Pennsylvania gun owners showed up, and Attorney General Dave Sunday heard them.
After Pennsylvania Gun Rights mobilized grassroots gun owners to flood his office with messages insisting he take action, Attorney General Sunday joined an amicus “friend of the court” brief to the U.S. Supreme Court challenging so-called “Assault Weapons” Bans in Viramontes v. Cook County and Grant v. Higgins.
Earlier this summer, PAGR called on Pennsylvania gun owners to contact Attorney General Sunday and encourage him to join a pro-Second Amendment brief before the filing deadline passed.
Joining the Brief Was Not a Given — Considering Sunday’s Record
This outcome was a surprise to many, due to Sunday’s past record against pro-Second Amendment rulings.
When a federal court handed down a pro-gun victory in Lara v. Paris, affirming the right of 18-to-20-year-olds to openly carry for self-defense, Sunday’s office moved to defend the anti-gun law by continuing to fight that decision rather than let it stand.
Sunday also refused to challenge local anti-gun ordinances, including so-called “ghost gun” bans adopted by anti-gun municipalities across Pennsylvania.
That is not the record pro-gun Pennsylvanians wanted from their Attorney General.
But Pennsylvania gun owners didn’t let him sit out the most important Second Amendment fight in a generation.
At PAGR’s urging, they sent messages. They applied pressure. And it worked.
Why These Cases Matter for Pennsylvania
These cases are not just narrow disputes over gun laws in other states.
Pennsylvania Democrats are spending heavily to capture complete control of Harrisburg by flipping the State Senate, holding the State House, and keeping Josh Shapiro in the Governor’s Mansion.
And they have already made their intentions clear.
An “Assault Weapons” Ban is coming. Shapiro and legislative Democrats have said so.
Democrats introduce the legislation year after year.
They are simply waiting for majority control to ram it through.
Thankfully, the constitutional standard the Supreme Court sets in these cases could determine whether they succeed.
Pennsylvania needed to be in this fight.
Pro-gun patriots across the Commonwealth ensured Attorney General Sunday’s office didn’t sit this one out.
Grassroots Pressure Works
This is what an organized, mobilized grassroots force can do.
Politicians respond to pressure, even politicians with a disappointing record.
Attorney General Sunday reversed course because grassroots Pennsylvania gun owners sent an unmistakable message.
That’s exactly why PAGR exists, and with Pennsylvania Democrats one election away from complete control of Harrisburg if a “blue wave” sweeps Pennsylvania, the pressure must not let up now.
Pennsylvania Gun Rights is proud to stand alongside its members and supporters in the fight to safeguard and restore the Second Amendment for decades to come.
Thank you to every Pennsylvania pro-gun patriot who took action. Keep fighting, and PAGR will keep claiming victories.
