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Thursday, Republican U.S. Senate hopeful Katie Britt continued her campaigns efforts to raise awareness of her policy positions by releasing a memo regarding her stance on the Second Amendment.

In speaking to what she saw as the importance of upholding law-abiding American citizens gun rights, Britt made mention of the nationwide spike in crime.

As crime skyrockets across the country thanks to dangerous liberal policies and anti-law enforcement rhetoric, it is more important than ever that law-abiding citizens exercise our Second Amendment rights, she declared in the memo.

Britt pledged to introduce legislation shielding firearm manufacturers and dealers from financial targeting, sponsor nationwide concealed carry reciprocity, and work to legislatively prohibit the implementation of red flag laws.

Gun grabbers use so-called red flag laws as a gateway to push their disarming agenda, the candidate stated. In reality, a red flag law is an abridgment of the Second Amendment and can be abused to take away the right to self-defense with no due process.

Additionally, she announced her intentions to end the $200 transfer tax on rare guns levied under the National Firearms Act.

Britt, whose private sector experience includes the practice of law, vowed to author an amicus brief in support of the New York State Rifle and Pistol Associations case against New Yorks Second Amendment restrictions.

According to Britt, the Second Amendment serves as a critical check against government tyranny.

The Second Amendment is a critical check against the timeless tyranny of government, stated Britt. Our Founders wisely knew that the Second Amendment will always be necessary to protect our God-given, inalienable right to defend ourselves, our families, our freedom, our homes, and our communities.

She concluded, As the Biden Administration continues to put law-abiding, hardworking Americans in their crosshairs, we must stand firm and preserve the country we know and love for our children and our childrens children. In the Senate, I will always fight to defend our Second Amendment rights and our Christian conservative values.

Dylan Smith is a staff writer for Yellowhammer News. You can follow him on Twitter @DylanSmithAL

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Katie Britt: The Second Amendment is a 'critical check' against government tyranny - Yellowhammer News

EDGEWATER Home to just more than 5,000 people, this suburban Jefferson County town bordered by Denver to the east, Lakewood to the south and west, and Wheat Ridge to the north, is looking to limit Second Amendment rights like no city before in Colorado.

Although Denver has long banned open carry and recently announced its intent to look at banning concealed carry in public spaces including parks and city buildings, Edgewater has a laundry list of items targeting gun owners coming up for discussion that far exceeds anything seen to date.

On April 5th, the city council heard a presentation on gun violence prevention from Colorado Ceasefire, an anti-gun rights organization, and subsequently decided to move forward with a more detailed discussion on possible municipal ordinances. Such local gun rights restrictions would be allowed under Senate Bill 21- 256, passed during last years legislative session and signed into law by Governor Polis, which unwound decades of state preemption and allows local governments to manage their own gun laws, but only so long as they are more restrictive than those at the state level, a condition that has been referred to as a bastardization of the concept of local control.

According to an Edgewater City Council agenda for the April 19th meeting, the following will be considered for passage:

The presentation will include comments from Tom Mauser, father of a Columbine High School shooting victim and current board member of Colorado Ceasefire, which was started after the Columbine shooting and Ellen McCarron, Colorado Ceasefire Legislative Action board president.

Among justifications in the presentation are claims that the majority of Americans support reasonable gun restrictions and that there are no easy solutions, but that doing nothing will not solve the problem.

But according to David Kopel, research director at the Denver-based Independence Institute* and professor of advanced constitutional law at the University of Denver, concealed carry permit holderswho are heavily targeted in the potential Edgewater ordinancesare exceptionally law-abiding.

According to FBI data in the annually published Crime in the United States, about 5 percent of the Colorado adult population is arrested each year, says Kopel. In contrast, the figure for concealed handgun permit holders is only 1/10th of 1 percent. Permit holders are vastly more law-abiding than the general population.

Kopel continues that obtaining a concealed carry permit requires hundreds of dollars in fees and expenses for the required training, as well as long waits for appointments for a fingerprint-based background check. The only people who bother are those who are so concerned about legal compliance that they spend significant resources just to obtain a card from the government allowing them to legally do what they could done anyway for free, and with very low risk of being caught, continued Kopel. Its no wonder that Colorados concealed carry permitees are 50 times more law-abiding than the general population.

Weld County Sheriff Steve Reams, who is a vocal, statewide advocate for Second Amendment rights said the restrictions Edgewater is considering are neither reasonable nor will they solve any problem. Reams has continually spoke out against SB21-256 calling it a trampling on the Constitution.

