Democrats even in Texas hate guns, and they really really hate Rick Perry, so the malicious indictment of him is a win-win. Anyone under felony indictment is deprived of certain gun rights, and that now includes the governor of Texas.
As an indictee, Perry’s state-issued Concealed Handgun License, assuming he still has one — his office didn’t know as of Tuesday afternoon — will be suspended until the case against him is decided. (Cue the cheering coyotes.)
The indictment’s impact on Perry’s gun rights was brought to my attention by a former Democratic state legislator who seemed happy to point it out.
“I’m surprised that you haven’t analyzed the most significant and immediate impact of the governor’s indictment,” ex-state Sen. Steve Carriker, D-Roby, told me in an email including the applicable federal law.
Carriker also was most helpful in providing the official federal “Firearms Transaction Record Part 1” form, which must be filled in by firearms purchasers. Question 11b asks “Are you under indictment or information in any court for a felony, or any other crime, for which the judge could imprison you for more than one year?” (An information is a formal accusation of a crime by a prosecutor.)
For Perry that’s now a big ol’ yes. And yes means no new guns or ammo.
Gov. Perry is a victim of this prosecution but he isn’t exactly defenseless here. He has state-provided body guards most of the time. He does like to jog on his own, though, and can no longer carry the gun that commemorates his duel with a coyote. I once ran into him ambling about by himself at a little function in downtown Austin, no bodyguards to be seen anywhere. He just walked in as if he were an average guy. But I never doubted that he was packing. You can always count on him, Jerry Patterson and, well, most other prominent Texas Republicans to have their CCL up to date and in use.
You can see from the tone of the Austin American-Statesman story above, and the comments within it, that some in the media and the Texas Democrats are happy about depriving the governor of his rights. They like it.
Don’t think they would be any less happy about depriving you of yours, if you happen to disagree with them. The Democrats would indict every single Republican in the entire state if they thought they could get away with it.
Join the conversation as a VIP Member