Donald J. Trump on the Right to Keep and Bear Arms
The Second Amendment to our Constitution is clear. The
right of the people to keep and bear Arms shall not be infringed upon. Period.
The Second Amendment guarantees a fundamental right that
belongs to all law-abiding Americans. The Constitution doesn’t create that
right – it ensures that the government can’t take it away. Our Founding Fathers
knew, and our Supreme Court has upheld, that the Second Amendment’s purpose is
to guarantee our right to defend ourselves and our families. This is about
self-defense, plain and simple.
It’s been said that the Second Amendment is America’s
first freedom. That’s because the Right to Keep and Bear Arms protects all our
other rights. We are the only country in the world that has a Second Amendment.
Protecting that freedom is imperative. Here’s how we will do that:
Enforce The Laws On The Books
We need to get serious about prosecuting violent
criminals. The Obama administration’s record on that is abysmal. Violent crime
in cities like Baltimore, Chicago and many others is out of control. Drug
dealers and gang members are given a slap on the wrist and turned loose on the
street. This needs to stop.
Several years ago there was a tremendous program in
Richmond, Virginia called Project Exile. It said that if a violent felon uses a
gun to commit a crime, you will be prosecuted in federal court and go to prison
for five years – no parole or early release. Obama’s former Attorney General,
Eric Holder, called that a “cookie cutter” program. That’s ridiculous. I call that
program a success. Murders committed with guns in Richmond decreased by over
60% when Project Exile was in place – in the first two years of the program
alone, 350 armed felons were taken off the street.
Why does that matter to law-abiding gun owners? Because
they’re the ones who anti-gun politicians and the media blame when criminals
misuse guns. We need to bring back and expand programs like Project Exile and
get gang members and drug dealers off the street. When we do, crime will go
down and our cities and communities will be safer places to live.
Here’s another important way to fight crime – empower
law-abiding gun owners to defend themselves. Law enforcement is great, they do
a tremendous job, but they can’t be everywhere all of the time. Our personal
protection is ultimately up to us. That’s why I’m a gun owner, that’s why I
have a concealed carry permit, and that’s why tens of millions of Americans
have concealed carry permits as well. It’s just common sense. To make America
great again, we’re going to go after criminals and put the law back on the side
of the law-abiding.
Fix Our Broken Mental Health System
Let’s be clear about this. Our mental health system is
broken. It needs to be fixed. Too many politicians have ignored this problem
for too long.
All of the tragic mass murders that occurred in the past
several years have something in common – there were red flags that were
ignored. We can’t allow that to continue. We need to expand treatment programs,
because most people with mental health problems aren’t violent, they just need
help. But for those who are violent, a danger to themselves or others, we need
to get them off the street before they can terrorize our communities. This is
just common sense.
And why does this matter to law-abiding gun owners? Once
again, because they get blamed by anti-gun politicians, gun control groups and
the media for the acts of deranged madmen. When one of these tragedies occurs,
we can count on two things: one, that opponents of gun rights will immediately
exploit it to push their political agenda; and two, that none of their
so-called “solutions” would have prevented the tragedy in the first place.
They’ve even admitted it.
We need real solutions to address real problems. Not
grandstanding or political agendas.
Defend The Rights of Law-Abiding Gun Owners
GUN AND MAGAZINE BANS. Gun and magazine bans are a total failure.
That’s been proven every time it’s been tried. Opponents of gun rights try to
come up with scary sounding phrases like “assault weapons”, “military-style
weapons” and “high capacity magazines” to confuse people. What they’re really
talking about are popular semi-automatic rifles and standard magazines that are
owned by tens of millions of Americans. Law-abiding people should be allowed to
own the firearm of their choice. The government has no business dictating what
types of firearms good, honest people are allowed to own.
BACKGROUND CHECKS. There has been a national background check
system in place since 1998. Every time a person buys a gun from a federally
licensed gun dealer – which is the overwhelming majority of all gun purchases –
they go through a federal background check. Study after study has shown that
very few criminals are stupid enough to try and pass a background check – they
get their guns from friends/family members or by stealing them. So the
overwhelming majority of people who go through background checks are
law-abiding gun owners. When the system was created, gun owners were promised
that it would be instant, accurate and fair. Unfortunately, that isn’t the case
today. Too many states are failing to put criminal and mental health records
into the system – and it should go without saying that a system’s only going to
be as effective as the records that are put into it. What we need to do is fix
the system we have and make it work as intended. What we don’t need to do is
expand a broken system.
NATIONAL RIGHT TO CARRY. The right of self-defense doesn’t stop at
the end of your driveway. That’s why I have a concealed carry permit and why
tens of millions of Americans do too. That permit should be valid in all 50
states. A driver’s license works in every state, so it’s common sense that a
concealed carry permit should work in every state. If we can do that for
driving – which is a privilege, not a right – then surely we can do that for
concealed carry, which is a right, not a privilege.
MILITARY BASES AND RECRUITING CENTERS. Banning our military from carrying
firearms on bases and at recruiting centers is ridiculous. We train our
military how to safely and responsibly use firearms, but our current policies
leave them defenseless. To make America great again, we need a strong military.
To have a strong military, we need to allow them to defend themselves.
