Urgent Call to Action! Oppose H.J.R. 1034, Unless Amended! 

 Proposed Changes to Article II Section 26 of the Oklahoma Constitution are Being Brought Forth that are Inconstant with the Nation’s First Principles and Places Infringements upon the Right to Keep and Bear Arms is in the Final Stages of Approval!

In short order, the Oklahoma Senate Rules Committee will be holding a hearing on House Joint Resolution 1034, which proposes submitting to the people of Oklahoma a ballot initiative to amend Article II, Section 26 of the Oklahoma Constitution, titled “Bearing arms – Carrying Weapons.” 

Gun Owners of America appreciates the intent of the sponsors to strengthen protections within the Oklahoma Constitution, but there are too many concerns, as currently drafted, that would actually undermine rather than support the right to bear arms within Oklahoma.  

Given the very real consequences for the citizenry of any effort to modify foundation legal compact, such an endeavor requires the drafters to be intentional in choosing their words by employ language that contains legal precision so that rouge courts and politicians cannot create regulation or edicts that take advantage of vagueness within the law.  

We have already witnessed the disastrous consequences of the deluge of anti-liberty forces and their continual assault upon the with the right to keep and bear within the U.S. Constitution. Indeed, the right has never been under greater assault across the nation then it is in our time. Hence the importance of maintaining a solemn bearing of exactness in language, which ensures that there is certainty within the mind of the citizenry about what the constitution says in plain English. 

Lastly, but most importantly, the language of the constitution must maintain fidelity to the First Principle of the nation. For reasons covered within GOA’s testimony, the right of Oklahomans to keep and bear arms stands on unstable legal grounds due to the original 1907 language, as well as subsequent Oklahoma court precedents that were clear deviations from the original internet of the right in the Federal Compact. Any ground that has been gain in recent years has occurred within the state statutes. Meaning that, at any point, a legislature that does maintain loyalty to the tenets that lay at the heart of our nation’s laws could arbitrarily reverse those gains by merely changing the statutes with a simple majority.  

Given that the singular duty of a just government is to safeguard the liberties of the citizenry and to provide justice, we must maintain fidelity to the noble aim of ensuring the furtherance of prudent government.  

Our rights are not only self-evidently true, but they are also endowed upon us by or Creator. Thus, they are not a grant by the government, nor can they be stripped away by any earthly power. That timeless truth is such, regardless of whether the infringing misconduct is instigated by a lawless individual or by the actions of an unjust government. 

Consequently, we need to aggressively, but respectfully, fight with the pen (or keyboard), because a government that forces the citizenry to ask permission before exercising their God-given rights or, through a convoluted web of edicts and regulations, denies the citizenry their essential liberties, is one that views our cherished freedoms as mere privileges to be revoked at their impulsive authoritarian whims. 

As introduced, the new subsections A and C must be amended to align H.J.R. 1034 with the original intent of the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution and with the first principles that the amendment was drafted to protect.  

Additionally, the new subsection B should be stuck in its entirety from the resolution. Subsection B is unconstitutional as written and contains clear deviations that places the new language in direct conflict with the Federal Compact, as well as significant Supreme Court precedents. 

Please review GOA’s in-depth opposition testimony for information that provides more context detailing our significant concerns about the dangerous nature language of H.J.R. 1034.

Therefore, it is imperative that you take action now in order to preserve our God-given rights and let your voice be heard.