New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie has pivoted on gun control laws, striking down several that would pose a threat to New Jersey citizens’ Second Amendment rights.
After signing 10 laws in lockstep with gun-control advocates’ agenda last week — and earning the ire of his fellow Republicans — Christie vetoed three that infringed on the right to bear arms. The bills, passed by the state’s Democrat-led legislature, moved the moderate-Republican governor slightly more to the right, but enraged Democrats arguing for harsher gun laws.
“As is widely known, New Jersey already has the second strictest gun laws in the United States as reported by the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence,” Christie said in a statement vetoing one of the laws. “Controlling violence in our communities, however, demands that we continue to evaluate our laws to make certain that fundamental rights and public safety are equally respected.”
One of the bills vetoed by Christie would have banned .50-caliber firearms, classifying the gun as a “destructive device,” though they have never been used “by even a single criminal in New Jersey,” Christie said. The guns are typically used by competitive marksmen.
The New Jersey governor called the legislation a “narrowly crafted, prospective limitation.”
The second bill sent back to the legislature would have identified gun owners by a “smart card,” with information embedded on a permit holder’s driver license, though the concept is “unworkable and impractical,” a statement released by the governor’s office said. And the third law vetoed would have required state agencies to report data on lost and stolen firearms to a federal database.
“We must be the grown-ups in the room,” the governor’s office wrote. “…we must focus on what actually works to reduce violence and not just what’s politically popular or sounds good in name only.”
Christie’s vetoes have earned him some favor with Second Amendment advocates, further protecting citizens’ right to bear arms.
“We are pleased that Governor Christie vetoed a number of bad legislative proposals last week,” the NRA’s Director of Public Affairs Andrew Arulanandam told Red Alert Politics in an email. “However, we are disappointed that he signed some anti-gun bills into law as well.”
But his actions have enraged New Jersey Democrats.
“Today is a dark day for New Jersey. With the stroke of his veto pen, Chris Christie has put New Jersey communities at risk of serious gun violence,” New Jersey Assembly Majority Leader Louis Greenwald (D-Camden/Burlington) said in a statement.
And New Jersey Assembly Speaker Sheila Oliver (D-Essex/Passaic) agreed.
“Instead the governor has shunned this notion and bowed to the pressure of right wing conservatives,” she said in a statement. “The governor’s vetoes today demonstrate a failure in leadership. Instead of doing what’s right for New Jersey, he bowed to the pressures of his political party.”
