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What began as an over-hyped, week-long gun control rally to force Colorado Gov. Jared Polis to ban all guns in his state fizzled out after one day and a little rain.

It was a real-time demonstration of the current reality of a growing and diversified gun-owning community that cherishes the rights guaranteed in the Constitution to lawfully possess firearms.

The Here 4 The Kids Rally was supposed to force the governor to relent to their demands. Instead, all it took was a little rain for the group to call it quits.

Numbers Don’t Lie

Saira Rao co-founded Here 4 The Kids, a new gun control activist group created to push national gun control. They chose Colorado’s capital to make their first splash. Media hyped the gathering, describing it glowingly.

“On the first day of school vacation in Denver next month, thousands of White women plan to sit on the lawn of Colorado’s state Capitol to demand protection for the mental and physical health of America’s children. The most committed say they will stay until Gov. Jared Polis (D) issues an executive order to ban guns and buy them back,” the Washington Post described. “Organizers are asking protesters to sit at Colorado’s Capitol for at least four days before replacements swap in.”

Rao and protest organizers hoped 25,000 people – specifically white women – would journey and partake in the sit-in.

The reality? The Denver Post estimated 2,000 people showed up on the first day. NBC News described the crowd as closer to 1,500. The Colorado Sun pegged attendance between 500-800. Other local news reporters on the scene described the crowd as “hundreds.”

After all the build-up, it rained Monday afternoon and everyone left, with sporadic attendance the following days. Organizers compared their efforts to the 1960s Civil Rights Movement.

“We were all a bit disappointed,” Rao told media, trying to sell momentum. “We will base it on what we have learned this past week, what worked and what didn’t work, and we will keep going until we get the Second Amendment repealed.”

One attendee described more fizzle than flare, saying, “I understand there was a very low turnout the second and third day. I didn’t get the sense that there was a connection there.”


Gov. Polis offered to meet with representatives of the group but was rejected – demonstrating the group’s lack of seriousness in solving the problem of criminal firearm misuse.

Costly Demands

Here 4 The Kids’ goals were simple, if not impossible and unconstitutional. The demands called for Gov. Polis to sign an executive order “declaring a 30-day state of emergency,” suspend the sale of all firearms and order “a total ban on all guns and a comprehensive, mandatory buyback program.” The governor rightly never even entertained the idea, stating he “will not issue an unconstitutional order that will be struck down in court simply to make a public relations statement.”

Second Amendment proponent Missy Espinoza critiqued the plans.

“What they’re asking for — not only is it illegal because it’s unconstitutional to ban firearms and to disregard the Second Amendment rights of the people of this country and of our state — but also it’s misguided in the way that they’re presenting it,” Espinoza said.

Asked about the cost of a mandatory buyback scheme to Colorado taxpayers, sit-in participant Wolf Terry was optimistic, if not realistic.

“I think a lot of people would be willing to… I would hope that a lot of people, reasonable people, responsible gun owners, if they’re faced with that would be willing to say, ‘No you don’t need to buy my guns back from me, I’ll give them up, this is for the common good,’” Wolf predicted.

Fortunately, there’s a nearby example of an expensive taxpayer-funded mandatory buyback scheme that is failing in real-time. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s scheme is more than two years in the making. He’s attempting to “buy back” roughly 200,000 modern sporting rifle (MSR)-styled firearms from Canada’s estimated 20 million gun owners. After an initial estimate of $250 million, it’s now costing taxpayers an estimated price tag closer to $600 million, with some admitting the real cost could be closer to $2.7 billion.

For comparison, Colorado has roughly 5.8 million people and law-abiding Coloradans purchased more than 230,000 firearms total during the first five months of 2023, according to NSSF-adjusted NICS data. One media report revealed Colorado residents purchased more firearms per capita than most other states in 2022.

Know Your Audience

Here 4 The Kids announced they picked Colorado for their first protest because of politics – a Democratic governor and some federal races that recently painted the state more purple. But the Second Amendment is colorblind and large numbers of voting constituencies that have historically voted Blue have crossed the aisle specifically to vote for their gun rights.

In Denver, Anubis Heru launched 1770 Armory and Gun Club, the Mile High City’s first black-owned gun club, so the thousands of new local African American gun owners felt welcomed and comfortable. Between 2020 and 2022, more than 1.83 million Coloradans of all backgrounds lawfully purchased firearms, in addition to 2023’s total to date.

