Rep. Anthony Sabatini (R-FL) standing before gun owners at the State Capitol pledging to introduce Constitutional Carry for the third time in a row.

Gun Owners of America and Florida State Representative Anthony Sabatini held a press conference on August 23rd at the Florida state capitol to bring constitutional carry to the forefront. Why? Because the Republican party in Florida has stated numerous times that they don’t feel pro-gun legislation is an issue this coming session and it doesn’t need to be brought up for debate.

Mind you, the Biden administration in Washington is going all-out in its assaults on Americans’ gun rights.

At the capitol, Rep. Sabatini and GOA were joined by patriotic gun owners who were tired of the old song and dance routine that the state’s legislative leadership has been producing.

Florida Gun Owners marching to the State Capitol.

They were united in sending one message: it’s time for the Florida legislature to pass constitutional carry legislation.

As I told the crowd that day . . .

Commissioner of Agriculture & Consumer Services Nikki Fried exemplifies the issues with our permit system of being treated guilty until proven innocent, instead of innocent until proven guilty.

Luis Valdes, GOA State Director for Florida.

I also pointed out that Florida is only one of four states in the entire country that bans open carry (it’s only legal while actively hunting or fishing) and wore an empty holster as a sign of protest against such outdated laws.

GOA Senior Vice President Erich Pratt was there and asked . . .

What’s the best reason this Republican-led legislature should pass Constitutional Carry? Because it’s in the Constitution. The right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed!

Erich Pratt, GOA Senior Vice President.

Rep. Anthony Sabatini concluded . . .

Floridians should be able to exercise their Second Amendment right without a permission slip from the government. Bearing arms is a fundamental constitutional right… I’m looking forward to … getting this bill passed!

Anthony Sabatini, State Representative, District 32, FL.

Gun Owners came from all across the state to show their support.

Gladyvette Benarroch of Republican National Hispanic Assembly of Florida drove all the way from Marco island to Tallahassee to attend.
Members of the Second Amendment Coalition of Florida drove up from Palm Beach as did Sherrie McKnight, owner of Big Daddy Unlimited of Gainsville, FL.

This is the third time that Rep. Sabatini has introduced a constitutional carry bill in the legislature. Thus far, he’s the only Florida lawmaker to do so. No other legislator has done so, even though the state has a Republican governor and Republican supermajorities in Tallahassee.

These politicians should be tripping over each other trying to expand firearms freedom, yet all we see is one lone lawmaker currently trying to advance liberty.

In 2018, Governor Ron DeSantis while running for the RPOF’s nomination told the press he’s pro-gun.

Source – Sun Sentinel, April 2018 issue. .

But we haven’t heard a word from Governor DeSantis this past session. At no point did he openly support Sabatini’s effort. Instead, the bill, then known as HB 123, died in the House’s Criminal justice & Public Safety Subcommittee, chaired by Republican Representative Cord Byrd.

But neither Rep. Sabatini nor GOA will give up on the hard fight ahead.

The question is, will anyone else in the Florida Republican party join the fight?

Luis Valdes is the Florida Director for Gun Owners of America.

 

48 COMMENTS

    • “Lambs eating children. ” ,,,,, so that clears up my confusion about the part in the bible where the lion shall lay with the lamb.
      Sheep: “This kid ain’t to baaaa d.”
      Tony the Lion: ” Its Grrrrreat ! ! !”

  1. What if the key to Repub success in Florida is not agitating the anti-gun crowd? What if Repubs could get everything their most avid, dedicated, committed voters could ask for, if only pro-gun legislation is not considered/passed?

    Do 2A absolutists (and their cousins) refuse to vote for elected/candidate elected Repub officials because the Repub caucus thinks is more prudent to not torpedo their agenda over 2A issues? Would we be happy if 2A issues are put into law, but everything else we want is lost?

    • “Would we be happy if 2A issues are put into law, but everything else we want is lost?”

      I have to agree with the premises you proposed, and the last sentence quoted above sums things up pretty well. The answer, for a fair numbers of posters around here with tunnel vision is: YES! Single issue voters (assuming these people actually take the time to vote) are often ill-versed in “big picture” scenarios and have little expertise in the actual American political process, which often involves forming coalitions with people who share only portions of your personal passions, short term compromises, fundraising, courage, and even being able to justify their personal mantra beyond “it’s in the Constitution, so there!”

