Explore The NRA Universe Of Websites

APPEARS IN News

Congressman Eric Swalwell’s Radioactive “Common Ground”

Thursday, February 7, 2019

Congressman Eric Swalwell’s Radioactive “Common Ground”

Those who oppose our Right to Keep and Bear Arms have been mislabeling NRA as “extremists” for decades, but the vitriol against this institution from true extremists has escalated to absurd proportions over the last year. Unfortunately, our Association has become accustomed to being blamed by gun-ban advocates for the acts of violent criminals. These baseless attacks took a very dark turn, however, after the horrific murders at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Florida last February.

Anonymous vandals painted violent threats like “Kill the NRA” on billboards. Democrat political operatives rented billboards to accuse the nation’s oldest and largest civil rights group of being a “terrorist organization.”

The outrageous rhetoric directed at NRA, its more than five million members, and the one hundred million law-abiding American gun owners hasn’t really abated nearly one year later. And with Democrats taking control of the US House of Representatives in January, you may be asking yourself, “What can gun owners expect next?”

Enter California Democrat Congressman Eric Swalwell.

Swalwell is the co-chair of the House Democratic Steering and Policy Committee, which means he is one of the primary forces behind setting the legislative agenda for the House Democrats. He is also an unapologetic supporter of banning firearms. This should cause grave concern with those who respect the Second Amendment.

To put a finer point on why you should be concerned, the California Congressman had an op-ed published in USA Today last May where he stated support for not just banning the future manufacture of semi-automatic firearms, but banning the possession of those that currently exist. In other words, mass confiscation.

His stated proposal includes a turn-in program (which he mislabels as a “buy-back”), with those who comply being paid as little as $200. And for those who choose to not comply with the law? Swalwell wrote, “[W]e should criminally prosecute any who choose to defy it by keeping their weapons.”

Congressman Swalwell, of course, doesn’t clearly explain exactly which firearms he wants to ban. Instead, his op-ed uses the contradictory term “semiautomatic assault rifle,” and the nebulous, ever-morphing term “semiautomatic assault weapon.” Banning virtually every semiautomatic firearm could easily be his goal.

As if the thought of a proposed ban, followed by a prosecution campaign of legislatively-created “criminals,” were not troubling enough, in November, Swalwell implied that criminal prosecution may not be his only tool to ensure compliance. The Congressman decided to insert himself into a Twitter discussion about his very proposal, and raised quite a few eyebrows in the process.

When a supporter of the Second Amendment implied that Swalwell “wants a war” between gun owners and the federal government, the Congressman decided to interject himself into the conversation, and tweeted a rather chilling response.

“And it would be a short war my friend. The government has nukes.”

Swalwell added, “I’m sure if we talked we could find common ground to protect our families and communities.”

After the twitterverse had its way with Swalwell for his gaff (or was it shocking honesty?), he tried to assure people that he was actually using sarcasm when he threatened the US government would use nuclear weapons against its own citizens.

And while we certainly hope his flippant comment about using the nuclear option was intended to be sarcastic, it is even more likely his comment about finding “common ground” was the real sarcasm.

As the Congressman is well aware, there is virtually no “common ground” that a law-abiding gun owner who supports the Second Amendment would find with a politician who wishes to ban the most popular class of firearms in the country – especially one who would imprison any citizen who disagrees with such an attack on our Right to Keep and Bear Arms.

There is obviously little “common ground” that those who support the Second Amendment would have with any firearm-related legislation promoted by Congressman Swalwell. Unfortunately, with gun control advocates now in charge of the House of Representatives, that is likely to become painfully apparent over the next two years.

TRENDING NOW
Colorado: Mandatory Storage Bill Passes General Assembly and Semi-Auto Ban Temporarily Removed from Calendar

Tuesday, March 26, 2024

Colorado: Mandatory Storage Bill Passes General Assembly and Semi-Auto Ban Temporarily Removed from Calendar

In a temporary reprieve for Colorado gun owners, the semi-auto ban HB24-1292 has been removed from the calendar. But we cannot let our guard down as gun control advocates can bring it up for a vote at ...

