Well, today we have a court case to tell you about that is sure to be difficult for political leftists to figure out their position on.
Why is that? Because the court ruling takes two of political leftists’ favorite topics and pits them against each other.
It’s kind of like if you have to decide if you want pizza (assuming that you’re not one of those strange people who don’t like pizza) or if you want a good steak (assuming that you’re not vegan). It’s a tough choice. You want both.
Just not in the same meal.
So, what’s going on, you ask? Cortney Weil gives us the details:
An illegal alien who has lived in the U.S. for nearly two decades is not protected under the Second Amendment, a federal judge has ruled.
Carlos Serrano-Restrepo is a foreign national who currently resides in Orient, Ohio, about an hour east of Springfield, having last crossed the border to enter the U.S. in April 2008. Since then, he has bought a home and opened a business that helps remediate fire and flood damage, according to WSYX.
Now, he filed an asylum claim within the last couple of years… after having been in the U.S. for 14 years illegally, and “the Social Security Administration [under Biden-Harris] approved his application for a Social Security number.”
Weil continues:
Around this time, Serrano-Restrepo also managed to amass a significant assortment of firearms, some of which were reportedly purchased for self-defense. During these purchases, he allegedly stated on ATF Form 4473 “that he had citizenship in the United States and that he was neither unlawfully in the United States, nor admitted under a nonimmigrant visa,” court documents said.
After obtaining an Ohio driver’s license, Serrano-Restrepo once again filled out the form, allegedly claiming he had dual citizenship in the U.S. and Colombia and that he “was not unlawfully in the United States or admitted under a nonimmigrant visa.”
The purchase of at least 22 firearms and the apparent lies about citizenship on the forms caught the attention of the ATF, which began investigating him.
Last January, ATF agents seized approximately 170 weapons, many of which were displayed in gun safes and closets, and thousands of rounds of ammunition from his residence.
170 firearms. For self-protection.
Now, I understand getting that many guns for recreational use or if you’re a collector, and I’m absolutely fine with anyone buying that many guns (or more) for those reasons. 170 guns for one person to protect themselves, though, may be a bit of an exaggeration. (You really should be focusing on just a couple of firearms and absolutely mastering those guns for self-protection in order to be effective.)
Lying on the ATF Form 4473, though? Buying a firearm when you’re not legally allowed to do so? Those are huge problems if you’re trying to buy a gun legally in the U.S.
I’ll admit to having mixed feelings about this case. On the one hand, I think that the government should stay completely out of trying to regulate or restrict gun ownership. Completely.
And from the (admittedly scant) details that we’re seeing, it looks like this guy may be trying to live the American dream and to be a peaceful and productive immigrant here in the U.S. (He should have taken steps to become a legal citizen long before now, though), and I’m sympathetic to people trying to be productive and peaceful members of American society.
On the other hand, what he did to buy the guns was illegal, and he’s here illegally. And the law needs to be universally enforced, not selectively enforced. Otherwise, you find governments abusing people through lawfare.
The end result of this case? It was ruled that the 2nd Amendment doesn’t apply to illegal immigrants, so this guy has a trial scheduled to begin two months from now.
Which puts political leftists in a bind. On the one hand, they seem to really favor illegal immigrants. On the other hand, they hate private gun ownership. How are they supposed to handle “denying (Second Amendment) rights” to an illegal immigrant?
It almost makes me want to tell this situation to a political leftist just so that I can watch their face go into convulsions as they try to figure out what they’re supposed to think about this. I expect that would be pretty funny to watch.
And who doesn’t love free entertainment like that?