about these bills. At the state level, we need to support these organizations. These people that are at the tip of the spear trying to get things done.

This pro-Trump float was outside the event and was an attraction many attendees enjoyed seeing and taking photos of.

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Gun rights advocates rally around the Second Amendment in Taylor - Southgate News Herald

U.S.A. -(Ammoland.com)- In the State of the Union speech on Tuesday night, President Trump vowed to protect Second Amendment rights.

President Trump gave an epic State of The Union (SOTU) speech on 4 February 2020. He touched on numerous themes, highlighted multiple successes of the Trump Administration, and recognized numerous exceptional individuals. President Trump honored radio talk show icon Rush Limbaugh with the highest civilian award, the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

The speech started near 9 p.m. Eastern time. About 69 minutes into the speech, President Trump spoke of freedom of religion, and his administration's commitment to protecting First Amendment rights.

Then he addressed the Second Amendment of the Bill of Rights. From the SOTU, 2020:

Just as we believe in the First Amendment, we believe in another Constitutional right that is under siege all across our country.

So long as I am president, I will always protect your Second Amendment Right to Keep and Bear Arms.

Presidents' words during SOTU speeches are always analyzed in multiple ways. They are primarily political speeches, for political purposes. The content shows, at a minimum, what the President believes is worth emphasizing for political purposes.

There has never been as clear a divide between the two main political parties, on support for the Second Amendment, as exists today.

Democrats, if they believe the Constitution has any meaningful constraints on government, have variously stated the Second Amendment is outdated, only applies to militia members (approved of by the federal government), does not apply to most firearms, does not apply outside the home (except possibly for regulated hunting), and can be restricted to any extent, as long as the word safety is applied.

President Trump, and what is becoming the Trumpian Republican party, took care to place the Second Amendment on the same level as the First Amendment in the SOTU.

President Trump said, I will always protect your Second Amendment Right to Keep and Bear Arms.

Those two statements imply serious action to protect the Second Amendment from the attacks against it, which are occurring all over the United States.

Second Amendment supporters can easily identify those attacks, from Virginia, and Maryland to Nevada, Washington state, Oregon and California.

During the first two years of the Trump Administration, members of his own party stopped any legislation to restore Second Amendment rights from passing through Congress. Consider the effects of former Senator John McCain and former Speaker of the House Paul Ryan.

During the third year of the Trump Administration, and almost certainly for the fourth year, any efforts to restore Second Amendment rights with legislation, have been and will be, stymied by Democrat control of the House of Representatives.

The Trump Administration has had some Second Amendment wins on the regulatory level (gunsmith tax), some backsliding (bump stocks) and several ongoing fights in the Courts.

It will be up to Second Amendment supporters to push for substantive support for Second Amendment restoration as part of the 2020 campaign season.

Second Amendment supporters need to push for promises to pass national reciprocity, which should include reciprocity for Constitutional Carry states.

Second Amendment supporters need to push for a promise to pass the Hearing Protection Act, and reform of the National Firearms Act to remove the idiotic inclusion of short-barrelled rifles and shotguns. They need to push for a repeal of the 1986 ban on the production of new, legal (even if highly regulated), automatic firearms.

The administration should push for passage of the Knife Owner's Protection Act, to restore Second Amendment rights to carry arms other than firearms.

President Trump's words about the Second Amendment are not a guarantee of action by the Trump Administration. They are an opportunity for Second Amendment supporters to demand the Administration commit to a concrete policy before 2020 election.

Those demands would set the stage for action in a second term Trump administration, with dozens of fewer Republican opponents, and Republican control of both houses of Congress.

About Dean Weingarten:

Dean Weingarten has been a peace officer, a military officer, was on the University of Wisconsin Pistol Team for four years, and was first certified to teach firearms safety in 1973. He taught the Arizona concealed carry course for fifteen years until the goal of Constitutional Carry was attained. He has degrees in meteorology and mining engineering, and retired from the Department of Defense after a 30 year career in Army Research, Development, Testing, and Evaluation.

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President Trump State of the Union - Second Amendment is Under Siege - AmmoLand Shooting Sports News

Photo courtesy oftheNational Shooting Sports Foundation.

In a time when the mainstream media scoffs at the Second Amendment and likes to portray firearms as evil, it is more important than ever that young people are exposed to firearms in a positive and safe manner. Without this exposure, young people are all too often left with only those negative media impressions.

Schools are the focus of much of our educational experiences, and it is noteworthy that, across the country, a growing number of schools are at least offering their students the chance to get a positive exposure to firearmsand by extension, our Second Amendment rightsthrough hunter-education courses.

