This week, we saw a lot of news around the fight over the gun rights of 18-to-20-year-olds.
The Supreme Court made waves via inaction on gun-carry rights for those under 21. That inaction was actually a win for gun-rights activists, but Contributing Writer explains why they wanted more. Still, they also got a more stable win on the same front via legislative action in Iowa.
We also have news on President Donald Trump’s handling of gun policy. A new poll from Fox News paints a fairly grim picture for the early days of his second term, but guns are a bright spot–well, sort of. Jake also takes a close look at his initial response to the FSU shooting.
Plus, reporter John Petrolino joins the podcast to discuss the NRA’s recent board election. I will be at the NRA Annual Meeting in Booth 656 from around noon to 3 pm on Saturday. So, come by and say hi if you’re there!
We also have a number of interesting stories down in the links, including a new settlement involving Uvalde victims’ families.
I also have a personal note about my grandfather’s recent passing. He was a big supporter of this publication, and he read it often. It’s a little harder doing this without him today.
SCOTUS Rejects Minnesota Attempt to Revive 18-to-20 Carry Ban
By Jake Fogleman
Gun-carry rights for adults under 21 will not be the subject of the Supreme Court’s next Second Amendment decision.
On Monday, the justices denied certiorari in Worth v. Jacobson. Minnesota’s Attorney General had asked the Court to review an Eighth Circuit ruling striking down the state’s law barring anyone under 21 from obtaining a concealed carry permit. The Court’s denial effectively concludes the lawsuit and immediately prevents the state from enforcing its age limit any further.
None of the justices wrote separately to comment on the denial.
Analysis: SCOTUS Ducks Brewing Age Restriction Battle [Member Exclusive]
By Jake Fogleman
The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) declined to take up a challenge to minimum age requirements for gun carry this week, but the fight over gun rights for those under 21 isn’t going away any time soon.
In its Monday orders list, SCOTUS denied certiorari in Worth v. Jacobson, a challenge to Minnesota’s law requiring concealed carry permit applicants to be at least 21 years old. The case appeared before The Court after the state appealed an Eighth Circuit decision striking down that restriction as a violation of the Second Amendment. Therefore, The Court’s denial leaves that decision intact as binding precedent and immediately allows 18-to-20-year-olds to begin applying for permits.
While that outcome hands gun-rights advocates a victory, it isn’t likely to be as satisfying to them as SCOTUS issuing a formal opinion in the case with the same result. Indeed, despite winning at the appellate level, the gun-rights groups involved in the suit actually sided with Minnesota in asking The Court to take up the case rather than letting the decision stand.
That’s because appeals courts nationwide confronting various age-related firearm restrictions have reached disparate conclusions on their legality. And The Court hasn’t given any direct guidance on the issue to this point.
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Iowa Opens Gun-Carry Permitting to 18 Year Olds
By Stephen Gutowski
Adults under 21 years old can now obtain concealed carry permits in the Hawkeye State.
On Friday, Republican Governor Kim Reynolds signed House File 924 into law. The legislation lowers the minimum age to legally carry a concealed firearm. It also lowers the age at which it becomes illegal to sell a used gun to another person. Both are now set at 18.
“I joined the Marines when I was 18, I graduated from boot camp when I was 18. I was carrying firearms in the military, ready to defend my country when I was 18, along with hundreds of thousands of other young men and women,” Republican Representative Steven Holt, who sponsored the bill, told The Des Moines Register. “So the idea that an 18-year-old, a 19-year-old, a 20-year-old, doesn’t have a right to own a firearm in protection of their families—which is really what the Second Amendment is about, right?”
Fox Poll: Trump Underwater on Gun Policy, Still Gets Stronger Rating Than Most Issues
By Stephen Gutowski
One of the first major polls to look at how Americans think President Donald Trump is handling gun policy early on in his second term found mixed results.
On the one hand, more registered voters disapproved of how Trump is approaching the issue than approved. On the other hand, they gave him higher marks on guns than on most other issues.
Overall, 44 percent told Fox News he was doing a bad job with guns so far, while 41 percent said the opposite, and 15 percent said they were unsure. Trump won over 75 percent of Republican voters on the issue and lost 74 percent of Democrats. Independents swung against Trump’s handling of gun policy by 20 points, with 48 percent disapproving and just 28 percent approving.
Podcast: The NRA After Its Latest Board Election and Trump’s Snub (ft. John Petrolino)
By Stephen Gutowski
This week, we’re taking a close look at the state of the NRA.
The nation’s largest gun-rights group is not nearly as large as it was half a decade ago. President Donald Trump just bailed on its conference. However, its civil corruption suit is now over, and its latest board election is in the books.
To give us a detailed view of where the NRA is at today, we’ve got freelance reporter John Petrolino on the show. John often writes for Shooting News Weekly and Bearing Arms. He recently did a great breakdown of the NRA election for the latter.
You can listen to the show on your favorite podcasting app or by clicking here. Video of the episode is available on our YouTube channel.
Plus, Contributing Writer Jake Fogleman and I cover the latest updates in the shooting at Florida State University, including the early response from President Donald Trump. We also talk about Trump’s decision to skip the NRA’s annual meeting for the first time since 2015 and what it says about the group’s current influence. Finally, we discuss a new federal appeals court ruling upholding Massachusetts’ ban on AR-15s and ammunition magazines as well as a new Montana bill cracking down on red flag laws.
Analysis: Trump Sticks to His Guns Following FSU Shooting [Member Exclusive]
By Jake Fogleman
Faced with the first high-profile shooting of his second term, Donald Trump bucked initial calls for new gun restrictions.
After a 20-year-old student at Florida State University shot and killed two people on campus Thursday and injured six others, the President was asked by reporters in the Oval Office if the incident would prompt him to support any new gun legislation. While he called the attack a “shame,” he blamed the perpetrator rather than their weapons.
“These things are terrible, but the gun doesn’t do the shooting. The people do,” Trump said. “It’s, you know, a phrase that’s used probably too often. I will tell you that it’s a shame.”
He said his administration would “have more to say about it later,” but added that he had no plans to support new gun laws.
“As far as legislation is concerned, this has been going on for a long time,” he said. “I have an obligation to protect the Second Amendment. I ran on the Second Amendment, among other things, and I will always protect the Second Amendment.”
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End of Shift
My grandfather, William Miles, passed away this week. He spent his career as a police officer in the Pennsylvania county where I grew up. The county where he helped raise me.
In addition to his family and his community, my grandfather loved his art. You can see some of it in the background when you watch my podcast each week. You can also find the township seal he painted on the side of every police car in the neighborhoods he once patrolled.
After his shift was over, he’d come home to my grandmother each night. He’d take off his gun belt, hang it on the dining room table, get a glass of Canadian Mist whiskey, and toast to the end of his shift.
He was a strong man who lived a good life. He is a big part of me. As his shift has ended for good now, I only hope I can live up to the legacy he gifted me and the rest of my family.
I love you, grandfather. I miss you. I hope to see you again someday.
Outside The Reload
Another ATF Leadership Shakeup, an Employee Exodus, and Low Morale | The Trace | By Champe Barton
Training Schools Banning Sig P320 Following Multiple Issues | Bearing Arms | By Tom Knighton
That’s it for this week in guns.
I’ll see you all next week.
Thanks,
Stephen Gutowski
Founder
The Reload
