On Tuesday, March 26, Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin, a Republican, used his veto power to strike down numerous pieces of anti-gun legislation passed by the Virginia legislature. Particularly at issue was the “assault weapons” ban, an initiative advanced by Virginia Democrats in January of 2024, and which was quite expansive.
Generally, “assault weapon” as used in political parlance does not mean a select-fire rifle firing an intermediate cartridge, the military definition, but rather any semi-automatic rifle with “military-style” features, such as a flash hider, pistol grip, collapsible buttstock, or bayonet lug. The Virginia “assault weapon” ban was even more expansive, however.
According to Breitbart News, the ban would include “semiautomatic centerfire pistols, if said pistols use a detachable magazine and have a threaded barrel, which would allow the use of a ‘sound suppressor’ or a ‘flash suppressor.‘” Further, the bill would have prohibited semi-automatic rifles with a detachable magazine and threaded barrels, or vertical foregrip, sound suppressor, collapsible stock, or other, similar features.
In addition to banning highly popular pistols and rifles, the ban would have included shotguns with “a pistol grip that protrudes conspicuously beneath the action of the shotgun … the ability to accept a detachable magazine … [or] a fixed magazine capacity in excess of seven rounds.”
Governor Youngkin vetoed that bill, along with other gun control bills, on Tuesday, March 26. The Richmond Times-Dispatch quoted him as saying, in a statement, “The Constitution precludes the Commonwealth from prohibiting a broad category of firearms widely embraced for lawful purposes, such as self-defense. Despite this, certain members of the General Assembly have pursued legislation banning most contemporary semiautomatic firearms and specific ammunition-feeding devices.”
Further, in the statement, Gov. Youngkin said, “I swore an oath to defend the Constitution of the United States of America and the Constitution of Virginia, and that absolutely includes protecting the right of law-abiding Virginians to keep and bear arms.” He added, “I am pleased to sign four public safety bills which are commonsense reforms with significant bipartisan support from the General Assembly, and offer recommendations to several bills which, if adopted, will make it harder for criminals to use guns in the commission of a violent act.”
State Sen. Creigh Deeds took to X to complain about Gov. Youngkin’s staunch defense of the Second Amendment. In his post on X, he complained about the other gun control bills Gov. Youngkin vetoed, saying, “News this afternoon that 2 more of my bills, prospectively banning assault style weapons, and keeping guns off college campuses are being vetoed. Shameful and unthinking action!”
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Commenters on X torched him for that tweet, posting pictures of redcoats and saying things like, “Yeah too bad the governor doesn’t like impeding the rights of law abiding Virginians. Why don’t you craft legislation to enforce the laws already on the books. We’re SUPPOSED to have meaningful arms.” Another added, “Stop trying to take guns from law abiding citizens and start targeting criminals, illegals, and DAs who refuse to prosecute them for a change! The more criminals the Democrats refuse to hold accountable, the more we need our own weapons for self defense!”
Gov. Youngkin’s veto of the “assault weapons” ban comes after the Biden Administration called for an assault weapons ban in response to a mass shooting in Kansas City. White House Press Secretary Karine Jean Pierre said, “But as we all know, it is not enough. Congress must act. Congress needs to act. And it is shameful that we have not seen more action on this. We need to ban assault weapons and high capacity magazines, require safe storage of guns, pass a national red flag law, enact universal background checks, and invest in proven solutions that reduce violence. We know these actions can save lives and our communities literally can’t afford to wait.”
Watch her here: