Posted on 06/12/2018 9:06:49 AM PDT by Simon Green
A one-time congresswoman and daughter of a former Florida governor promised this week that if elected she would move to outlaw some semi-auto firearms and their magazines without the help of state lawmakers.
Former U.S. Rep. Gwen Graham, one of several candidates vying for the Democratic nomination for governor in a bid to replace outgoing Republican Gov. Rick Scott, pulled no punches when it came to guns in a debate Saturday night in St. Petersburg.
“My commitment to you is action, not words,” said Graham. “I have found a public safety statute that allows the Governor, whoever she may be, to sign an executive order for public safety reasons banning the sale of military assault weapons.”
As reported by Florida Politics, Graham’s office said that state law outlining the governor emergency powers to quell violence would allow for such a move.
Graham doubled-down on her comments after the forum, posting a link to an article on her gun remarks on social media along with the comment, “I’m not willing to wait until the next tragedy. As governor, I will sign executive orders to address gun safety in my first week.”
Campaigning on a platform that is heavy on gun control, immigration reform, LGBT equality, and women’s rights in an effort to “end 20 years of Republican rule in Florida,” besides her promised ban on assault weapons Graham is a fan of universal background checks and a variety of gun surrender and confiscation programs.
While in Congress she co-sponsored legislation to ban gun sales to those on the secretive no-fly list and expanding background checks. She joined Congressman John Lewis and other Dems in the highly-publicized sit-in on the House floor against gun violence in 2016, a catered event Republicans characterized as a publicity stunt. However, she was one of just a handful of Democrats in the House not to sign on to support a proposed federal assault weapon ban during her term, which could mean her decision to back a ban now is only newly realized.
State gun rights advocates were not impressed with Graham’s promised executive action.
“That Gwen Graham thinks she would have the authority to override the Constitution because she doesn’t like guns should scare the heck out of everybody,” Marion Hammer, former NRA president and current executive director of the Unified Sportsmen of Florida, told Guns.com. “What other parts of the Constitution does she think she can override?
The one-term congresswoman lost her seat last year after her Tallahassee-area district was remapped and is now thoroughly red. Prior to that, she was an administrator for the Leon County School District and an attorney for a D.C. law firm. Her father is former Democrat governor and senator Bob Graham and she worked on his failed 2004 presidential campaign before moving on to help organize for Howard Dean and Jerry Kerry.
Graham is facing Tallahassee Mayor Andrew Gillum and former Miami Beach Mayor Philip Levine in the August Democratic primary. The winner will be on the ballot against a Republican candidate in November.
Democrats don’t believe in legislation anymore. They are showing their true authoritarian nature. Make me a dictator!
I would think this is a good thing for the Republican candidate.
Well, if some patriot shoots him it might be hard to get a conviction.
But Trump’s a dictator.
Florida governors do not have that kind of power.
He dad was a doofus and so is she...............
Executive Orders are to direct the beurocracy on their implementation of the law, not to rewrite it. Unless your a fascist or a leftist, but that’s redundant.
Dear Gwen,
You are the reason we have a Second Amendment.
1. Describe “Assault Weapon”.
2. Describe “Shall not be infringed”.
Please define what an 'assault weapon' is, you unmitigated ass!
And a Hillary Supreme Court would UPHOLD such a decree.
Something to think about as we’re asked to ‘forgive’ the NeverTrumpers.
Would-be?
Pobably ‘won’t be’ with this plan.
Confiscation is their goal.
Yeah—Good luck with that.
Gwen Graham’s father was Florida’s governor for two terms in the 1980s before moving to the U.S. Senate. Another wannabe dynasty showing its big government stripes.
You can’t... executive orders are just that, orders by the executive to the agencies under the executive branches control, they can direct agencies to do things, but those orders do not flow through to the general population.
So, he could no more BAN a type of gun by executive order, than he could make someone fart on demand.
This guy is showing he doesn’t understand the most fundamental and basic aspects of the job he is applying for.
Luckily I live in Nevada and don't have to violate state and local laws to exercise my 2nd amendment rights. When I travel to Florida, my CCW is recognized and that satisfies my needs. But, wow, hopefully this candidate finds the move is election loser and others take careful note.
Good question. Are not all weapons, by definition, assault weapons? I mean, if they didn’t assault, even for defensive purposes, they wouldn’t be much good as weapons. And that includes not only guns, but knives, spears, arrows, clubs, rocks, fists, feet, elbows, knees, head butts, chemicals, fire, acoustic, lasers, and any number of other things.
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