Revealing the truth is not as popular in many circles as one would think, especially when it comes to crime, gun control, and the Second Amendment. A courageous politician learned this lesson recently when she responded to a tragic incident with a dose of common sense.
Virginia Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears responded to Tuesday’s shooting following the Huguenot High School graduation at the Altria Theatre with logic and reason. She spoke to reporters Tuesday evening close to the shooting scene.
Her comments followed remarks from the Richmond police chief and public schools superintendent. She referred to gang violence, lenient treatment of violent criminals, and the need for leadership and accountability.
Earle-Sears asked, “When do we say enough is enough? When do we say that? How many more people have to die before we say, ‘You’re going to jail. We’re gonna lock you up and there’s not going to be any bail’ so we can have safety in our communities.”
The Lt. Governor called out the mayor and the chief and said that to combat crime, “let’s start naming names.” She said that people go in front of cameras after criminal activity and say that these things shouldn’t happen. However, leaders must act.
“You’re the one responsible. So, let’s cut it and let those who have the accountability finally say, ‘People are going to jail. I’m authorizing my chief to put them in jail.’”
Earle-Sears called for true leadership in combating violent crime and at no point resorted to the lazy response of blaming an inanimate object.
The anti-gun group Giffords had already responded in typical fashion to the shooting, posting “again and again, shootings leave families broken & communities shattered. It’s past time our leaders treat gun violence like the crisis it is.”
After Earle-Sears’ wise remarks, Giffords sprang into action again, at least on a keyboard. “She blames the chief. She blames the mayor. But if Lt. Gov. Sears or Gov. [Glenn] Youngkin actually cared about saving lives, they would stop blaming everyone else and support common sense gun safety laws.”
The anti-Second Amendment group added that “these laws work but Youngkin & Sears don’t care to enforce or pass them.”
The next morning, state Sen. Lamont Bagby (D) of Henrico told a news conference that “to go out there and throw red meat to a national audience, before the bodies have been buried and while we still didn’t know all the facts about the case? It’s despicable.”
Apparently for the honorable Mr. Bagby it is just fine to immediately call for even more curtailing of individual liberties after a tragedy. You’re just not supposed to point towards the obvious need for more personal responsibility.
Earle-Sears’ comments were followed the next day with a similar proclamation from Gov. Youngkin (R). Speaking at an unrelated event in Petersburg, he echoed his second-in-command’s call for greater responsibility.
“What happened yesterday was something that is beyond any explanation…We already have some of the toughest gun laws in the country. This is about what an individual did — individuals do these, and they need to be held accountable.”
While the anti-gun zealots love to trot out “common sense” as part of their arguments against personal freedoms, true common sense is that criminals are responsible for their own actions. More gun control laws are not going to convince them of the error of their ways. These only work to penalize those who are already doing what’s right.
No, there is no common sense in diverting culpability from those who commit crimes. Earle-Sears spoke the truth, and that is something the gun grabbers cannot tolerate.