      The light at the end of the tunnel for the Second Amendment may have gained momentum to the point of where “we” can no longer be ignored or patronized through the woke 2019-20 rioting and obvious lack of enforcing by the elected officials at the top in most major metropolitan areas. The resulting millions of here-to-fore disinterested Americans now purchasing firearms “for all the right reasons” pertaining to the Second Amendment shows no sign of diminishing, even when the supply of those types of firearms and ammunition is far below the demand. I, personally believe, that it will be infinitely more difficult for woke leftists, gun-banning politicians and their compliant MSM coconspirators to convince them to further restrict or ban firearms when the very issue is now standing beside their own back door.

    • “Not agitating the anti gun crowd”

      In other words, you believe that if we don’t do anything to piss them off even more than they already are, they’ll leave us alone. Uhh… did you pick peyote paste off a hallucinogenic frog that is also high on heroin? I have to assume you’re under the influence of something incredibly strong, to deny reality that hard. Has that ever worked for us, even a single time? Has it ever *not* worked against us?

      • “Has that ever worked for us, even a single time?”

        Good question, but impossible to reach a reliable conclusion. Political calculations are not generally revealed to the public. Voters have no means of knowing if this or that or the other was traded for support of this or that or the other.

        Perhaps the thread of power is so tenuous that it is the nervous nellies who must be assuaged. Maybe the nervous nellies are generally persuadable by Republicrats, but would never want to be seen partnering with a “gun nut”.

        But in the end, the question remains…would “patriots” abandon their otherwise effective representatives over a single issue; forfeit all other gains?

  2. Florida has been similar to Texas in how the state’s right wing politicians claim to support the Second Amendment but have long been deceitful about their real beliefs. Texas has finally overcome the fault in the Republican leadership character. Florida continues to struggle with it.

  3. I think those POTG in blue states better get ready for a shocker. With Texas’ abortion bill, that allows private citizens to sue abortion abettors, and does not allow state officers to enforce the new ban, it sets the precedent for a similar bill in blue states whereby private citizens could sue anyone who has a gun. Things are about to get interesting…

    • Sure buddy…sue folks who can reach out & kill you. Sounds logical😳 As someone who’s gun “right’s”rest on court decisions(in ILLinois)I’m sure the sued will cower in terror.

        • Won’t stand constitutional muster. Any power not specifically granted to the Federal Govt in the USC is reserved for the States, and the People. Government has the responsibility to protect innocent life, and potentially take only life from individuals who have been convicted of capital crimes after due process.

          The USC very clearly contains those famous 27 words in the 2A protecting gun rights, so any attempts by blue states to infringe can (and would) be challenged in Federal Court.

      • Not sure what you’re saying. Civil cases have been around before the RTKABA infringements we know today have existed. So yes, I’m sure plenty of citizens have sued other citizens, and the latter citizens may very well have been armed.

    • Not enough people think through the ramifications of a law that enables a state to weaponize karens/kierons in such a fashion, or how it could be used against one’s interests.

  4. “… will anyone else in the Florida Republican party join the fight?”

    Sadly, the answer is an emphatic, “No!”.

    I have stated it before on this site many times: Florida’s trillion dollar tourist industry will not take any chances on scaring away tourists with “Constitutional Carry” and “openly visible” firearms.

    Until Florida’s tourist industry becomes inconsequential, Florida will never reduce their current firearm restrictions. (In case it isn’t obvious, short of an asteroid impact which obliterates Florida, their tourist industry will never become inconsequential.)

    • I disagree, uncommon. As this nation becomes more polarized (balkanized?), the repulsion of tourists adhering to one political side will result in the attraction of more tourists who claim the other political side.

      Become part of the CC club, and you might lose some Lefty tourists, but you also might gain some Patriot visitors as well.

      Then again, it’s Florida. I think there are a lot more guns walking around there than can be seen, anyhow…

      • Adding to this, it’s hard to overstate the contempt that many blue state leftists already feel toward FL. I lived in NY for a long time and work in academia. So many colleagues and friends have this idea that when you step off the plane in Orlando, a toothless drunk guy will instantly and (semi-) automatically pick a gun fight with you over the remnants of a half-spoiled meth sandwich. They are already avoiding FL. I doubt a constitutional carry law would impact the tourism trade all that much. (But I think it’s probably true that the tourism industry in FL would lobby against it based on this fear)

    • From what I have seen, the Republican leadership has torpedoed the bill the last two times it came up my making sure that it never got out of committee for an up or down vote. Leadership should not have one person veto power, but in most legislatures, including Congress, they most certainly do.

