virginia governor Coonman Northam cropped
Joe Mahoney/Richmond Times-Dispatch via AP

Today, the Virginia Governor Ralph ‘Coonman‘ Northam suffered a humiliating defeat in his effort to politically exploit the Virginia Beach spree killing. He called the legislature to a special session to consider a host of radical gun control measures in an effort to capitalize on a tragedy and make some political hay in an election year.

Of course, the Demanding Moms also turned out to show their support for re-creating past tyrannies with their support for gun control. And the Virginia Citizens Defense League called out gun owners to oppose Northam’s political theater.

WVIR covered the story:

Advocates for gun control and for gun rights showed up at the State Capitol Tuesday to represent their cause as the General Assembly meets for a special session to discuss gun control.

After a Virginia Beach city employee shot and killed 12 people on May 31, Northam ordered the special session, calling for passage of a wide range of gun-control measures. The session got underway Tuesday.

Yes, the special session did get underway today. And barely two hours later, the legislature adjourned until November, handing Northam a humiliating political defeat.

From The Washington Post:

The Latest on Virginia’s special legislative session to consider stricter gun laws after another mass shooting (all times local):

1:30 p.m.

The Virginia General Assembly has voted to adjourn until November, as Republicans rejected Democrats’ request to vote on a series of gun control measures.

Just what did Governor Coonman want to impose upon residents?  The VCDL has a list:

  • Red Flag laws –  forget the unconstitutionality of this law, no one thought the Virginia Beach murderer to be a threat, so that law would have changed nothing
  • Universal Background Checks – the Virginia Beach murderer passed at least two background checks, just like the Virginia Tech murderer.  And street thugs don’t go through background checks to get their guns
  • One Handgun a Month – the murderer bought the two handguns he used a year apart, not even a month apart
  • “Assault Weapon” ban – no “assault weapons” were used in the Virginia Beach massacre.  Long guns are rarely ever used in crime
  • Magazine-capacity limits – the commission on the Virginia Tech massacre concluded that restricting magazine size would not have changed the outcome
  • Silencer/suppressor ban – it is extremely rare that a lawfully owned suppressor is used in a crime.  They are not popular with criminals because 1) the gun shot is still loud and 2) it doubles the length of a handgun, making it much more difficult to conceal
  • Bump-stock ban – bump stocks have only been used in one crime, out in Nevada and there is no evidence that it increased the number of injuries or fatalities
  • Allow local government to implement gun control (get rid of firearm pre-emption law) – the Virginia Beach government building was already a “gun-free zone.”  What are they going to do, make it a double-gun-free-zone?  This legislation would make gun laws in Virginia extremely hard to comply with, benefiting criminals, who don’t care about laws, and dissuading good people due to the complexities of carrying legally as they travel through the state
  • Punish those who’ve had a gun stolen if they don’t report it quick enough – as if having your gun stolen isn’t bad enough, you will get punished by the State if you don’t report it fast enough.  How do you prove you reported the theft within the arbitrary timeframe the law would require?
  • Charge gun owners with a felony if a child has access to loaded gun – this includes a “child” who is a 17-year-old, has broken into your locked house, and found a loaded gun in your nightstand!  There have been many cases where someone under 18 has used a firearm to save their life during a home invasion.  That would get the parent a felony charge under this law.

Obviously, Northam’s little stunt served as some red meat for his supporters.  But few probably thought the special session would adjourned moments after coming to order.

Here’s the AP’s full report:

GOP-led Virginia legislature abruptly adjourns gun session

Less than two hours after beginning a special session called in response to a mass shooting, Virginia lawmakers abruptly adjourned Tuesday without taking any action and postponed any movement on gun control until after the November election.

The session on gun violence called by Democratic Gov. Ralph Northam got off to a chaotic start, with the Republican Senate majority leader averting a mutiny in the GOP caucus by publicly disavowing a gun-control bill he had proposed only the day before.