Gun restrictions have not fixed the problem, Reams said. It was a huge overreach by the state. Restrictions on the Constitution are never taken lightly (by Democrats) until it comes to the Second Amendment. The Second Amendment is different than any other freedom for them.

According to Colorado Ceasefire, concealed carry permits are up the past three years in Colorado from 257,166 in 2019 to 297,003 in 2021.

Reams said from a law enforcement perspective, he doesnt see how such patchwork laws could be enforced, adding keeping up with state laws are complicated enough already without adding another layer.

I cant imagine how you would even go about it, Reams said, questioning whether current owners of banned guns would be grandfathered in. How do you prove you did not already own it? If Im driving through town going from point A to point B, and I get pulled over for a speeding ticket, am I going to lose my guns?

Reams said municipal laws are normally specific to property issues, not gun rights.

They are setting themselves up for a huge court battle, Reams said. I guess were finally about to see if the legislation is constitutional, but it will come at the expense of Edgewater residents.

The item will be discussed Tuesday during the city council regular business meeting. The meeting begins at 6:30 p.m. at 1800 Harlan St., Edgewater.

*Independence Institute is the publisher of Complete Colorado.

Our unofficial motto at Complete Colorado is Always free, never fake, but annoyingly enough, our reporters, columnists and staff all want to be paid in actual US dollars rather than our preferred currency of pats on the back and a muttered kind word. Fact is that theres an entire staff working every day to bring you the most timely and relevant political news (updated twice daily) from around the state on Completes main page aggregator, as well as top-notch original reporting and commentary on Page Two.

CLICK HERE TO LADLE A LITTLE GRAVY ON THE CREW AT COMPLETE COLORADO. Youll be giving to the Independence Institute, the not-for-profit publisher of Complete Colorado, which makes your donation tax deductible. But rest assured that your giving will go specifically to the Complete Colorado news operation. Thanks for being a Complete Colorado reader, keep coming back.

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City of Edgewater to consider sweeping gun rights restrictions; concealed carry among targets - Complete Colorado

Mario Fratto, an attorney and businessman from Ontario County who counts himself as a small-c conservative, is running for the Republican ballot line in the election for New York's newly formed 24th Congressional District. He's attempting a primary challenge on the presumptive Republican favorite, Chris Jacobs, the incumbent 27th district representative from Orchard Park.

The new, rural 24th Congressional District is enormous, geographically speaking. It runs from Lewiston eastward along Lake Ontario, south around Rochester and then north to the U.S.-Canada border, coming to rest near Watertown.

Fratto campaigned in Newfane earlier this week and pledged to return to the area every week to talk with voters in Niagara County. The day after his appearance at a Second Amendment For Ever (SAFE) meeting at Newfane Community Center, he met up with Union-Sun & Journal reporter Ben Joe to chat about his background and his campaign. Here is a partial transcript of his interview with Joe.

Q: Where did you grow up and how did that affect your values?

A: I grew up in Geneva, in Ontario County. Its a small town and a city. ... Small town USA is where the American Dream still exists. You work hard. You do the right thing. You look out for your friends and family and things should work out for you. I think thats what every American wants. ... You dont get something for nothing.

Q: What is your take on your opponent, Chris Jacobs?

A: Ill just speak on his record as a congressman. ... Chris Jacobs was a Democrat. He registered as a Democrat in the '90s ... I think when you have someone of 11 Republicans voting to strip another Republican, like Marjorie Taylor Greene, of her committee assignment, youre not really a part of the majority of the party. Eighty-five to 90 percent of Republicans wouldnt do something like that.

Q: How do you deal with this expanded district?

A: Its challenging and its definitely an advantage for somebody like Chis Jacobs who has basically unlimited funds. ... But I actually prefer grassroots. ... I mean, its easy when you have money and just put out an ad and blast it on the radio or the television. But when you need to do the hard work and go out and meet the voters to find out what their concerns are, its a different ballgame. ... It is more difficult, because of the size of the district. No question. But I think its something thats absolutely necessary.

Q: Tell me about your online channels.

A: During the initial lockdowns of March 2020, I was working at home I felt I needed to be more productive. So, I started a Facebook page called Making the Case." It was geared towards talking about the pandemic, initially, but really became just for President Trumps reelection. ... Then I started to get censored pretty heavily. I had a video on Dr Fauci, (on his opposition to) hydroxychloroquine. but (Fauci) was for Remdesivir and I put out a short video ... about that study and the conflicts involved and that video got 35,000 views. . (Then) my average views (dropped). Everything was better than any channel I could find as far as how good the numbers were, but I was getting no views. So I was getting frustrated with that. ... I ran it through my friends and family and said, What if I ran for office? This is the only way to really get the message out because they cant silence me if Im taking it right to the people.