In Iowa, for example, two school districts have required their middle school students to take a hunter-safety class that includes firearms-safety instruction, according to the Des Moines Register.

Students from the Clarksville and North Butler school districts will learn how to safely handle a gun during a physical education course focusing on hunter safety. But Joel Foster, the superintendent for both districts, said he hoped the course will prepare students to react in the event of an active shooter situation, said the Des Moines Register.Weve done everything to make [students and district employees] as safe as possible at school with cameras ... locks, said Superintendent Foster. We would like them to be able to deal with a situation that comes up.

The students use inoperable firearms and replica ammunition to learn how to load and unload the firearms, the proper techniques for manipulating firearms and, of course, how to safely use firearms.

We know not all kids are going to hunt, Foster said. This is an alternative to sitting on your hands and not doing anything. Its being proactive to handle things the best manner as possible if something occurs. Through education, kids know guns aren't toys.

Last year, neighboring Illinoisnot a state exactly known for its pro-firearms politicians or the gun laws they makepassed a bill allowing schools the option to include hunting-education and firearms-safety classes in their curriculums. It was signed into law by Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker (D).

Hunting in Illinois is still very popular, and students can learn about hunting as a sport. Hunters have respect for guns, State Rep.Monica Bristow (D) told Fox News, underscoring that the legislation stirred no opposition.If people have to do the education course to obtain a hunting license, anyway, why not be able to do this in school?

State Sen. Jason Plummer (R), a co-sponsor of the bill, said, Students who are exposed to lessons in hunting safety have a greater chance of respecting firearms and using them properly for the rest of their lives. As the law is shifting to emphasize the importance of safe handling,adopting legislation like this could make for an accessible path for students to learn these methods in-depth, early on in their lives.

Four schools in South Dakota also offer hunter education for middle school students as a component of physical-education classwork; in fact, a good number of state game agencies have programs to bring hunter education into school settings, at the request of the schools. This includes the Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks and Tourism with its Hunter Education In Our Schools Program.

As the programs website notes, the students who take this course learn the difference between state regulated hunting laws, safefirearmshandling, how to understand and identify the many types of firearms and actions and how to practice safe firearms cleaning and storage in the home.

Well done, Kansas Wildlife and Parks!

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Hunter Education in Our Schools: A Path to Firearms Safety and Recognition of the Second Amendment - America's 1st Freedom

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi intended to fling one of her routine barbs at President Trump over remarks he made referencing Article II of the Constitution but stumbled and called it the Second Amendment instead.

When asked if she would support House committee chairmen sending subpoenas for former White House national security adviser John Bolton to testify, the California Democrat replied that Trump should be held to oversight.

Our purpose in all of this, in addition to holding him accountable, so he stops doing what hes doing and no future president thinks she or he could have liberty to take us away from a republic if you can keep it to a Second Amendment enables me to do whatever I want no. Thats not what our Constitution is about," Pelosi said at her weekly press conference on Thursday after suggesting that Trump was drugged up.

Article II of the Constitution establishes the powers and defines the executive branch of the federal government, among other issues, while the Second Amendment establishes an individuals right to bear arms.

For months, Pelosi has repeatedly criticized Trump for his comments about Article II of the Constitution. For instance, on Nov. 13 she said: As custodians of the Constitution, we are defenders of our democracy. So, Im very prayerful, thoughtful, and actually sad today that our country has to come to a place where the president doesnt understand that Article II does not say that he can do whatever he wants, that he is not above the law, and that he will be held accountable.

Pelosi said it again on Dec. 5, when she announced the lower chamber was ready to move forward with articles of impeachment against Trump.

"The presidents actions have seriously violated the Constitution, especially when he says and acts upon the belief 'Article II says I can do whatever I want.' No. His wrongdoing strikes at the very heart of our Constitution," she said.

Trump referred to Article II of the Constitution when he was giving a speech to a crowd of young adults at the Turning Point USA Teen Student Action Summit in Washington on July 23, 2019. At the time, Trump was criticizing special counsel Robert Muellers Russia investigation.

Then, I have an Article II, where I have to the right to do whatever I want as president, Trump said. But I dont even talk about that because, they did a report and there was no obstruction and after looking at it our great attorney general read it. Hes a total professional. He said, Theres nothing here. Theres no obstruction.'"

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Pelosi confuses Article II with Second Amendment in criticism of Trump - Washington Examiner

As the Berrien County Board of Commissioners considers declaring our county a Second Amendment sanctuary, I hope that they take the entire United States Constitution into consideration, and value its entire protection. In doing so, I am certain that they will see that the Constitution itself stands in the way of taking up this well intentioned, but still misguided pursuit.

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Second Amendment sanctuary is a bad idea | Letters To Editor - Herald Palladium