Virginia "assault weapon" and magazine ban fails in committee.

The flags of America and the state of Virginia. The Hill/Getty.

Virginia's proposed "assault weapon" and magazine ban has failed in committee and any vote on it is postponed until 2021. The Hill. Three Democrats on the Judaical Committee joined all the Republicans to vote down the measure in a 10-5 vote. The bill would have banned the sale of so called "assault weapons" but came under criticism for many reasons, not the least of which that the bill was so ill defined that many weapons would be considered assault weapons even if they wouldn't by the normal definition of the term. The push for new gun laws from Democrats and Governor Ralph Northam has been hugely unpopular for most of the state leading to a massive protest and more than 100 counties, towns and cities to declare themselves 2nd Amendment sanctuaries. However, other unpopular laws, such as red flag laws and limiting handgun purchases to one a month, have passed. 

My Comment:

It's important to note that the Virginia Senate may consider this law again in 2021. A lot can happen in a year so this bill isn't entirely dead. But at the very least it won't be put into law this year and it's likely that the three Democrats that voted against it will do so again. Given that the next state senate election is in 2023, it's not likely that there will be many or any changes to the makeup of the senate between now and 2021

This is a victory for gun rights in Virginia but not a major one. Though defeating any assault weapon or magazine ban was a major goal of the gun rights movement it's not like other bills didn't pass. The Democrats still almost got everything they wanted and this victory just barely prevented it. Keep in mind that the Democrats got their stupid red flag law along with a ban on buying more than one handgun, universal background checks and a couple of other anti-gun laws.

I have always maintained that the red flag law was as important as the assault weapon law due to the huge potential of abuse. I fear that it will be used to punish gun owners who speak out against Ralph Northam, either about their gun rights or just in general. Losing that battle and then winning on the assault weapon ban means this is a mixed victory at best. 

However, I do want to say that none of this would have happened if it wasn't for the massive response from the people of Virginia. They showed up in droves to protest these new gun laws and I think that may have been in the mind of the three Democrats that voted this bill down. They knew that if they didn't they would, at the very least, be voted out with prejudice. 

I think it goes to show that peaceful protest can still be effective in changing legislators minds. At least some Democrats can listen to reason when faced with overwhelming negative public feedback. These Senators knew their constituents would have been apoplectic so they tabled the bill, at least for now. 

I do have to say that fears that Virginia would erupt into a civil war seem to be unfounded for now. In the end the Democrats realized that they had overstepped their bounds without anyone having to resort to violence. If a civil war does come, and it seems less likely now, it won't be in the immediate future. 

Finally, I think the Virginia situation should be a lesson for gun rights groups in other states. The 2nd Amendment sanctuary movement was successful in shutting this law down for now resulting in a major defeat for the gun control movement, even if the long term future is more uncertain. I think if other states propose the same kind of nonsense that gun owners should take a play out of the Virginia playbook and declare sanctuaries and protest at the capital. Nothing else seems to have worked to fight these stupid laws so it's worth trying at the state and federal level if new gun laws come down the pipeline.