“Credible intelligence gathered by Virginia’s law enforcement agencies indicates that tens of thousands of advocates plan to converge on Capitol Square for events culminating on January 20, 2020,” Northam wrote in the order.
Why should tens of thousands of armed patriots cause such concern for the governor. After all, they are just exercising a constitutionally guaranteed right that all law-abiding citizens have n'est ce pas?
The die has been cast in Virginia.
As citizens and militia groups prepare for a Jan. 20 march on Richmond in protest of Democrats’ shameless gun control measures, the commonwealth’s governor has declared a state of emergency in an attempt to disarm the protesting citizens.
Governor Ralph Northam issued Executive Order 49 on Wednesday, a “declaration of a state of emergency due to potential civil unrest at the Virginia state capitol.”
Northam irrationally linked the upcoming march to the white nationalist event that turned into a disaster in Charlottesville, Virginia, vowing to never let it happen again.
“Credible intelligence gathered by Virginia’s law enforcement agencies indicates that tens of thousands of advocates plan to converge on Capitol Square for events culminating on January 20, 2020,” Northam wrote in the order.
“Available information suggests that a substantial number of these demonstrators are expected to come from outside the Commonwealth, may be armed, and have as their purpose not peaceful assembly but violence, rioting, and insurrection.”
The executive order bans all firearms and weapons on the Capitol Square and surrounding areas, but then takes an even more sickening twist.
Northam specifically listed personal protective gear such as helmets and shields as weapons in his order. Of course, these rules don’t apply to the armed state employees who will confront the protesters.
For a governor who has lost the trust of a majority of his counties and many of his citizens over his gun-grabbing ways, this announcement could not have come at a worse time.
With tens of thousands of angry people now ready to flex their Second Amendment rights in a march on Richmond, labeling them as racists intent on killing will not go over well.
It appears as though Northam is truly afraid of his own constituents, and there are now reports of defenses being hardened around the capitol itself. In one image, workers can be seen erecting barricades for next week’s protest.
Northam is making a big gamble here, possibly a bigger one than he realizes.
The governor is not asking but demanding with the full power of his office that protesters worried about his stance on guns disarm themselves.
Keep in mind, this isn’t a gaggle of a few hundred that can be corralled by police, but many thousands of citizens who are willing to brave below-freezing temperatures and long drives to show their resolve to keep Second Amendment rights strong.
For Northam, the best-case scenario is that everyone shows up without a gun, parades around for a bit and then calls it a day.
What happens if people, thousands of them, do show up with lawfully held firearms? Northam faces a choice here, and none of the outcomes are pretty.
If he orders his police to stand down and not engage those bearing arms, the citizens win. They would have arrived, proven that the Second Amendment was a check against government overreach and headed home while Northam faces humiliation.
On the other hand, there’s confiscation.
If authorities are ordered to seize any firearms citizens bring, what happens when those same citizens refuse? In other words, how far will Northam go to ensure his authority remains unchallenged?
The ramifications of Northam’s executive order could not only cause chaos in the Old Dominion, but also shake our very nation itself.
With the massive protest less than a week away, all eyes are on Virginia.
Gun Owners of America and the Virginia Citizens Defense League (VCDL) are filing an Emergency Injunction against the governor’s actions.
His action infringes on both the First and Second Amendment rights of Virginian’s who wish to peaceably assemble to petition their government, while at the same time not surrendering their right to self-defense.
This rally is held annually with thousands of participants and without incident. The only difference this year is that, in response to the Democrats’ attempt to eviscerate the Second Amendment, a much larger crowd is expected.
Incredibly, Northam is using the 2017 rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, in support of his ban on firearms, ignoring the fact that the unfortunate death that day was a vehicular homicide.
Northam hasn’t made any attempt to ban cars.
Like all gun control, this gun ban could have only negative consequences. If there are, in fact, any bad actors who would attempt to hijack the rally, they would simply ignore the law.
~~John
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