Later today, the Virginia Senate is expected to pass a bill repealing the state’s 18 year-old law limiting firearm purchases to one gun per month. The one-gun-per-month law, which was enacted to eliminate Virginia’s role at the “gun-running center of the East Coast,” is opposed by Gov. Bob McDonnell (R-VA) and is almost certain to cease to exist once the repeal clears the state senate.
It’s important to note that this repeal has absolutely nothing to do with protecting the Second Amendment. Although the Supreme Court held in D.C. v. Heller that individuals enjoy a Second Amendment right to “self-defense” — at least within the confines of their own home — it’s not clear why anyone needs to own an arsenal to protect themselves. At the very least, the Second Amendment allows lawmakers to ask Virginians to wait a month before they can dual-wield pistols against a home intruder, and to wait another month before than can do so with an assault rifle strapped across their back.
Nor are Virginia lawmakers content simply to allow real people to pretend like they are characters from a video game. As the Virginian-Pilot reports, a long list of strange NRA fantasies wait behind the bill repealing the one-gun-per-month rule. A short list includes:
- No Permits for Concealed Carry: Del. Mark Cole (R) introduced a bill eliminating the need to obtain a permit before carrying a concealed firearm.
- No Fingerprints: Sen. William Stanley (R) would prohibit localities from requiring a person to submit their fingerprints when they apply for a concealed-carry permit.
- Vigilante College Professors: The infamous Del. Bob Marshall (R) introduced a bill that would enable college professors to carry a concealed firearm on campus.
- Guns In Airports: Del. Richard Anderson’s (R) bill would repeal the prohibition on guns in airport terminals.
None of these bills have anything to do with the Second Amendment either, which allows concealed carry regulation and allows guns to be banned from “sensitive places.”
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