The U.S. Supreme Court Looks at Government “Blacklists”

News  

Tuesday, March 26, 2024

The U.S. Supreme Court Looks at Government “Blacklists”

Much of the attention this past week in the United States Supreme Court was the oral arguments in National Rifle Association of America v. Vullo, No. 22-842, a First Amendment case on whether government officials ...

25 years and one PLCAA Later, Chicago is Still Harassing Gunmakers

News  

Tuesday, March 26, 2024

25 years and one PLCAA Later, Chicago is Still Harassing Gunmakers

On March 19, the city of Chicago filed suit against handgun manufacturer Glock. Seeking to shift responsibility for the city’s woeful governance, Chicago’s lawsuit blames the popular firearm manufacturer for the third-party criminal misuse of ...

Washington: Governor Signs Anti-Gun Legislation

Wednesday, March 27, 2024

Washington: Governor Signs Anti-Gun Legislation

Today, Governor Inslee signed five anti-gun bills into law that were recently passed by the Washington State Legislature. The bills include:

Colorado: Semi-Auto Ban Passes Committee and Sensitive Places Bill Hearing Rescheduled for Today!

Wednesday, March 20, 2024

Colorado: Semi-Auto Ban Passes Committee and Sensitive Places Bill Hearing Rescheduled for Today!

Yesterday the House Judiciary Committee held a hearing on House Bill 24-1292, the semi-auto ban, that lasted over 12 hours where hundreds of patriotic Coloradans overloaded the committee with opposition testimony. The hearing concluded with an ...

NRA Files Amicus Brief Asking Supreme Court to Hear Antonyuk v. James

News  

Second Amendment  

Monday, March 25, 2024

NRA Files Amicus Brief Asking Supreme Court to Hear Antonyuk v. James

In response to the NRA’s victory in Bruen, which secured every American’s right to carry arms, NY passed the “Concealed Carry Improvement Act,” severely restricting carry throughout the state. The 2nd Circuit upheld many of ...

Pennsylvania: Senate Committee Passes Full Inclusion Sunday Hunting

Wednesday, March 20, 2024

Pennsylvania: Senate Committee Passes Full Inclusion Sunday Hunting

On Wednesday, the Senate Game & Fisheries Committee voted 7-4 to pass Senate Bill 67 to the Senate floor for a vote. 

Grassroots Spotlight: Michigan Grassroots

Take Action  

Tuesday, March 19, 2024

Grassroots Spotlight: Michigan Grassroots

It's been a busy start to the year in the Wolverine State, as the Michigan NRA-ILA Grassroots Team has been out alerting and educating members and supporters on the critical changes in gun laws and working to stop ...

Kentucky: Credit Card Data Privacy Bill Passed Into Law

Tuesday, March 26, 2024

Kentucky: Credit Card Data Privacy Bill Passed Into Law

Today, Governor Andy Beshear let HB 357, the Merchant Category Code ban legislation pass into law without his signature. Your NRA would like to thank Representatives Derek Lewis (R, H-90), Michael Meredith (R, H-19), and Senator ...

Louisiana: Firearms Bills on the Move - Take Action Now!

Monday, March 25, 2024

Louisiana: Firearms Bills on the Move - Take Action Now!

A number of firearm-related bills, including enhanced preemption, are moving in the Louisiana Legislature. It's critical that NRA members and Second Amendment supporters get involved to keep the momentum going!

MORE TRENDING +
LESS TRENDING -

More Like This From Around The NRA

NRA ILA

Established in 1975, the Institute for Legislative Action (ILA) is the "lobbying" arm of the National Rifle Association of America. ILA is responsible for preserving the right of all law-abiding individuals in the legislative, political, and legal arenas, to purchase, possess and use firearms for legitimate purposes as guaranteed by the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.