  5. Florida kicked off the concealed carry trend in 1987 when Republicans Gov. Martinez signed into law the bill passed by the Republicans led state house and senate.

    • Ummmm…..

      Republicans didn’t take control of thr Legislature until 2000.

      In 1987, it was Blue Dog Southern Democrats that were the majority of the Legislature.

      25 Democrats to 15 Republicans in the Senate and 73 Democrats to 47 Republicans in the House.

      Whatever stuff you’re smoking, pass it around bro.

      • Bob,

        Furthermore, everyone seems to forget why Florida passed shall-issue concealed carry back in 1987: in hopes of reducing the violent crime rate which was threatening–wait for it–their tourist industry.

        Of course that carried with it another unintended consequence. Violent criminals knew that tourists were virtually guaranteed to be unarmed while visiting Florida. And, thanks to an automobile license plate feature which made it absolutely obvious if a vehicle was a rental car–thus virtually guaranteeing that the occupants were tourists and therefore unarmed–violent attacks on rental cars began to skyrocket. Once again, with that serious threat to the tourist industry looming large, Florida acted decisively to eliminate that unique license plate feature so that no one could know if a vehicle was a rental car (and hence know if the occupants were likely unarmed).

        As you can see, Florida will go to great lengths–even passing shall-issue concealed carry when that was unheard of–to protect the Leviathan which is its tourist industry.

        If the people of Florida are truly serious about passing constitutional carry and open carry in Florida, they have to show (with convincing evidence) how that will increase (rather than decrease) tourism. Do that, and the Florida legislature (and Governor) will do the rest.

  6. quote——————-If the people of Florida are truly serious about passing constitutional carry and open carry in Florida, they have to show (with convincing evidence) how that will increase (rather than decrease) tourism. Do that, and the Florida legislature (and Governor) will do the rest.

    Reply—————–quote

    That question is a no brainer. Most Tourists come from rich, well to do, civilized countries where although it is often legal to own a gun, carrying one is forbidden. Looking at it from the Tourists view point they would be horrified when finding out that any nut case or untrained person could carry a gun without being vetted and trained in the states deadly force laws and trained in gun safety. Civilized countries are not run by ignorant hillbillies and greed mongers like in Capitalvania where life is considered cheap and expendable.

    • We have many tourists that vacation or visit the state where I reside, and we are a Constitutional Carry state. I haven’t seen a problem with our open-carry residents and visiting tourists. Do you suggest the other 22 Constitutional Carry states are having tourism issues?

      Of course, my snarky answer is; I would rather have freedom than their tourism dollars.

    • Thank God we’re not yet a “civilized” country! The dims and their rino cousins are trying, but they haven’t succeeded yet. Who wants to be enslaved by a bunch of weenies from the straight pinky set? If my recollection of history is correct, it’s the “civilized” places that become tyrannical, or collude with the tyrannical, or succumb to the tyrannical. Yep, rather have freedom.

      If some hyper-educated Karen gets her undies in a bunch because I carry a firearm, then well, I guess her education isn’t yet complete. What was that line about a neo-conservative being a liberal who just got mugged?

  7. 88%

    88 percent of Americans think you should get a permit before carrying a concealed gun in public.

    Ingham K. “New Survey Finds Strong Opposition to Concealed Carry without a Permit”. Strategies 360. (2015). https://every.tw/2tSNDyq.

    80%

    Over 80 percent of gun owners, non-gun owners, Republicans, Democrats, and Independents agree that high safety standards are critical in issuing concealed carry permits.

    Daniel W. Webster et al., “Concealed Carry of Firearms: Fa

    • There are lies, damn lies and statistics. And then there is SS Schutze dacian. Lies to himself and every one else.

    • Dacian,
      It doesn’t help your credibility to cite a study funded and reported by Everytown and Bloomberg’s The Trace. Both have very strong anti-gun political leanings.

