President Obama is forcing new gun control policies on Americans. In doing so he’s trampling on the Constitution. It is time for states to stand up against these regulations that have gone too far.
In January, President Obama went around Congress to expand U.S. gun control laws using an executive action that many are calling illegal. The president has made it clear that he thinks taking guns out of the hands of law-abiding citizens will make the country safer, but he does nothing to stop illegal, black-market sales of firearms.
Only 3 percent of violent crimes are committed by criminals who bought their guns at a legal gun store, but as many as 40 percent of criminals bought their guns on the black market. This order does nothing to keep guns out of the hands of violent criminals buying their guns on the black market. President Obama has disregarded the constitutional rights of Ohioans.
By intruding into our individual health records, President Obama may create a national “no gun list,” which is just another step by Washington to destroy the Second Amendment. Law-abiding gun owners already verify their mental ability to have a firearm. We don’t need more bureaucracy to vet the mental ability of law-abiding Ohioans.
The lack of governing in Washington calls for more power at the state level. Ohio must protect the rights of our citizens by nullifying these federal gun laws within the state. Founding Fathers James Madison and Thomas Jefferson both argued that states are sovereign and have the right to nullify federal gun law within the state, and so the very people who designed our Constitution support this action.
Nullifying President Obama’s actions would send a clear signal that Ohio will protect the rights of Ohioans as guaranteed by the Constitution. By standing up to Obama’s decrees, Ohio will show Washington that Buckeyes are fed up with executive overreach that threatens the integrity of the Constitution.
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