Will the Legislature take down "no guns" signs?
Posted: Fri Jun 19, 2009 8:09 amThere has been some commentary this year about the number of signs that are posted at the Tennessee General Assembly banning firearms and the airport-style security that the average citizen (registered lobbyists and legislators are exempt) must go through to gain access to the legislative plaza.
Some of this commentary has come from news media and liberal (at best) bloggers taunting the legislature about "doing as I say and not as I do" relative to removing prohibitions such as the restaurant carry statute but leaving the signage up at the "peoples' property".
It is important to understand that there is no statute which makes government property (other than courtrooms and schools) off limits to handgun permit holders. Those restrictions - if they exist - exist because some entity, often a single individual, decided to ban the property from use by permit holders. There usually were no public hearings, no policy considerations and no opportunity for comment. I remember the days during the permit holder era when the Tennessee General Assembly had no signs, no checkpoints and no fear of its citizens and during those days, permit holders could and did exercise that right on and in Legislative Plaza. No one was shot.
I seem to recall, but would need to verify it before Phil Williams or some other news source cites it as authority, that Lt. Gov. Ron Ramsey has made a public comment that he would not oppose taking down the signs at Legislative Plaza or modifying them as pertains to Tennessee's handgun permit holders. If so, then the ball may be entirely on Speaker Williams' court.
To further this issue along, Rep. Joshua Evans has recently written to both Lt. Governor Ramsey and Speaker Williams asking formally for them to "tear down that wall" in the words of Ronald Reagan. Now, let us see what the reply to that request really is - rhetoric, campaign speech, or understanding action.
Some of this commentary has come from news media and liberal (at best) bloggers taunting the legislature about "doing as I say and not as I do" relative to removing prohibitions such as the restaurant carry statute but leaving the signage up at the "peoples' property".
It is important to understand that there is no statute which makes government property (other than courtrooms and schools) off limits to handgun permit holders. Those restrictions - if they exist - exist because some entity, often a single individual, decided to ban the property from use by permit holders. There usually were no public hearings, no policy considerations and no opportunity for comment. I remember the days during the permit holder era when the Tennessee General Assembly had no signs, no checkpoints and no fear of its citizens and during those days, permit holders could and did exercise that right on and in Legislative Plaza. No one was shot.
I seem to recall, but would need to verify it before Phil Williams or some other news source cites it as authority, that Lt. Gov. Ron Ramsey has made a public comment that he would not oppose taking down the signs at Legislative Plaza or modifying them as pertains to Tennessee's handgun permit holders. If so, then the ball may be entirely on Speaker Williams' court.
To further this issue along, Rep. Joshua Evans has recently written to both Lt. Governor Ramsey and Speaker Williams asking formally for them to "tear down that wall" in the words of Ronald Reagan. Now, let us see what the reply to that request really is - rhetoric, campaign speech, or understanding action.