On the Senate floor with a gun on her hip, Republican says packing heat can deter violence
Nothing to be concerned about in the South. The rest of America should embrace 2nd Amendment rights.
The linked article speaks of inappropriate behavior of males. I have not problem with empowered women packing heat to counter the nonsense.
Even in Virginia, where gun culture runs deep and some state lawmakers wear concealed weapons as routinely as dress socks, this scene raised eyebrows: state Sen. Amanda Chase standing on the floor of the ornate chamber with a .38 special openly strapped to her hip.
“I’ve had people get in my face. I’ve had people come up and try to touch me inappropriately,” said Chase, a Republican freshman seeking reelection this year in a suburban-rural district south of Richmond. “And it’’ — the gun — “is a deterrent.”
Rules about guns are notoriously loose in Mr. Jefferson’s Capitol, where even visitors with concealed-carry permits are allowed to bring weapons in. In the Senate alone, at least six of the 21 Republicans regularly bring guns on the floor. But most of the time, they keep their weapons concealed. That was true for Chase too, until this week.
“I respect that it may raise an eyebrow with people, so I always conceal-carry,” said Chase, who owns a small financial services business. “I don’t want to raise an alarm for other people.”
Chase had a change of heart after a colleague complained about an encounter with immigration activists. State Sen. Richard H. Black (R-Loudoun) said the activists mobbed him Monday after he presented his bill to ban sanctuary cities. Chase decided that wearing her gun openly might deter that kind of thing.
“It concerned me,” she said of the episode with Black. “I’ve had threats. I’ve had stalkers since I’ve been in the General Assembly. I am going to continue to represent the issues that are important to my constituents, and I’m not going to be intimidated by people who would try to physically harm me.”
I hear you.
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Originally Posted by alexa