      Even the quote about mandatory training came from an instructor who makes his living supplying training. Hardly unbiased.

      If an independent survey asked non-loaded and non-guiding questions, I doubt the results would be anywhere near that high.

  8. “Live-fire training is critical to making sure that people who carry guns in our state know how to load and fire that weapon properly and safely. When someone wants to get a license to drive a car, they have to prove they can operate a vehicle safely. It would be ludicrous to give someone a driver’s license after only watching an online video. A handgun carry permit should be no different.”

    An NRA-certified firearm instructor in Tennessee, after the passage of a law reducing the training requirement for concealed carry permits in 20194

    • I don’t trust a professional trainer to weigh in on whether or not I need training. That’s about like asking the car dealer if I really need a new car…

  9. Participants with lower levels of firearm training and experience performed worse than those with higher levels of training; many accidentally “shot” innocent bystanders or unarmed people.

    Vince, Wolfe, and Field, “Firearms Training.”

  10. Concealed carry permitting systems ensure that only responsible gun owners can carry concealed handguns in public. Permitless carry bills remove these safeguards and allow carry by irresponsible and dangerous people, such as:

    Violent criminals and weapons offenders. In many states, people convicted of certain violent crimes and weapons offenses are disqualified from getting a concealed carry permit. But under permitless carry, these convicted criminals would be legally allowed to carry hidden guns on city streets.
    People who pose a safety risk. Thirty states give law enforcement the authority to deny a permit to people who pose a serious risk to the community, such as those with a history of arrests for violent acts or harassment. Permitless carry strips law enforcement of this authority, forcing them to allow people with violent criminal histories to carry concealed guns throughout the state.8
    Teenagers. In 35 states and Washington, DC, the minimum age to get a concealed carry permit is 21.9 Permitless carry bills would let people as young as 18 carry concealed guns in public, even though research shows that 18-to-20-year-olds commit nearly four times as many gun homicides as adults 21 and over.10

    • With or without a permit criminals are verboten to touch or carry firearms. They do it anyway. What you’re saying, in your own fascist way, is that all citizens will be punished along with the guilty few.

      Like your SS forebears that burned and machine gunned whole villages because there might have been a partisan among them.

  11. Emerging data shows that states that have passed permitless carry legislation are experiencing a substantial increase in gun violence.

    Laws that weaken a state’s firearm permitting system have been a precursor to permitless carry legislation, and a substantial body of research shows that these laws have led to a rise in gun violence and violent crime more broadly. States that have weakened their firearm permitting system have experienced an 11 percent increase in handgun homicide rates12 and a 13-15 percent increase in violent crime rates.13 Conversely, states that provided law enforcement discretion to issue carry permits saw 11 percent lower homicide rates compared to states that did not have that discretion.14
    11%

    States that have weakened their firearm permitting system have experienced an 11 percent increase in handgun homicide rates.

    Siegel M., et al. “Easiness of Legal Access to Concealed Firearm Permits and Homicide Rates in the United States”. American Journal of Public Health. (2017). https://ajph.aphapublications.org/doi/10.2105/AJPH.2017.304057.

    13-15%

    States that have weakened their firearm permitting system have experienced a 13-15 percent increase in violent crime rates.

    Donohue J., Aneja A., and Weber K. “Right-To-Carry Laws and Violent Crime: A Comprehensive Assessment Using Panel Data and a State-Level Synthetic Control Analysis”. National Bureau of Economic Research. (2018). https://www.nber.org/papers/w23510.pdf.

    Since many states have only recently passed permitless carry legislation, research is limited on the impact of these newer laws.15 But early signs are not good: States that have enacted permitless carry legislation are seeing increased violent gun crimes. States such as Alaska and Arizona (see table), have experienced an increase in the rate of aggravated assaults with a gun since the enactment of permitless carry legislation.16 This has resulted in hundreds more gun-related aggravated assaults in these states in 2017-2018 (the latest years for which data is available) compared to years prior to enactment.17
    State, Enactment Year of Permitless Carry Law Increase in the Average Rate of Aggravated Assaults with a Gun Per Year Increase in the Average Number Aggravated Assaults with a Gun Per Year
    Alaska, 2003 65% 465
    Arizona, 2010 8% 921
    Conclusion

    • Thus sayeth the representative of the SS. Long winded like his hero, goebbels. Remember, SS Schutze dacian is the one that openly admired hitler’s courage.