Lawmakers were summoned to the Capitol to consider a package of eight gun-control measures proposed by Northam, who has called for “votes and laws, not thoughts and prayers” in response to the killing of a dozen people by a city worker in Virginia Beach in late May.

House Speaker Kirk Cox said the session was premature because the shooting is still being investigated.

“The whole thing is just an election-year stunt,” Cox said.

Senate Majority Leader Tommy Norment shocked his fellow Republicans by filing surprise legislation Monday to broadly ban guns in any government building statewide. It prompted an immediate backlash in the GOP caucus, which controls the chamber by a slim 20-19 advantage. His top vote-counter, Sen. Bill Stanley, resigned as majority whip in protest.

“Sometimes you just got to stand for principle,” Stanley said.

But the departure did not last long. Stanley said Norment apologized during a Senate caucus meeting shortly before the session started and asked Stanley to reconsider his resignation. Stanley said he was the sole vote against himself when the caucus restored him as majority whip.

Norment — who is married to a lobbyist for the city of Virginia Beach — then announced that he was spiking his own bill and would not support “any measure that restricts the constitutional rights of law-abiding citizens.”

If Republicans had remained unified, Northam’s package of bills stood little chance of passage. The GOP holds a wider majority in the House, where Republicans have accused the governor of trying to exploit the tragedy for political gain. Rather than approve gun controls, they signaled a focus on increasing penalties for wrongdoers after gun crimes have been committed.

Outside the Capitol, Northam led a group of gun-control supporters in chants of “Enough is Enough!”

Gun-control supporters began their demonstration on Capitol Square by reading out the names of the state’s recent gun violence victims, including those in Virginia Beach. Northam then led them in the “Enough is Enough!” chant that has become a refrain against gun violence at rallies nationwide in the wake of repeated mass shootings. Others carried signs decrying the killings of children, and shouted “You vote today, we vote in November.”

“Hopefully we’ll be heard and the Virginia Legislature will take action to enact sensible gun laws,” said Jeff Wells, 64, his voice hoarse from chanting.

A smaller group of gun rights advocates rallied across the Capitol lawn. They said many others were inside meeting with lawmakers and that a larger rally was planned Tuesday afternoon.

Some gun-rights advocates were walking around inside the Capitol with handguns in holsters openly visible, which is permitted. Visitors to the House gallery can keep their guns, and while they are not permitted on the Senate side, some lawmakers bring guns with them onto the floor.

Jim Snyder, a 69-year-old gun owner from northern Virginia, said the Virginia Beach shooting had not moved the needle on gun issues for him one bit.

“I haven’t done anything wrong, and they want to take guns away from me,” Snyder, vice president of the Virginia Citizens Defense League.

“A lot of people say, ‘Well, we’ve got to find common ground,” which means, ‘We’ve got to find gun control that you’ll accept,'” he said.

Snyder speculated that Northam called the special session to divert attention from the scandal he faced over a racist yearbook photo, or perhaps to motivate Democrats hoping to retake control of the Legislature in November.

Some people carried poster-sized signs of the photo that appeared on Northam’s yearbook page decades ago, showing one person wearing blackface and another the robe and cap of the Ku Klux Klan.

 

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95 COMMENTS

  1. For Ralphie Coonman to show his face in society is humiliating enough without the Marxist petty tyrant act,however it would appear the legislature saw through his infringements.

      • Why, this is the same Governor Northam who advocates infanticide? Allow the baby to be born, the infant “is made comfortable” until the doctor and the mother decide whether or not to allow the child to live? Nazi Governor Northam must go. He has no respect for human life, either for the lives of the unarmed victims his gun control bans and laws would put in danger or the lives of innocent unborn. This guy is a scumbag.

    • They always have been. Since 2007, when the VA Tech shooting happened, they simply deny this gun grabbing bullshit every single time. From allowing on campus carry (gun grabbers and dems tried to motion for students that to be illegal), to removing the 30 day waiting period to buy consecutive guns (passed a couple years after the shooting – when they realized Cho, the shooter, waited 30 days and still carried out his plan).

