“What will you do to confine semi-automatic weapons to use only by military and law enforcement?” a woman asked independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. at a New Hampshire townhall meeting (see video below). Her biased presumption was that such a ban would be desirable, beneficial, and constitutional, no doubt the result of relying on Democrats and the media (same thing) for what she “knows” about the issue.
“I am not going to take people’s guns away,” Kennedy responded. “You know, anybody who tells you that we can end the violence to our children that’s going on now by removing people’s guns is not being truthful with you.”
He’s spent time in rural communities, Kennedy explained. He’s seen that the “gun culture… is closely tied to people’s identities” and notes those people view talk of taking their guns as “an existential threat.”
“It hasn’t worked it, has polarized our country more and it’s made people dig in more and I’m trying to end the polarization,” he elaborated. People fear “our entire Constitution is under attack,” and to underscore that point, Kennedy cited government censorship, identifying dissenters on social media, and closing businesses during the Covid panic without due process and compensation.
“Going after people’s guns at this point in history is to me just going to cause more polarization and make it so that we can’t listen to each other anymore because we get put into these kinds of tribal silos which we have to somehow figure out a way to get past,” Kennedy asserted. “We cannot have any more school shootings even if that means protecting schools the same way that we protect Airlines.”
His answer is way better than a Biden alternative, and it sounds good on the surface– at least to people who haven’t looked very deeply at the issue, like some of the YouTube comment posters.
“I’m going to refer people to this video when they say your anti 2nd Amendment,” one responded. “I am a pro-gun Conservative and RFK, Jr. could not be more correct on this point. He has my vote,” wrote another.
So, what did he miss? Aside from the barn?
That the country is “polarized” and at risk of becoming more so should not be his main argument. Polarization is a necessity because those in “tribal silos” demanding citizen disarmament are wrong. “Compromising” with anyone corrupt or ignorant enough to believe otherwise is surrendering to tyranny.
As for protecting schools the same way TSA protects airports, he might want to consult reports like “TSA Chief Out After Agents Fail 95 Percent of Airport Breach Tests” and “TSA Misses 70% Of Fake Weapons But That’s An Improvement.” The answer is not expanding a federal Kabuki theater jobs program to more “gun-free zones,” but instead to note the success of the Faculty & Administrator Safety Training and Emergency Response armed response program:
“The FASTER program has trained over 3,000 teachers and school staff. FASTER qualified teachers are in over 300 schools around the country. FASTER has programs in Ohio, Colorado, and Arizona. And it’s growing.”
Nowhere has Kennedy shown that he understands any of this, or of the true purpose and meaning of the Second Amendment. Instead, his “going after people’s guns at this point in history” qualifier is a red flag – it implies there might come another time or set of circumstances where he’ll return to his past hostility to guns and decide the time is right.
We shouldn’t forget a 2018 tweet he deleted because recalling it conflicts with the image he’s trying to project now:
“Let’s be honest. The NRA is as responsible for the MSD child murders as if they pulled the trigger. NRA has turned 2d Amendment into a suicide pact for our children. When do we deal with NRA?”
That was then? This is now? People change? Here’s a more current (2023) quote:
“Kennedy said that he would get behind a bipartisan assault weapons ban, which the overwhelming majority of Democrats support, but has little chance of getting through Capitol Hill given widespread GOP opposition. ‘If we can get a consensus on it, if Republicans and Democrats agree to it and it passes Congress, I would sign it,’ he said.”
Sorry, Bobby. That kind of polarizing talk just makes some of us want to fortify our tribal silos. And gun owners who don’t get that had better wise up before throwing away their vote on a spoiler to the benefit of Joe Biden.
About David Codrea:
David Codrea is the winner of multiple journalist awards for investigating/defending the RKBA and a long-time gun owner rights advocate who defiantly challenges the folly of citizen disarmament. He blogs at “The War on Guns: Notes from the Resistance,” is a regularly featured contributor to Firearms News, and posts on Twitter: @dcodrea and Facebook.