Q: Explain your take on the economy.

A: I believe in lower taxes, less regulation, a free market economy and I also believe you have to have sound money and you cant have that when you have a printing press running at light speed right now and youre devaluing the dollar. ... So I think we need to roll that back. ... (Also there's) getting our dependence greatly reduced on China. That would help us bring back manufacturing and making products here. ... Wed be helping fellow Americans by creating jobs, but also giving them better products that are available on the ground. Theres a supply chain issue and its hard when you have to import things ... but if they were already on the ground in the United Sates, I think we can trust that we can move those goods as well.

Q: Explain your take on the environment.

A: I think its important to have a clean environment, but ... it cant be to the detriment of the people here now. Everybody wants to preserve and protect the planet for the next generation ... but what are we going to leave them if we dont make sure we have the energy we have now so we have the businesses we need to provide them with opportunities? ... (Also) we cant have countries like China or other competitors that arent following any of these rules we want to implement for ourselves. We want to talk about reducing carbon footprints and using renewable energies, but they arent doing that around the world. ... We cant just transition to wind and solar if its too expensive and its not as efficient.

Q: Explain your take on war, specifically the wars in Ukraine and Afghanistan and subsequent refugees.

A: I dont think these wars around the world should be our responsibility, unless there is direct U.S. interest. . We dont want a no fly-zone that would eventually land us in a war. I dont think anybody wants that. And Afghanistan we shouldnt have been leaving Americans on the ground. We shouldnt have been leaving people who helped us on the ground. It shouldve been handled a lot better. But I also dont think its our responsibility to take in all these refugees. Its great Poland is taking in these refugees, but I dont think Poland has the homelessness problems that we have (and)the opioid crisis thats plaguing this country. So how can we take care of those people when we cant get our senior citizens or veterans that are hooked on drugs and alcohol, who are sleeping on the street? ... What business do we have importing more people that need help if we cant help our own?

Q: What does your candidacy mean for the district?

A: It means that theres somebody in this race that is an everyday American that understands working class people, that is a working class person and who understands their needs and values, and this is an opportunity to send someone to D.C. thats actually a conservative, whos actually going to fight for the people.

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Running to represent the working class | Local News | lockportjournal.com - Lockport Union-Sun & Journal

Joni Ashbrook| Special to the Advertiser

Democrats alone in the U.S. House of Representatives passed President Joe Biden's transformative legislation called Build Back Better (BBB) last November. This bill not only invests in people, but addresses the real threat of climate change.

Unfortunately, the bill has been stalled in the Senate by all Republicans and two Democrats who are as oily as many in the GOP because of their investments in or donations from the fossil fuel industry.

These are just a few proposals included in BBB plan:

Tackling the climate crisis

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has 195 member countries and more scientists contributing to their work.

The IPCC's recent report warns that gas emissions need to peak by 2025 to limit global warming close to 2.7 degrees Fahrenheit.

The BBB plan would be the largest effort to combat climate change in American history.

Universal pre-school

Free high-quality universal pre-school for children age three and four.

Lowers child care costs

Makes high-quality child care more affordable.

Extends the Child Tax Credit

Allows for up to $3,000 per child age 6 to 17, and $3,600 per child under 6.

Makes health care more affordable

Reduce premiums for 9 million Americans through the Affordable Care Act tax credit.

Lower prescription drug prices

The plan would allow Medicare to negotiate prices to bring down costs for everyone.

Paid family and medical leave

Providing up to four weeks paid leave for parental bonding or to deal with a loved one's medical condition. The U.S. is now the only industrialized nation that doesn't offer this.

Expand Medicare

It would cover vision, hearing and dental needs.

Improves theVeterans Affairs Department's medical facilities

To give our vets the care they deserve.

Addresses thehousing crisis

Invests in new construction and preservation of housing.

The wealthiest Americans and corporations would fund the BBB plan by paying their fair share

For example, companies that report over $1 billion in profits would pay at least a 15%tax rate on those gigantic profits, and the tax code would be revised to prevent tax avoidance.

These are just a few of Democrats' proposals that they are fighting for, but Republicans don't offer a single solution to a real problem.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell was recently asked what his agenda would be if Republicans regained control of Congress. He replied that it was a very good question. And I'll let you know when we take it back.

It's astounding that the leader of one of the major parties feels he doesn't even have to pretend to care about the problems facing us today.

Also, former President Donald Trump was asked by Newsmax what Republicans should do if they take back Congress. Trump didn't have a single proposal, but bashed Democrats as horrible people who hate our country.