      Sic Semper Tyrannis. Been on their flag since the 1850’s.

  3. Ah, Virginia… where the Demokkkommie governor is a closet Klan fanboy and the Lieutenant Governor is a sex offender.

      • I’m not sure which would be worse… him earning that nickname or him giving himself that nickname.

    • Without racist’s KKK members and perverts,J Epstine and his pal the Horny Hick aka Billy Bubba,what else would the make up of the DemoCommie party be,oh that’s correct I forgot Anarchist’s.

      • Don’t forget all the illegals that the DNC claims are entitled to congressional representation.

        • Ha, ha LOL, good one. And the No Census Question are you a US Citizen Helps, to stop using it to override real Representation taxation and to give more for the new voting Illegal Citizen fair play? The destruction and failure of the DNC Thug Party are coming to an end and as a famous Hockey coach said. Get the Fuck Out if you hate America.

  4. This is encouraging.

    At least a few state legislators there that are led by the rule of law and not emotion.

  5. votes and laws, not thoughts and prayers

    I’ll tell you what, the next time there’s an active shooter, we’ll send you in the to vote for him to stop. When someone’s shooting at you, you don’t need thoughts and prayers, you don’t need votes and laws. You need return fire. Millions of infantrymen over hundreds of years can’t all be wrong.

  6. I was genuinely concerned VA was going to go full Florida Man with gun control passed by Republicans pressured into submission by DNC national goons. It’s good to see we still have a few urban center statehouses remaining on our side.

    Can Northam be booted this November, or is he not up for election?

  8. Like the Senate Minority Leader said, “This is not over”. Join VCDL and GOA. Vote and be politically active.

  9. RE: “Hopefully we’ll be heard and the Virginia Legislature will take action to enact sensible gun laws,” said Jeff Wells, 64, his voice hoarse from chanting.

    There is nothing “common sense” about passing laws that will be ignored by criminals.

    This isn’t about gun “violence”, it’s about disarming the law-abiding public…..

  10. Not really a defeat.
    A defeat would be passing Constitutional carry then adjourning.

      • OMG, that would make me pass out from happiness. Then wake up and wonder if I’m in the Matrix…

    • Aye. I was thinking the same thing.

      If the GOP wants to send a real message, hammer back gun control and clearly tell liberals to stuff it.

      • They did after 2007. Just took some time. More states nationwide allow on campus carry now because of VA Tech, and because VA denied all motions to make on campus concealment illegal. VA also removed a 30 day waiting period between firearm purchased, in 2013.

        But I agree. A knockout should be delivered. Nationwide.

    • Correct. They actually sent the bills to the various committees for review which is the normal way things are done. Legislators in Virginia usually like to know whether there will be financial impacts, whether the legislation will be effective, what the broader implications will be etc. etc.

      So the threat is not over. It is, as always, merely deferred.

  11. I was there in person. Sat in on the last hour of the house session. One “moms demand action” supporter forgot her phone, came back in and said “thank you, I’ve got to run, the bus is waiting for me”.

    Bussed in moms. Pathetic. And I was being yelled at with chants of “shame”. Several school aged kids were also bussed in.

    Lots of open and concealed carry… and lots of posters of Gov. blackface (although the poster claimed he was in the white sheet).

      • Standard stuff for at least a decade. Here in PA we have a pro gun rally every year. Sometimes more than one. Anti gun counter demonstrators are bussed in from Philly and Pittsburg where they were recruited from churches and off the street, often that morning. They are given a T shirt, maybe a sign, a free lunch, and a cash payment. And they are not shy about telling you all that if you ask them. They are usually low income blacks. Moms need more action usually don’t come on the buses. They usually car pool. They are mostly white suburbanites. But there is no reason they couldn’t use their Bloomberg money for buses too.

  12. The guy is a vile racist, I doubt this “humiliates” him all that much, he obviously has no shame as it is. Still good news for Virginians, at least.

