When these words were ratified by the early states as the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, the men who drafted them were understandably wary of a centralized government with no checks on its authority. Patrick Henry warned his fellow Founders:
“Guard with jealous attention the public liberty. Suspect everyone who approaches that jewel. Unfortunately, nothing will preserve it but downright force. Whenever you give up that force, you are inevitably ruined.”
Henry wasn’t the only Founder who cited the need to stay on guard against a power-hungry government. George Mason highlighted English attempts to disarm colonists. Noah Webster astutely observed that, “[b]efore a standing army can rule, the people must be disarmed; as they are in almost every kingdom in Europe.” The man many consider the “father of the Constitution,” James Madison, described the kingdoms of Europe with disdain as “afraid to trust the people with arms” and assured his countrymen that the right to keep and bear arms would ensure that citizens would never need to fear their government. And early academic commentaries by noted legal scholars lauded the Amendment, with one saying that the right to keep and bear arms “may be considered as the true palladium of liberty.”
The downfall of civilizations comes when they forget their roots. Sadly, too many in power today have either forgotten their roots, believe that they “don’t apply in the modern world,” or view them with disdain. Luckily, the Founders contemplated this as well, and crafted a government that reserves certain powers for the federal government while preserving all other powers for the states—to ensure that the federal government could never garner enough power to quash the will of the people.
That is why I joined with my colleagues in co-signing HB 1439, the Second Amendment Preservation Act. This is a crucial bill that prevents federal overreach by recognizing the Second Amendment as preserving a right to keep and bear arms that shall not be infringed. Further, the bill recognizes the Tenth Amendment as the Founder’s intention to make each as the intended arbiter of the power to make laws regarding the everyday life, liberty, and property of its citizens.
In addition, the Senate has passed a very similar version with SB 613. Today, the House General Laws Committee passed SB 613. It will go to the floor from here. With passage of either bill, any attempt by the federal government to infringe on your right to self-defense will be invalid in Missouri.
Some critics will deride these bills as unconstitutional and an attempt at nullification. They are well-intentioned, but misguided in their belief. While nobody disputes that Congress has the power to regulate true interstate commerce, Congress often uses “interstate commerce” as a catch-all to justify well-meaning but unconstitutional bills that have nothing to do with interstate commerce. There is absolutely no obligation on the part of any state to recognize unconstitutional acts of Congress. This is not overriding federal law—instead, this is a declaration that such laws are not valid or constitutional.
No person in Missouri should ever be put in fear of being made a felon by the simple act of exercising their constitutional rights. With passage of the Second Amendment Preservation Act, they will be able to rest assured that they will never encounter that situation—now, or in the future.
