The national discussion over whether it is advisable to bring a firearm to a protest heated up on Thursday. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R), a stalwart defender of Second Amendment rights, left no doubt as to his stance on law-abiding citizens possessing weapons as they exercise their civic responsibilities.
The heated controversy came in the wake of federal agents killing an armed nurse in a confrontation on a Minneapolis street.
Texas’s governor jumped into the debate over firearms and protests
Abbott used a gathering of gun rights advocates, which included the National Rifle Association (NRA) and the Texas Rifle Association, to proclaim his support.
“Our law is that you get to open carry, and there are protests and other activities that occur all the time when people are carrying guns and doing so lawfully,” the governor declared. Exactly.
The proclamation came as Abbott was on the campaign trail seeking reelection. He received endorsements from gun rights groups at the event, which is hardly surprising considering his track record of supporting the freedom to keep and bear arms.
2A groups are unhappy with government officials’ comments after Minneapolis shooting
The governor spoke at the Garland gun range and noted that he had signed roughly 30 new laws protecting Texas citizens’ gun rights. His comments came against the volatile national backdrop as debate over carrying firearms to sometimes unruly protests rages on.
Several prominent 2A community leaders recently expressed their displeasure with the administration’s stance after the fatal shooting of 37-year-old nurse Alex Pretti.
He was part of a massive protest in Minneapolis against coordinated activities by immigration agents.
Pretti was a lawful concealed carry permit holder, and he had a loaded handgun and two magazines on his person when he was killed. Some administration officials used this as cover to justify his shooting, but the NRA and other Second Amendment advocates are not buying it.
Whatever else Pretti may or may not have been engaged in, these groups declared that he was well within his constitutional rights to be armed at the demonstration.
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