  13. Outstanding. This is exactly the outcome I was hoping for. The legislature gave him a big ‘ol “fuck you” for trying to drag them in for no other reason than to entertain his unconstitutional assault on the rights of Virginians.

    Can’t wait for them to throw Governor Blackface out for good.

    • Those were Halloween costumes.
      In that pic, and some others, Coonman is said to be the guy in blackface.

      I consider the whole thing to be a non-issue, except for the fact that Dems in general and Coonman personally would attack any Republican who did the same thing in his youth.

  16. As a West Virginian I am glad we got out ahead of this in 1863, although the areas that are now Virginia and West Virginia never got along. I would hate living in a state lead by the likes of Coonman the Klansman or McCauliffe for that matter!

  17. But I thought the RINOs were going to give Northam everything he wanted. I read that in the comment section on TTAG this morning. /sarc

    Anybody who uses RINO or GOPe is almost certainly FOS.

    • You don’t think Norment earned the title of RINO with the two bills he introduced for the special session?

  18. Everyone,

    Please, please, please take note of that wish list:

    — Red Flag laws
    — Universal Background Checks
    — One Handgun a Month
    — “Assault Weapon” ban
    — Magazine-capacity limits
    — Silencer/suppressor ban
    — Bump-stock ban
    — Eliminate statewide firearm pre-emption law
    — Punish those who’ve had a gun stolen if they don’t report it quick enough
    — Charge gun owners with a felony if a child has access to loaded gun

    This is what virtually all Democrats and even many Republicans want.

    And this is just their first round. If they are ever able to implement these objectives, they will return with an even more restrictive wish list. Do not give in to these immoral and heinous demands.

      • tdiinva,

        Please provide citations which prove that my statement was inaccurate.

        Democrats obviously desire that wish list, which they have actually implemented, in part or in whole, in the Democrat paradises of California and New York.

        And even some Republicans support part or all of that list — evidenced in the “RINO” moniker.

        • Your implication was Virginia Republicans supported these bills. None did. RINO is a made up term that means the guy doesn’t support everything I do. Few if any Republicans in any State would support those bills.

        • You seem confused. She asked why they didn’t pass? We all know it’s what they want, nobody denies the gun grabbers wanting all these unconstitutional things to pass. But why don’t they, specifically in VA? Have you ever been to VA? Ever seen their flag even? These gun grabbing nut jobs get ran over like speed bumps in VA.

          After VA Tech, the whole world including south korea responded. Virginia denied every single gun control measure put forward to them. They even removed the 30 day waiting period to buy a handgun a couple years later, which Cho, the shooter, abided by to get his guns. They denied every single motion to not allow students to legally conceal on campus. Don’t believe me?

          https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virginia_Tech_shooting#Effects_on_gun_politics

          You can look it all up for yourself if you are one of those “That site doesn’t have useful information” type of guys. The facts are there. VA has not acknowledged gun control propaganda based on these incidents at all. It’s an open carry state and having lived there half my life, I truly believe VA never will acknowledge such tyranny. Sic Semper Tyrannis.

        • tdiinva,

          My statement is a blanket statement which applies to all levels of government (local, state, federal) in the United States.

          Sure, there are pockets of local and state governments with Republicans who reliably oppose civilian disarmament. Likewise, there are pockets of local and state governments with at least some Republicans who support civilian disarmament. This is a fact.

          And at the federal level, we certainly have some Republicans who support civilian disarmament.

          Please note that the level of support for civilian disarmament varies among RINOs. In some cases, their support is overt, voting in favor of civilian disarmament laws (e.g. Florida’s former Governor Rick Scott). In other cases their support of civilian disarmament is covert and simply takes the form of failing to vote against civilian disarmament laws or failing to vote for repealing civilian disarmament laws.

        • B.D.,

          I have been to Virginia. I like seeing the “Don’t Tread on Me.” icon on some automobile license plates. And the Republicans obviously refused to vote on this laundry list. Clearly there are plenty of people who ardently support our right to keep and bear arms.

