Did Rick Scott shoot himself in the foot before the Florida Senate race?

As I write this on November 14, Florida is once again in the throes of a vote recount. The Senate race pits term-limited Governor Rick Scott (R-ish) against incumbent Bill Nelson (D). Following the tragic massacre at Parkland. Florida, Scott got on board with the gun banners and signed a bill -

Official Photo, State of Florida

• prohibiting young adults, age 18-20, from purchasing long guns
• banning bump stocks
• creating a red-flag law that nullifies due process for gun owners
• imposing a three day waiting period for gun purchases

Did Scott think there would be no backlash from this? Did he really think gun owner memories are that short?

I'm not saying conservatives have gone out and jumped on the Nelson bandwagon. But, many folks are tired of voting for the lesser of two evils. Sometimes they either -

• just stay home, or
• leave that particular race blank

As I said in my letter to President Trump earlier this year,

Based on the history I have seen of past elections, if you flip on the Second, there is a good chance you would not get our support in 2020. Worst case, people will vote for the Democratic candidate. At best, many will stay home, and could very well throw the election by their absence. 

Governor Scott, perhaps if you hadn't turned your back on the firearms community, the spread would be great enough that there wouldn't even be a recount, huh?

What do you Floridians say about this?

Blackburn v Bredesen 2018

As we near the general election, I have a few thoughts for Tennesseans whose minds are not made up yet on the Senate race.
Examine your belief systems and see which candidate's views most closely match yours. This can encompass many different areas, such as right to life, firearms rights, or border security. Vote for that candidate.
Consider the Supreme Court. The contentious atmosphere surrounding the appointment and confirmation of Justice Kavanaugh revealed the true nature of the Democratic Party's leadership. The Democrats, with one exception (Manchin of WV), voted the party line, against Justice Kavanaugh. On major issues, Democrats by and large vote the party line in Washington.
The Democratic Party is, without a doubt, the PARTY OF GUN CONTROL! You can research this yourself, or you can check out my friend John Richardson's compilation of state Democratic Party platforms HERE.
Bredesen, as governor, vetoed Restaurant Carry in 2009, as I noted in an update in 2010. With Mike Bloomberg hosting a fundraiser for him, is there any reason to believe that he is no longer a gun banner?
These mid-term Senate races, like the Presidential race two years ago, are really about the Supreme Court. Do you want to see President Trump appoint and have confirmed justices who will follow the Supreme Law of the Land, the Constitution; or risk having a Democratic controlled Senate stalemate his appointments until after the next Presidential election?

Well, do you?

Gun Rights Policy Conference 2018

The 2018 Gun Rights Policy Conference (GRPC) convened in the Windy City on Saturday, September 12, at the Hyatt Regency O'Hare. The meeting, sponsored by the  Second Amendment Foundation and the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms, was preceded by a reception Friday evening, which included a concealed carry fashion show.

The Sears Tower (Willis Tower) in Chicago

Saturday morning, the meeting was called to order by Julianne Versnel, Director of Operations, Second Amendment Foundation (SAF). The day saw a potpourri of Second Amendment advocates speaking. You can see a list of the speakers HERE.

One serious issue mentioned by several speakers was Red Flag Laws, also known as Extreme Risk Protection Orders. Reminiscent of the denouncements of the French Revolution, some Red Flaw Laws allow for the confiscation of firearms without due process; without one even being able to face their accuser.

Historical American jurisprudence has required that you be accused, with an opportunity to defend yourself in court. The trend with these Red Flag Laws is for another person to make an accusation that you might commit a crime. The judge issues a ruling, and the police show up to confiscate your guns, violating both your Second and Fifth Amendment rights.

This alarming legislation is a prescription for so much to go wrong. Here are some possibilities.

1. The police show up unannounced to take Joe's guns. Joe is not willing to give them up, and in the ensuing gunfight, Joe and/or some police are killed or seriously injured. 
2. Joe, who has been not been convicted of any crime, now has had his Second Amendment rights unilaterally extinguished without due process. 
3. The police successfully confiscate Joe's guns, and now Joe has an expensive legal fight to reclaim his guns.

These states now have some sort of Red Flag Law:

California
Connecticut
Delaware
Florida
Illinois
Indiana
Maryland
Oregon
Rhode Island
Vermont
Washington

If you hear of similar proposed legislation in your state, this is bad law, and needs to be opposed at every level.

For me, a high point of the conference was meeting Rhonda Ezell, the winning plaintiff in Ezell v Chicago. Chicago had a historical ban on handguns. Following the McDonald decision which restored the right to own a handgun in the Windy City. . . .Chicago required that citizens have training before acquiring a handgun, while prohibiting gun ranges in the city. A Catch-22 situation. Ezell's case changed that. According to the Chicago Guns Matter website, "laws regarding handgun ownership are uniform across the entire state (of Illinois)."

The SAF leads in the fight for gun rights restoration. Make plans to attend GRPC next year in Phoenix. There is no charge to attend the conference, but you will have to pay for your transportation and some meals.

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Friday of the same weekend the Alternative Mass Media Convention (AMM*CON) Second Amendment media workshop was held in the same location. It was a gathering of podcasters, writers, bloggers, etc., with a goal of improving the effectiveness of our alternative media.

I was honored to be one of the presenters there. Here is a recording* of my  presentation:

*Must remember to reverse the camera on that cell phone!