Democratic presidential candidate Michael Bloomberg on Thursday proposed a number of strict gun-control legislation measures his administration would pass if he were to be elected president.
The former New York City governor called for the passage of the controversial “red-flag” laws, raising the minimum age for gun purchasers to 21, banning guns in schools, creating a safe storage requirement for gun owners, a national gun licensing system, stricter background checks and $300 million in new federal spending for gun violence prevention, The New York Times reported.
Bloomberg, the most recent Democrat to enter the race, proposed the restrictive gun laws in Aurora, Col., where a mass shooting occurred in 2012 at the screening of The Dark Knight Rises, leaving 12 dead.
Colorado state representative Tom Sullivan, whose son was killed in the shooting, joined the billionaire media mogul for the policy announcement.
Sullivan said in an interview he was endorsing Bloomberg, who is currently polling at around 4 percent of all Democrats according to RealClearPolitics, because he believes he can get the job done.
“I’ve seen what he can do, and has been doing, since the day my son was murdered on his 27th birthday in the Aurora theater massacre,” Mr. Sullivan said on Thursday. “There’s no one else I’m confident would be in the White House and stand up to the gun lobby.”
Among Bloomberg’s more divisive and controversial proposals includes the passage of “red-flag” laws, which allow people “close” to gun owners — though generally vaguely defined, is usually referred to as being roommates or family members — the ability to submit claims that the otherwise lawful gun owner poses a threat to himself or others, even if there isn’t evidence.
The red flag law controversy has sparked some backlash from the United States more rural areas that support Second Amendment rights.
The Florence County Board in rural Wisconsin voted unanimously the day after Veterans’ Day to protect its citizens from potential unconstitutional gun laws by declaring the county a “Second Amendment sanctuary” to send a message to politicians to “keep your hands off our guns.”
It gives the sheriff, Dan Miller, the ability to “exercise sound discretion to not enforce against any citizen an unconstitutional firearms law.”
“I think it’s a great thing,” said Miller. “It sends a message that all of Wisconsin is not exactly the same. We have some different beliefs up north. We tend to be a little more conservative. We like our guns. We believe in God.”
On top of that, a recent report revealed that the rhetoric coming from 2020 Democratic candidates on the campaign trail has caused a bump in sales recently for semiautomatic firearms such as handguns and AR-15s.
“Sales have definitely been brisk, especially of small, concealable handguns. We also saw a spike in sales of tactical rifles like AR-15s and AK-47s, for which I think we can confidently thank Beto O’Rourke,” Justin Anderson, the marketing director for Hyatt Guns in Charlotte, North Carolina.