    • We can all find “data” to support our bias. The debunked theories from the Stanford study Donahue and comrades did was pure data manipulation and was proven to be false.

      I trust John Lott to be a better authority on gun statistics.
      https://www.thetruthaboutguns.com/data-reveals-murders-and-violent-crime-decrease-as-more-people-carry-guns/

      And no one here is suggesting you should not get a permit, even in a Constitutional Carry state:
      https://www.thetruthaboutguns.com/3-reasons-you-should-still-have-a-carry-permit-in-a-constitutional-carry-state/

      • And, I don’t think any truly responsible individuals here would claim you shouldn’t get any training. Recommendations should be different from requirements.

      • qoute—————-We can all find “data” to support our bias. The debunked theories from the Stanford study Donahue and comrades did was pure data manipulation and was proven to be false.————quote

        Wrong. Studies like John Lott’s were proven to be tonally biased and unproven. Robert Reich quoted numerous studies far outnumbering Lott’s claims and found the opposite and that more guns resulted in more homicides. I think road range alone and only one of many examples, proves that beyond all doubt.

        Except that like most of the Far Right you ignore just plain common sense.

        At my concealed carry class a number of years ago when it became finally legal to carry in Ohio I was shocked and appalled at the lack of training most of the applicants had. Many thought that a gun carry permit allowed them to gun down anyone that pissed them off. Most had zero training in gun handling safety and some did not even know how to load a magazine, it was actually that bad.

        Anyone with brain one can see that the general public often desperately needs education and training before turning them loose on the public while carrying a deadly weapon. Our class only lasted 2 days but it should have followed the German civilized pattern and lasted far longer with tough tests so that if you did not pass you had to take the class again. In our class a retarded Orangutan could have easily passed. Even though what little training they did get helped them.

        When I informed one Doctor, who you would have thought should have known better, that if he shot someone, even if it was justified, would result most probably result in a long and costly law suit he seemed shocked and horrified and said he had totally changed his mind about carrying a gun. He was also the only one severely reprimanded for unsafe gun handling in the live fire part of the test.

        When my turn came to shoot at 7 yards I asked if I could use a .22 rimfire. I was told yes and naturally with such an accurate weapon, an FN Browning Challenger I blew the bull’s-eye out of the target. Since I was unfamiliar with how difficult the test might be I naturally wanted to pass to get my permit that is why I used such an accurate pistol. I did not do it to brag but the rest of the crowd was all oohing and ahhing and thought I was some sort of an ex-Olympic shooter. Naturally I had a good laugh over that one as some members of our shooting club back home would have done better than I had, had they been there.

        The whole point to be made was the total lack of experience the class had in every aspect of firearms and the desperate need for training which of course being American training was at the hillbilly level and far inadequate for the seriousness of the carrying and handling a deadly weapon.

        I could not help comparing the professional training you get in Germany just to be allowed to own a weapon compared the Blase American training, if you could even call it training. What a joke but still much better than nothing. I guess that is why when comparing the training police get most American police accidentally shoot captives in hostage situations way more times than the French and German police do, who often kill only the terrorists while saving the hostages yet arrogant Americans look down on those forces especially the French when they are so much better trained. That is why the French and Germans do not slaughter over 1,000 of their citizens a year because they had a burned out license plate bulb.

        In conclusion permit-less carry is political pandering to the uneducated, shiftless and forever cheap ass hard core base to try and get votes while totally disregarding the publics safety. But in Capitalvania, being the most corrupt industrialized nation on earth, what else would you have expected. Human life is considered cheap and expendable, 38,355 in 2019. This mass carnage does not happen in civilized countries.

        • Cool story bro. All lies. But we expect no less from you. Anybody that has ever raised a two to five year old child can spot your made up stories from a block away.

  12. I live in Florida, and I would love this to be the law of the land. I doubt I would open carry, but it would be nice to never have to renew my CCW permit again.

    And I bet the money the state loses in CCW application fees would be more than covered by the increased numbers of medical marijuana cards.

    No matter what Nikki Fried says, having both permits is giving the government a list of people who lied on ther 4473

  13. It is a natural right that is Constitutionally protected, NOT a Constitutional right. Learn the difference, it makes a difference.

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