Despite the repeated demagoguery of the American gun owner by gun control activists and a fawning media usually lending a hand, it’s clear which side has the enthusiasm that’s both deep and wide. Recently more than 22,000 people from several states showed up in Richmond, Va., to peacefully protest gun control legislation being considered. Gun control groups and antigun talking heads loudly predicted wide-spread violence. Instead, there were no arrests and rally-goers left the city cleaner than they found it.

Local media reported, “Thousands flooded the surrounding streets of the Capitol Monday for a gun-rights rally, however, some locals in the area say the roads are the cleanest they’ve seen in quite some time.” In addition, Axios reported more gun rights legislation passed state legislatures and was signed into law in 2023 than gun control measures.

As media continues to report on gun control activists and their efforts through rose-colored glasses, the real story is that millions of Americans support the Second Amendment, embrace their right to purchase, possess and practice with firearms and will reject politicians who threaten those rights.

 

Larry Keane is SVP for Government and Public Affairs, Assistant Secretary and General Counsel of the National Shooting Sports Foundation.

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64 COMMENTS

  1. “ a lot of people, reasonable people, responsible gun owners would be willing to say, ‘No you don’t need to buy my guns back from me, I’ll give them up, this is for the common good,’” Wolf predicted”

    Habahahabbaaaaaaaahaaa

    • an appropriate theme song for the group would be “Tiptoe thru the tulips” by Tiny Tim.

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      • Seems like an easy way to make a buck. Start up some anti-gun group. Register with the IRS as a non-profit. Seek funding from some big buck anti-gun person or other larger group and pay yourself a nice salary together with a generous expense account for travel, accommodations and meals while on the road. An eager “media” will give you coverage even if ordinarily they wouldn’t bother with a group of about 150 people. Have an office with an computer that also answers your phone and check for messages once a day. You don’t even have to go to the office except maybe ever three months to dust. If I were not otherwise occupied, I might start such a group just for the income and travel expenses. Don’t actually have to buttonhole any legislators or attend boring legislative meetings, just show up for a dismal crowd – on expense account, of course, staying at four star hotels and dining the best restaurants in the burg where holding the rally. Note to self: Always hold rally in towns with really nice hotels and good restaurants.

        • Can I be co-chair-holder-downer?
          I’ll even make the signs, such as
          “Cops are racist murderers, only cops should have guns!”
          “AR15s are weapons of war but won’t work in actual war against the government”
          “George Floyd was a national hero for pointing a gun at a pregnant woman- ban guns, not abortions! Abortions for all!”
          “Criminals have less rights than their victims! This needs to change!”
          “Black gun owners are a myth”

          The awesome thing is, we’d get to make fun of the anti-gun people while looking like legitimate anti-gun people because of how stupid some of their signs are now anyways.

    • yeah,..a truly asinine statement…400 million guns in private hands makes a much more powerful one…..

    • These doodoos that think that, are delusional. They only way they will get my guns is with a court order or my cold dead hand

  2. Are the corporate billionaires that own the left finally realizing that they cannot buy gun control? Have they stopped wasting buckets of money to pay professional protestors?

    Fascism is ugly. Even when it hides behind kids.

    • “Fascism is ugly.”

      True!

      I like the sign “No more trauma”.

      Does that mean I won’t be exposed to the hideous creatures that somehow think they can snap their fingers and be members of the opposite sex, like that Bud Lite hag that thinks he’s a woman?

      That’s some weapons-grade visual trauma right there… 🙁

    • Read the Executive Order they wrote for Gov. Polis to sign; this is ACTUALLY a “defund the Police” move, NOT gun control.

      In the EO, they call for a ban and confiscation of all firearms, but demand that the sheriffs and other state agents enforcing the confiscation be UNARMED.

      They realized that “defund the police” wasn’t working, so they’re now campaigning for “de-life the police”.

  3. Meh. Just the choir preaching to itself. On a more important front George Soros whose $$$ is funding hyperbole events such as this. Has turned over control of his Billions, as well as the Chairmanship of Open Society Foundations to his son Alex. Who in a recent interview stated that he intends to double down on the work of his father. In regards to financing Progressive policies and politicians all around the world. Policies that has turned every city that elected Soros backed politicians into cesspools of drugs, crime and economic destruction.

    • Perhaps Alex is simply a smart cookie, and is saying what he needs to say to make sure he maintains control of all that money until daddy Warbucks is gone. We can hope.

    • “Policies that has turned every city that elected Soros backed politicians into cesspools of drugs, crime and economic destruction.”

