Commentary

President Joe Biden looked chipper in his recent State of the Union Address. That means his re-election announcement could come soon. And it means Gov. Gavin Newsom’s own quest for the presidency probably will have to wait until 2028. In the meantime, he’s still burnishing his bona fides with the left wing of the Democratic Party, which likely will become even more dominant over the next six years.

The latest is his continued push for even more gun control laws. Even though California’s more than 100 such laws haven’t prevent the recent spate of mass shootings. Nor would any new laws, had they been on the books already, prevented the shootings—if only because mass killers obviously don’t care about following laws against murder of any kind, and in any case can get guns in other states or on the black market. As Dan Walters reported:

Nor have these laws prevented the lawless from obtaining weapons via theft, smuggling from other states or the illicit manufacture of untraceable “ghost guns.” Indeed, state restrictions have made the black market even more lucrative, mirroring the side effects of Prohibition and the decades-long drug war.

One law Newsom is backing is Senate Bill 2, by state Sen. Anthony Portantino (D-Burbank). It would require extensive new requirements to get a concealed-carry permit, in the bill’s words including “the applicant is of good moral character.” And it would ban carrying a gun in public buildings, such as libraries and police stations, as well as, “A church, synagogue, mosque, or other place of worship,” a “financial institution,” and other places.

The government, of course, can regulate the buildings it owns or controls. But banning guns in private buildings directly flies in the face of last year’s New York Rifle & Pistol Assn. v. Bruen decision (pdf) of the U.S. Supreme Court, which clearly banned onerous restrictions on concealed-carry permits as violations of the Second Amendment.

Portantino seemed to acknowledge that problem. The bill also included exceptions if a private business owner put up a sign welcoming people bringing their guns. He said, “This is not window dressing. This is to put a strong bill on the governor’s desk to withstand a legal challenge that is sure to come.”

Gun Owners of California issued a response:

Although this bill is purely “intent” language at this point, GOC has no doubt that this will be a reintroduction of last year’s SB 918, which virtually prohibited any individual with a CCW [Carry Concealed Weapon permit] from carrying anywhere in the state. Its legislative “twin” in New York has been declared unconstitutional TWICE in federal court.

Among other provisions in the New York law, it required the CCW holder to have “good moral character,” something obviously impossible to define in this context, but which was copied for SB 2. In enforcing it, Democrats and Republicans each could say the other was morally defective.

However, more recently the U.S. Supreme Court allowed the New York law to continue, at least for now. CNBC reported:

The justices kept on hold a federal judge’s ruling that invalidated various provisions of the law. … There were no dissenting votes, but in a statement attached to the brief order, conservative Justice Samuel Alito said that the decision is not “expressing any view on the merits of the case” and the challengers “should not be deterred.”

That means more legal wrangling. However, as to California’s SB 2, if it passes, it probably would be implemented at least until the New York situation is clarified. But the New York situation could affect the transition from the current “intent” language in the bill to what ends up being in the final version.

What’s clear, though, is the gun controllers in California, as in New York, are not going to give up their quest to disarm their law-abiding citizens. They’ll keep passing laws, tying up the federal courts for years. If they lose, they’ll pass more laws.

Meanwhile, the sorts of people who oppose these laws continue to leave California for Arizona, Tennessee, Texas, Florida, and other states that not only back the Second Amendment, but enjoy low taxes. For the refugees, it’s a win-win.

In fact, CCW holders are among the most law-abiding citizens. According to GunFacts.info (which includes copious links to studies):

• There are approximately 182,000 defensive gun uses in public each year.


• Gun homicides were 10 percent higher in states with restrictive CCW laws, according to a study spanning 1980-2009.


• Crime rates involving gun owners with carry licenses have consistently been about 0.02 percent of all carry permit holders since Florida’s right-to-carry law started in 1988.


• After passing their concealed carry law, Florida’s homicide rate fell from 36 percent above the national average to 4 percent below.


• In Texas, murder rates fell 50 percent faster than the national average in the year after their concealed carry law passed. Rape rates fell 93 percent faster in the first year after enactment, and 500 percent faster in the second. Assaults fell 250 percent faster in the second year.

In sum, if SB 2 is passed, signed into law by Newsom, upheld in the courts, and takes effect, it likely will increase crime in California because fewer law-abiding citizens will be armed and ready to act on their own to stop crimes.