Earlier this month, when the Democratic debates were raging and inspiring ridicule and atomic eye rolls, we in the gun rights sphere were lapping up the social media ammunition.
There were a lot of crazy things said in the debates. Kamala Harris was complaining about Trump separating illegal border crossers from their children- the same woman who had prosecuted homeless mothers whose children had sub-par school attendance records.
The fact that Tulsi Gabbard wasn’t allowed to attend cast a dark shadow on Kamala’s lackluster performance owing to the fact that she had completely humiliated Harris in the previous debate.
Then there was Joe Biden, who almost lost his dentures, couldn’t remember things he had said even moments before and appeared to wish he was home in bed.
But the real wiener, the night’s top Democrat gaff master, who had Americans reeling in fear and revulsion was Robert Francis “Beto” O’Rourke. When asked whether, if elected, he would do something about the number of sporting guns in America, he waved his gangly arms around and said; “Hell yes, we’re going to take your AR-15, your AK-47. We’re not going to allow it to be used against our fellow Americans anymore.”
Last week, O’Rourke doubled down on his comment saying that he would not just call for a mandatory “buy back” of certain weapons, but that there would be serious legal consequences for those who failed to comply.
This comment has elicited a great deal of protestation from Americans who understand the Constitution and the history of regimes that disarm their people. Some commentators challenged the candidate to come in person to take our property, just to name the most heated response. But none were quite as good as the NRA’s retort to Beta’s fascistic declaration.
They declared O’Rourke the “AR-15 salesman of the month,” and it’s more than just a cheeky retort- it’s actually true. In Arizona, dozens of gun stores sold their entire stock of AR-15s and similar sporting rifles last week after Beto’s threatening comments. Some of them even held “Beto Sales Specials.”
One retailer responded to Beta’s comments by posting a Facebook status saying “Well Beto, we’re discounting AR15’s to such a low price that EVERY AMERICAN can afford one. How about the low low price of just $349.99? Yeah, that works. Available online only. Go to www.alphadogfirearmsaz.com and look for all our AR15 and AK47 deals under the BETO SPECIALS tab. Deals and discounts will be added fresh all day!”
The post was shared 17,000 times and received over 5,000 likes before the owner had to emphatically tell eager buyers that the store was completely sold out of AR-15s and similar sporting guns.
It’s the same story across the country, though Arizona’s gun-buying response to Beta was the most dramatic. Gun store after gun store had to throw up their hands and close their doors until more supplies came in.
So, while the Democrats are increasingly eager to make over the top threats against our constitutional rights, they are not on the winning side of this debate. This chain of events has shown that Americans are not enthusiastic about having their ability to defend themselves infringed- and they are especially not enthusiastic about being threatened with prosecution for non-compliance with an illegal mandate.