      You gotta break a few eggs to make that tasty Fascist omelet, don’t ya know… 🙁

    • The libertarians are big fans of the Open Society group. Because the group is a long-time supporter of leg@lizing drugs. And the group says there are too many people being locked up.

      So they will always support the Open Society and its goals. And as far as any “collateral damage” that occurs? The libertarians are not concerned about that.

  4. On one hand there is nothing but knee jerk Gun Control propaganda stuffed between the ears of protesting useful idiots. On the other hand there was nothing to stop them from being useful idiots carrying around an agenda History Confirms is Rooted in Racism and Genocide.

    If the protesters had any knowledge about Gun Control there would have been signs saying, “We know Gun Control is a racist and nazi based agenda but we love it anyway.”

    Perhaps the rain was a sign Mother Nature wasn’t having any part of their insane Gun Control.

  5. People will just give up their guns… becuz. I guess that’s the kind of critical thinking you get with legalized weed.

    • The same people who truly believe criminals will have over their guns because it’s the law and they feel inspired to be good citizens.

      All pigs fed and ready to fly.

      • Actually, pigs fly quite well when provided with sufficient propulsion. I prefer “when pigs can sing “Nessun Dorme” from Puccini’s Turandot.

  6. ““I think a lot of people would be willing to… I would hope that a lot of people, reasonable people, responsible gun owners, if they’re faced with that would be willing to say, ‘No you don’t need to buy my guns back from me, I’ll give them up, this is for the common good,’” Wolf predicted.”

    AH HA HA HA HA!!!! Do some more shrooms Wolf…You Fucking Idiot!

    • I posted almost the exact thing you did, but after the quote i just did a long haha, but it ended up going to moderation jail

        • I didn’t see your post or I would have done a kudos and just added the gfy for wolf. moderation jail, those bots should find a real job.

  7. It might be a little different if they actually wanted ‘common sense’. It just seems to be something that most of them were never given in life about anything. It has become too difficult for them to understand what a woman is.

    to the liberal minded folk out there:
    Banning AR15’s is not common sense. Neither is magazine limits.

  8. “The governor rightly never even entertained the idea, stating he “will not issue an unconstitutional order that will be struck down in court simply to make a public relations statement.”

    he also said multiple times he would not sign an order that would violate the Second Amendment of the U.S. Constitution and would likely be struck down in court.

  9. it is absolutely amazing that these anti-gun radicals still persist in trying to outlaw guns which are protected by the 2nd Amendment.

    • According to California’s Newsome, it’s only a “So-called right”, said with a sneer… 🙁

  10. “White women in Colorado having their own sit-in to ban guns where they weaponize their privilege.

    They are asking “Black folks and other marginalized and vulnerable communities to sit this one out” because their “white bodies” will get things done.”

    Ummmm… RABIDLY racist? Holy crap. Nobody said ANYthing about this?!??

    It’s stunningly and overtly racist. But, I guess it’s “OK” when liberals do it.

  11. I see you standing in the purple rain
    Purple rain.
    No, no, no, no, we are not going to forget.
    “ACID RAIN ! ! ! RUNNNNNNN*”

  12. How can you have a “mandatory buyback” for something you’ve never owned? The more correct term is something like “compensated confiscation.”

  13. Speaking of silent media, it’s funny how the gun media is silent about how the NSSF is a supporter of Redflag Laws and gave all the RINOs A-grades on their report cards who helped write the “compromise” with the anti-gun democrats last year in the “Bipartisan Safer Communities Act.”

    They are silent because they fear losing advertising dollars and sponsorship goodies from the “gun industry” that is behind the NSSF. Guntubers are afraid of losing their sweet sponsorship deals if they even mention this shameful fact that the NSSF is pro-guncontrol and is willing to bargain away some of our rights that they don’t think are important just so they can continue to pad their bottom line. Even this website continues to give Redflag Larry a voice on a daily basis (Two Fudd articles today even.)

  14. “I think a lot of people would be willing to… I would hope that a lot of people, reasonable people, responsible gun owners, if they’re faced with that would be willing to say, ‘No you don’t need to buy my guns back from me, I’ll give them up, this is for the common good,’” Wolf predicted.

    LMFAO!!!! Whatever Wolfe is smoking, he should stop.

      • The guy is seriously misguided if he hopes people would willingly give up valuable firearms. Yeah sure, someone might give up junk but a firearms enthusiast or someone who spent a fair amount of their hard earned money on firearm(s) that they’ve thought about a long time, wanted and finally bought it, isn’t about to give that weapon up for the “common good” That ain’t going to happen EVER and Wolfe is on crack for even making that retarded ass idiotic comment.

