Tuesday, February 06, 2007

National CCW

Dale Franks is putting his job as Republican senate blogger to good use. He's reporting that two senators have put a proposal for federally mandated concealed carry reciprocity on the table.

While you may not agree with it, this isn't a badly written bill. It treats a concealed carry license a lot like a drivers license. States are required to honor the home state concealed carry license, but the permit holder must abide by the laws of the state he is in. So a Texan with a concealed carry permit could carry in New York like a New Yorker. If the state does not have rules for concealed carry, then the CCWer may not carry in the standard off-limits places like government buildings, schools, sporting events not involving firearms, or places that dispense liquor on the premises.

Honestly, while this is a ballsy move, I'm not sure I like it. I'm a small government guy at heart and I don't think CCW is such a crucial issue that the feds should start meddling in every state's affairs. I would prefer that they enact a law mandating legal open carry (carry in a holster where everyone can see it) in every state in the union instead. In practice I think open carry will allow you to "bear" an arm wherever you so desire and it is more in keeping with the military and militia flavor of the 2nd amendment. Oh sure you might not blend into a crowd as well, but I guess you'll have to bear your cross too.

UPDATE: Let me clarify. By mandating legal open carry, I mean that the Federal Government would force all the states to recognize open carry as legal and a constitutional right under the 2nd Amendment. In some states like Texas open carry is actually the illegal form of carry. That makes no sense to me. I would not make open carry mandatory for all citizens. The latter is a silly idea and would really have the federal government sticking their noses in everyones business.

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