          And yet, if Virginia’s citizens and Republicans are such ardent supporters of our right to keep and bear arms, how come Virginia still requires a license to carry concealed weapons? How come Virginia does not recognize concealed carry licenses from all 50 states? How come Virginia’s state firearm law pre-emption statute allows local units of government to enact local laws (which is an oxymoron in my opinion)? And why did Virginia elect a Democrat to Governor?

          Even in Virginia, there is considerable room for improvement as far as Republican support for our right to keep and bear arms. And outside of Virginia, there are some states where there is a LOT of room for improvement as far as Republican support for our right to keep and bear arms.

    • the fact they are going to have to wait until after elections in November means this can still be up in the air as to what the final results are going to be. I’d rather have the hard decision today/recently made than give time for crises to be manufactured or exploited and out of town/state money used to impact local politics.

      • uncommon_sense
        How come Virginia does not recognize concealed carry licenses from all 50 states?

        They do knuckle head

    • But look, all that has worked so well in Chicago! Crime is down 1,000%. All the gangs are willing to turn in all their guns if all the good guys turn in theirs at the next “buy-back”. If we had just listened to Rodney King : “People, I just want to say, ya know, can we all get along?” If we had just listened…………

  20. While ‘Herr Doctor’ Northam’s past racist adventures are certainly noteworthy, perhaps more chilling is his previous advocacy of late-term abortion – something that seems to have conveniently vanished from the radar since the ‘Blackface’ incident!

    • Not “late term abortion”, straight up infanticide. He advocated “aborting” babies that were born alive.

      • I was originally going to say ‘full term abortion’, and mention the ‘born alive’ thing, but thought my reference to ‘Herr doctor’ and ‘chilling’ was sufficient. Thanks for helping me make my point.

      • I call it “post-birth abortion” when the topic comes up. Seems to get the point across without raising derailing the conversation.

  21. I did my part by joining the VCDL, donating to their lobbying arm and emailing my local reps. Gov. Northam’s theatrics made me more politically active at the state level. Not all Virginians, even Northern Virginians are lost.

  23. The Republicans saved the day I wish would have brought down Obama after his 1st 4 years. To Infringe is to make it hard to defend ourselves while we are being invaded.
    In NV an all one-sided Democrat Party is signed on in emergency legislation without due proper study to pass the AB 291 an Illegally written scam over a Bump Stock Emergency bill of lies. The DNC and Demonic party must end and if It requires spilling blood so be it!

  24. Congratulations citizens of VA, you apparently voted in some legislators who were willing to do the right thing and represent their constituents rather than bow to the almighty guv and sweat reelection. Especially glad to see the majority leader spike his RINO bill.

  25. This is good news. A few more months of breathing room for those of us in VA, until the nutters get back in session.

    Now we need to get the HEAR act killed at the federal level. Banning suppressors is even more stupid than the bump stock ban. At least a suppressor is an item that does something useful. Neither one should be banned.

    • Bump stocks are useful in my opinion…. I’m not sure if YOU find them useful, but I know a lot of people who find them “useful”…..js!

  26. No government, city, state, or Federal has the right to touch any item under the Bill of Rights. The Founders stated numerous times in language so plain even the most mentally challenged individual could understand it,”the Bill of Right is an article listing the “GOD” given rights of each individual citizen that no person shall tamper with.” The rights of the individual that no President, no Congress, no politician, no wannabe tin horn dictator, no tyrant in a black robe ruling from a bench, absolutely positively NO ONE may amend, modify or jack with these GOD GIVEN RIGHTS in anyway. By that token and the fact the Founders said the people were the last line of defense in this nation, all gun control laws are unlawful, unconstitutional and probably treasonous.

    • Agreed Wholeheartedly!~

      And that specifically includes the necessity to obtain a Permit to carry a concealed weapon… I would say succinctly what I think about “Concealed Carry Permits” but that could be considered by even those in agreement to be vulgar.

