Locked and Loaded: DeSantis to Become the Top Gun Advocate

Photo byPhoto 65051781 / Gun © Dmytro Tolmachov | Dreamstime.com

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis wants to loosen regulations on gun ownership, a position that capitalizes on a shortcoming of former president Donald Trump and strengthens support from a significant portion of the GOP primary base.

Republicans share a love relationship with the Second Amendment and strong discontent with the First Amendment. DeSantis is playing a perfect hand in winning the hearts of conservative voters.

The popular vote in jeopardy

However, DeSantis' actions highlight a problem for Republicans in general elections. Their strident support for gun rights threatens to cost them the popular vote that supports stricter restrictions in the wake of an increase in mass shootings, most recently on the campus of Michigan State University.

Gallup released an October poll that says 57% of Americans believe gun laws should be stricter.

The United States suffered more than 71 mass shootings in the first 46 days of this year, an average of 1.5 a day.

In prior presidential elections, DeSantis has been the most outspoken Republican candidate in defending the rights of gun owners. He is endorsing a bill that would empower residents of Florida to carry concealed weapons in public without a permit or the need for training.

DeSantis has also stated that he would have overridden a 2018 bill that then-governor Rick Scott, now a US senator, signed and which mandated a three-day waiting time for gun purchases. He also increased the legal age of gun purchases to 21 and outlawed the sale of bump stocks.

The presidential campaign

DeSantis is laying the framework for the 2024 campaign even though he has yet to declare his bid.

With a "Free Florida" agenda, he has made his opinions on contentious cultural topics like abortion, weapons, and racial and gender-based doctrines the focal point of his appeal to Republican supporters.

Several other states, like Texas, have fewer limitations than Florida. Florida would become the 26th state to enable open carry of firearms by law-abiding citizens.

What do you think about DeSantis's ambition to bring more weapons to the streets of Florida?

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