Only, the goal of the Founding Fathers is strikingly clear. The right to keep and bear arms is enshrined in our overarching governing document, and that is not up for serious debate.
So, gun control zealots are forced to find creative ways to do what they cannot do, to accomplish what is explicitly forbidden for them to accomplish.
The latest example not surprisingly comes from California and is the brainchild of State Sen. David Min. His new legislation would prohibit any banking institution that does business with the gun industry from likewise conducting business with the state of California.
Banking and finance, of course, are key to successfully operating any major enterprise. All companies rely on the ability to carry out secure transactions and have access to readily available lines of credit and financing.
Min’s goal is simple. If you strangle the capability to conduct routine business from the firearms industry, you cut off its ability to survive. By implementing this backdoor tactic, he and his supporters hope to deny financial services from a perfectly legal enterprise.
The lawmaker used a press release to highlight recent acts of violence as justification for his attack on the Second Amendment. “There is no place in America that is safe from the epidemic of gun violence. And unfortunately, this epidemic is being bankrolled by financial institutions that have turned a blind eye towards the horrors that their investments in the gun industry have created.”
Just in case there was any confusion as to his goal, Min cleared that up quickly.
“SB 637 will force Wall Street to make a choice between the blood money offered by the gun industry and doing business with the state of California, sending a clear message and more importantly a strong market signal that the state of California will not, either directly or indirectly, finance gun violence.”
If the ramifications for large financial institutions are not clear, the bill could bar them from access to one of the largest sectors of the $4 trillion municipal bond market.
Wall Street banks are increasingly caught in a political tug-of-war between states that respect the Second Amendment and states that want to suppress individual liberties. A 2021 Texas law created the opposite effect for the banking industry, pulling state contracts from companies that restrict business with the firearms industry.
California’s slice of the municipal bond pie is sizable. Bloomberg reports that the Golden State sold $46 billion in municipal bonds last year, which followed $84 billion in 2021.
And it’s not just the bond market the senator is targeting. His press release specifically lists capital projects and the state’s debt portfolio as being off-limits for any firms conducting business with the weapons industry.
In short, every sector of California’s public finances would be restricted from offending banks.
Min will undoubtedly find large swaths of support in the California legislature. After all, the state has some of the most restrictive gun control measures on the books anywhere in the U.S. Whether the law, if enacted, can pass constitutional muster is another issue altogether.
The legislation serves as a loud reminder as to why those who cherish their Second Amendment rights must remain on high alert. It is critically important that organizations who provide the legal backing to challenge efforts such as this have our continued support.
The forces who would disarm Americans and leave them defenseless in the face of violent criminals do not rest. They work daily to undermine constitutional liberties through every means by which they may be attacked.
To counter this persistent threat, no less is required from law-abiding citizens who cherish their right to keep and bear arms.
