The election is just over two months away. The money race between the gun groups is heating up. The pro-gun side is falling behind.
The major gun-control groups outraised the NRA again last month, the fourth time that’s happened in the last five months. Adding in funds from the other pro-gun groups doesn’t help much either. But, perhaps more importantly than where things rank in the overall money race, Contributing Writer Jake Fogleman dives into which races those funds are going toward.
The federal courts were busy again this week, too. We have write-ups on two rulings that impact the overarching issues we’ve been following for years now. One federal court drew a line on how far Second Amendment “sanctuary” policies can go, while another drew a line on whether the government can ban weed smokers from owning guns.
We also have Jake looking at the implications of a judge throwing out machinegun possession charges.
We also have exclusive reporting on YouTube’s latest crackdown on firearms content. Plus, The Gun Collective’s Jon Patton joins the podcast to discuss the fallout of that crackdown. And, of course, we have a lot more stories–especially from the legal realm–down in the links!
Gun-Control Groups Open Up Political Fundraising Lead
By Jake Fogleman
With less than 70 days to go until election day, the nation’s most prominent gun-control groups have stepped up their fundraising lead in the political battle over firearms.
Political Action Committees run by Everytown, Giffords, and Brady collectively brought in just under $810,000 in July, according to Federal Election Commission filings released last week. By contrast, the National Rifle Association’s Political Victory Fund took in just under $435,000 for the month. Overall, gun-rights PACs raised under $485,000.
July’s fundraising totals highlight the spending advantage gun-control advocates have right now, largely due to the NRA’s diminished capacity as a political force. In both 2020 and 2016, the NRA outraised and outspent the big three gun-control groups put together. Faced with a drastic downturn in membership since then, primarily driven by its ongoing multi-year corruption scandal, the group has a smaller pool of potential donors from which to raise funds for its political operation. As a result, the group now, at times, struggles to achieve fundraising parity with even individual gun-control groups.
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Analysis: Where Gun Groups are Spending Their Election Money [Member Exclusive]
By Jake Fogleman
Gun-control groups have consistently outraised gun-rights organizations in the lead-up to the 2024 election.
This week saw the trend continue. With less than two and a half months until election day, the latest Federal Election Commission filings showed the political arms of Everytown, Giffords, and Brady outraised the NRA and its counterparts for the fourth time in the last five months. As the groups on either side of the gun debate continue to jockey for political influence, how that money is ultimately spent will help determine who holds the White House and control of Congress after this November.
Here’s a look at what their fundraising has gone to so far in terms of 2024 election spending.
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Fifth Circuit Tosses Gun Charges Against Another Marijuana User
By Stephen Gutowski
Another panel on the federal circuit that oversees Texas, Mississippi, and Louisiana decided the Second Amendment protects the gun rights of those who smoke marijuana this week.
On Wednesday, a Fifth Circuit panel unanimously ruled the federal gun ban for drug users was unconstitutional–at least as applied to one non-violent marijuana user. The three judges tossed charges against an El Paso resident stemming from her admitted use of the drug and possession of several guns. The panel, which included Donald Trump, Joe Biden, and Ronald Reagan appointees, determined the charges did not fit in the nation’s tradition of gun regulation.
“This appeal asks us to consider whether Paola’s Second Amendment rights were infringed, and the answer depends on whether § 922(g)(3) is consistent with our history and tradition of firearms regulation,” Judge Kurt D. Engelhardt, the Trump appointee, wrote in US v. Paola. “The short of it is that our history and tradition may support some limits on a presently intoxicated person’s right to carry a weapon (and for that reason Paola’s facial challenges to §§ 922(g)(3) and 922(d)(3) fail), but they do not support disarming a sober person based solely on past substance usage.”
The Paola panel’s findings mirror that of the Fifth Circuit panel in US v. Daniels.
Federal Appeals Court Strikes Down Missouri Gun Law Nullification Measure
By Stephen Gutowski
Missouri’s attempt to invalidate federal gun laws was undone by a federal court this week.
