Gavin Newsom Calls For a 28th Amendment to Overturn Gun Rights

Sarah Merly | June 9, 2023
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For the past few years, rumors have constantly flown about leftist politicians openly threatening the Second Amendment, but calls for overturning gun rights nationwide have never really gotten off the ground.

Gavin Newsom, however, believes it can.

In a two-minute video posted Thursday to Twitter, California 's Democrat governor announced an initiative to add a 28th Amendment to the United States Constitution that would raise the minimum age for gun purchases to 21, require “universal background checks,” implement “a reasonable waiting period for gun purchases,” and ban civilians from purchasing “assault weapons.”

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“Every time, it’s the same,” said Newsom, referring to mass shootings. “They tell us we have to stand by and watch tragedy after tragedy unfold in our communities. They say we can’t stop domestic terrorism without violating the Second Amendment, and the thoughts and prayers are the best we can do. I’m here to say: that’s a lie.”

California State Senator Aisha Wahab released a public statement in support of Newsom and his war on gun rights.

“A man of action, Governor Gavin Newsom has the backbone to actually do something about the gun fetish culture around weapons of war, and tackle the relentless problem of gun violence and mass shootings," she said.

“We cannot stand idly while courts roll back our work and diminish the ability of our Legislature to keep Californians safe,” added Assemblymember Reggie Jones-Sawyer. “This bold but fair resolution calls on other states to join us in protecting some of the most effective ways of reducing gun violence.”

Newsom is well aware that he cannot successfully pass such an amendment in Congress, given that amending the Constitution requires a two-thirds vote in both the House and Senate and ratification by at least 38 of the 50 U.S. states. And with Republican-controlled House and split Senate, any proposal like Newsom's wouldn't have a prayer of even making it out of the legislature.

Instead, Newsom plans to embark upon an alternate route: a constitutional convention. 

“This fight won’t be easy, and it certainly won’t be fast. Convening a constitutional convention requires two-thirds of the states to call for this. California will be the first," he vowed.

While Newsom markets himself as a man of good intentions, the vague language he uses to describe his proposal may be even scarier than the clear parts. How long is “a reasonable waiting period”? What qualifies as an "assault weapon"? Given that all firearms can be used to "assault" someone, the proposed 28th Amendment could effectively overturn Americans’ “right to keep and bear arms" entirely.

And that's to say nothing of the fact that Newsom's proposals "infringe" on that right by their very nature, which violates the Second Amendment in and of itself.

I, for one, fail to see how this amendment will “leave the Second Amendment intact” or respect “America’s gun-owning tradition."

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