  15. I have no doubts, and take seriously that a group like this (like Everytown For Gun Safety), and others want to repeal the 2nd Amendment, seize our guns, and shoot us if we do not comply (Swalwell)’s quote), etc. For the safety of children, however? Not to get controversial or anything, but this is the same group of people that will kill their kid in the womb in the name of “choice”, and mutilate their child once they are born. “For the children”? Please. But since we are going there, my guns do not identify as guns, and therefore, cannot be seized. They identify as lawn ornaments, and are not really guns, even if they look like them.

  16. Jared Polis, a gun-grabber, and Maoist in-training, must have cried NOT issuing the executive order. Don’t believe for a minute that this commie clown didn’t consider banning firearms if he could. Polis, a California-like gun control worshipper, is not to be trusted nor believed.

    • The Colorado constitution says my right to firearms ’can not be questioned’. I don’t understand why lawsyin that regard haven’t been filed yet. Polis and legislators are definitely questioning things this year.

  17. Fyi, Colorado politics suck bad. We kill way more babies in the womb than mass shooters can accomplish in their best(worst?) years. Dominated by blue Denver, Boulder and Fort Collins, the rest of the state suffers bad yin my opinion. I don’t think it would take much to change, if you’re moving please consider those aforementioned counties.

    • Amen. The I-25 Corrider Cities from Pueblo on North past Denver, are all Liberal Schitholes. Glad I moved to Kit Carson County, because out here, Liberals are as rare as Teets On a Boar Hog.
      Colorado Springs, once a a Conservative beacon is turning into a Satellite of Denvergrad, the Moscow of the Rockies.

    • There are still some bastions of Sanity as you move East and West of the I 25 Corridor Cities
      I live in Kit Carson Counry. lots of Farms, Ranches, and Conservatives.
      The County Sheriff or a Deputy, drives through once a day. Quiet, hardly any crime. The County Jail rarely has more than 5 inmates (2 or 3 average).
      Yeah, it’s a drive to get anything beyond what the little local owned grocery, hardware and Coop have on hand, but it’s well worth the peace of mind.

  18. Why is it people like Wolf Terry never comment on criminals who have guns mostly illegally and do not obey the law in the first place?
    They just go back to repeating the same line: “If nobody has guns, then no one will be using guns.”
    Even if by some serious wishful thinking they could ban all guns, they just gave the cartels something else to smuggle into the country through our already un-secured, un-controlled southern border.

  19. So much to be said here. The soft bigotry of low expectations. That has existed inside the hearts and minds of a white leftist/liberal forever.

    And the g@y married with chiildren governor. But because he engages in h0m0sexual sez and is married to another man. There are many libertarians liberals and leftists who are quite comfortable with him. Because he checks all the boxes that are important to them.

    He thinks like the 3 L’s. That it’s just a lifestyle choice that a woman has 5 kids from 5 different men. And never getting married to any of them. But should be supported by the “welfare industrial complex.”

    Colorado used to be a free state. But it no longer is. Because of the drug legaliz@tion crowd and the sex liber@tion crowd.

    • I really dont think its because of that.
      The gold run out and the price of Beaver felt hats dropped. I’m blaming the Native Americans for all of America’s current troubles.
      First tobacco, now casinos. NFL Washington Commanders.
      Lame name for a lame game.

      • I guess it’s just reparations. Mostly white people giving their money away, to the native Americans. In their casinos.

  20. Liberals idea of “common sense” is to disarm the law abiding citizens who believe in the right to defend themselves then all the lawless criminals will suddenly turn in their guns and
    suddenly become honest, hard working members of society? Talk about knowing absolutely nothing about human nature or the fact there are evil people in this world who don’t care about you or your laws and will take from you whatever they want including your life. It’s laughable for these mindless liberals to even mention the words “common sense”

    • A) They are not “liberals”. They are Leftists!
      B) No one ever said that common sense was common.
      C) With Leftists, common sense is a disease.

  21. “Here 4 The Kids”????????????????????

    The left are masters of projection and subversion in slogans and.
    The “Affordable Care Act” made doctor visits more difficult and way more expensive
    The “Patriot Act” took away much of our perceived freedoms
    Our borders are open for “humanitarian” reasons.
    “Inflation REDUCTION Act”???????? Seriously??????????

    “Here for the kids”??? How many of these leftist freaks do you think are against abortion?

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