On Monday, a unanimous panel on the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals found the show-me state’s Second Amendment Preservation Act (SAPA) actually violates the Constitution it’s meant to protect. It argued several of the provisions went beyond setting limits on how state resources could be used to enforce federal gun laws and into an attempt to nullify those laws. The panel, which featured George W. Bush, George H. W. Bush, and Barack Obama appointees, determined the state’s law represented a repudiation of the Constitutional order.
YouTube Says Links to Gun, Ammo Dealers Will Trigger Channel Bans
By Stephen Gutowski
The world’s largest video site is in the midst of a renewed crackdown on gun content that could have far-reaching consequences for those who make a living on the platform.
In the wake of YouTube revising its firearms policy, a number of high-profile channels that produce gun videos have voiced concerns the impact is more significant than expected. While the changes detailed in an update to the company’s firearms policy focused on home gun making and bump stock installation, a simultaneous unwritten change in how YouTube enforces an older restriction on gun and ammo dealer promotion has driven most of the backlash. YouTube confirmed to The Reload it had taken a more aggressive approach to deleting videos, and even whole channels, that direct viewers to websites where they can buy firearms, ammunition, or certain accessories–whether the videos provide direct written links or the host just verbally directs viewers to a website.
The company said it is working with creators to try and help them navigate the policy change.
“The recent updates to our firearms policy are part of our continued efforts to maintain policies that reflect the current state of content on YouTube,” a spokesperson for the company, who declined to be named, told The Reload. “For example, 3D printing has become more readily available in recent years so we’ve expanded our restrictions on content involving homemade firearms. We’ll continue to work with creators to help them understand this update and how they might manage its impact on their channels.”
Podcast: The Gun Collective’s Jon Patton on YouTube’s Latest Crackdown on Firearms Content
By Stephen Gutowski
This week, we’re talking about a major moderation issue on YouTube.
It’s not the first time we’ve discussed this. It probably won’t be the last, either. But this time the platform is deleting videos and, potentially, whole channels focused on gun content after a new policy update that’s only partially written out.
I talked with YouTube spokespeople about the changes and got more details this week. But things are still a bit vague. Purposefully so. That’s why we’ve got Jon Patton of The Gun Collective on the show to share what he’s been told and to discuss how serious the impact of the changes could be.
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 is on vacation this week. So, I host the news update. I give a recap of how the Democratic National Convention approached guns. From the platform, to the keynote speeches, to an entire programing block in primetime on the final day the DNC highlighted gun control. Kamala Harris also called for a “red flag” law, universal background checks, and an “assault weapons” ban. That all contrasts with how Donald Trump and the RNC handled guns, which is to say they didn’t really at all. I also go over the latest gun polling and a new ruling against one of California’s gun restrictions.
Analysis: The First Crack Forms in Federal Machinegun Ban [Member Exclusive]
By Jake Fogleman
For the first time, a federal judge has ruled the Second Amendment protects civilian machinegun possession.
On Wednesday, US District Judge John W. Broomes dismissed charges against a Kansas man for possessing a fully automatic .300 blackout AR-15 and Glock 33 handgun. He ruled that the federal ban on possessing or transferring machineguns (with limited exceptions) was unconstitutional as applied to the defendant.
“To summarize, in this case, the government has not met its burden under Bruen and Rahimi to demonstrate through historical analogs that regulation of the weapons at issue in this case are consistent with the nation’s history of firearms regulation,” Judge Broomes wrote in US v. Morgan.
In many ways, the decision is the epitome of what some gun-rights advocates hoped the Supreme Court’s 2022 Bruen decision and the new test it laid down would bring to bear on America’s gun laws.
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Outside The Reload
Fifth Circuit Upholds Gun Ban for Illegal Immigrants
Massachusetts high court strikes down switchblade ban | Reuters | By Nate Raymond
Sixth Circuit Upholds Federal Ban on Felons Having a Gun | Bloomberg Law | By Annelise Gilbert
That’s it for this week in guns.
I’ll see you all next week.
Thanks,
Stephen Gutowski
Founder
The Reload