Needless to say that is dangerous talk from a leader of any democratic country.

Republicans are terrible at legislating, but absolutely the best at fueling outrage over nonexistent problems.

Republicans, with the help of Fox News and other right-wing media, have whipped people into a frenzy over Critical Race Theory being taught in public schools regardless of the fact that it absolutely is not.

Now Republicans are passing laws making it illegal to teach about LGBTQ issues in Kindergarten through third grade. News flash, it is not taught.

It's no accident that the Don't Say Gay bill also feeds the outrage machine. A study from the University of Michigan found that anger motivates people to vote.

Republicans need to stop creating problems that further divide us and join with Democrats to solve real problems.

Ashbrook is a contributing columnist for the Advertiser. She is a retired school teacher and may be reached at trublu795@gmail.com.

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Commentary: Democrats work to solve real problems while Republicans manufacture them - Austin American-Statesman

The midterms are going to be a bloodbath for Democrats. The Democrats are going to get trounced in the midterms. The question isn't whether the Democrats are going to lose but by how much.

These are the headlines circulating across the media these days, and they are sure to only increase as we get closer and closer to November's midterm elections. Pundits across the political spectrum are predicting that Democrats will lose their majorities in the House and Senate. Delighting in this accepted "wisdom," Republicans have stopped even pretending to govern while they wait out the clock to election day, and now even some Democrats have begun to parrot this narrative of imminent defeat.

Seriously!?! Since when in an election cycle do we just skip over the voting?

Democrats have helped create more jobs at a faster rate and at higher pay than at any time in recent decades. Democrats have helped vaccinate hundreds of millions of Americans against COVID-19 and infection rates are plummeting. After decades of bipartisan shortcomings, Democrats have delivered historic investment in universal broadband, rail expansion, and road and bridge repair, with all the careers to be made and futures to be built from these accomplishments yet to come.

Meanwhile, President Biden has united fractured western democracies against Russia's brutal aggression in Ukraine and put the first Black woman on the Supreme Court while he's at it.

And while the Democrats have been achieving all this, Republican voters attacked the nation's Capitol to overturn an election at the bidding of President Trump; Republican legislators sent vigilantes to patrol women's health choices in Texas; and Republicans turned students into snitches on teachers in Virginia, moved to overturn the will of the voters in 19 states and nominated one conspiracy theorist after another to every level of government. Republicans also blocked every reform and relief package they could, from gun safety to energy security to voting rights. They demeaned a highly qualified nominee to the Supreme Court just for fun, praised dictators in Russia and Hungary, and offered no positive agenda for the country or the world.

The 139 Republican members of the House and Senate who voted in 2020 to support a coup here at home will finally have to answer to voters in November.

And still the pundits say Democrats will lose the midterms!?!

Political pundits and consultants are always confident and usually well-meaning, but often wrong. And that how it should be. After all, in a true democracy, the outcome belongs to voters, and voters alone.

Democrats would do better to quit whining about poor messaging and poor media coverage and get back to engaging directly with voters. Folks are anxious about rising gas, housing and grocery prices, not to mention the cost of medicine. They are also uneasy about the state of the world. However much Republican policies may be at the root of what ails us, however much Democrats have accomplished already in the Biden administration, people are genuinely and understandably frustrated that so much wrong is not yet right.

Democrats should feel that, see it, acknowledge it. That is not failure. It's motivation.

The case for voting for Democrats in the midterms is not to reward Democrats for what they have already accomplished, but to enable Democrats to finish the job.

The job is to revive the American Dreamfor everyone, everywhere. That's what the changes that have been made and the ones that are waiting to be made add up to, and why they matter.

No matter how much progress has already been made, Democrats can't let up on doing the work to earn every vote. That means showing up where voters live, work, play and pray, listening carefully, and engaging respectfully on the subjects they most worry about.

When we show them by our actions, not just our rhetoric, that for us government belongs to and is about people, it becomes clear pretty quickly that Democrats are the only ones even trying to fix what's broken and deliver a chance at a good job, decent, dependable healthcare, a safe, affordable place to live, a more secure nation, and a better future for every American everywhere.

So, Democrats, how about we quit wringing our hands about polls and pundits, and about media who dwell on what's not yet done? Instead of trying to forecast the future, let's do what we can to shape it. That's the way to win, and to deserve to win.

Deval Patrick is the co-chair of American Bridge 21st Century and the former two-term Democratic governor of Massachusetts.

The views in this article are the writer's own.

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Democrats: Stop Whining About Polls. We Have the Record to Win in November | Opinion - Newsweek