      • Why do I need permission from the state to carry concealed? The Second Amendment does not mention this requirement.

  27. More Liberal lying and shenanigans to try to gain totalitarian control over the people. I’m a Virginia resident and I sent a thank you to my state senator for this.

  33. Thank goodness we had enough Republicans in control of the government in Virginia, or the democrat communists would have passed many UNCONSTITUTIONAL GUN LAWS.

  34. Letting a kid get ahold of a gun could already be prosecuted as a Class 6 felony, which is also applicable to letting them get ahold of your drugs, poisons, vehicles, power tools, swimming pool, or anything else that is obviously dangerous and needs to be kept from unsupervised contact with a child.

  35. When the shooting in VA happened, and all these TTAG regulars (probably red flag supporters) ignored me telling them about how VA handles gun control, then provided them evidence on how they started on campus carry after incidents like VA Tech but they ignored that as well… Still wanna tell me I don’t know what I was talking about? Shouldn’t you guys be on facebook somewhere?

  36. it’s hard to imagine anything more humiliating to Northam than that press conference he gave about his blackface pictures.

  37. Dumbass tried to push more anti-gun crap to deflect attention from the heat he was getting from his racial issues. His politics and carreer are DOA!

  38. The governor pushed for particular legislation, calling a special session of the legislature in hopes of achieving his legislative desires. The legislature, having been called into special session, wisely rejected the governors legislative goals, desires, intent. Three cheers, perhaps more, for the legislature.

  39. Glad to see that the VA GOP legislative leadership has some balls. They probably planned this move since the Guv announced the special session. I’m glad VCDL was in on it – it’s why I belong and donate money to them – they get things done. Now to see what happens when the legislature reconvenes in Nov. Hopefully, we in VA can get rid of some of the Dems in the House and Senate in the Nov elections and have clearer majorities to avoid this type of anti-gun crap when our delegates and senators come back to work.

  40. With the Virginia Beach shooter, and the San Bernardino shooters, the Dallas-area shooters, the Fort Hood shooter, etc., the correct legislation would be to ban muslims, not guns…

  41. Virginians – Would it be okay if we neighbors just to your North borrowed your legislature for a few weeks? Not too long, just long enough to legislate away the abomination laughingly called Maryland’s Gun Safety Act of 2013, which banned the acquisition of the most popular sporting arms in America and standard magazines for it and a lot of other firearms.

    • I still recall a discussion I had with a MD resident back in 2013. He said “it’s no big deal, it will be overturned in the courts.”

      WRONG. It’s been sustained. This is why we can never, ever treat hostile legislation lightly. It must be fought every single time.

      Then there was hope that the gross gerrymandering in MD would be undone by the Supreme Court this year. You know, the trick where the whole Western part of the state has a tentacle added to include deep blue Montgomery County near DC so the entire district goes blue no matter what the West wants? Yeah. Well, that didn’t happen either.

      So now MD will stay a deep blue Democrat enclave as it has since the early 1900s. The only remaining hope is that the Supreme Court issues a broader ruling in the NY case but that is a really long shot.

  42. Punish those who’ve had a gun stolen if they don’t report it quick enough – as if having your gun stolen isn’t bad enough, you will get punished by the State if you don’t report it fast enough. How do you prove you reported the theft within the arbitrary timeframe the law would require?

    This would have been like punishing rape victims if they did not report their rapes fast enough.

  43. WANT TO STOP GUN RELATED CRIME!!? PASS STIFFER LAWS AGAINST CRIME’S COMMITTED WITH A GUN!!? CAPITAL PUNISHMENT FOR CAPITAL CRIME!!? PUNISHMENT FOR THE USE OF A GUN IN CRIME DEATH OR NOT IS EXECUTION AND COCONSPERATOR’S ALSO GUILTY BY ASSOCIATION WITH THE CRIME!!

  44. Really tired of the Democrat Anti- American Can’t do Nothing but tear down America people, personally they should be rounded up and sent too North Korea where they would be welcomed as hero’s

  46. The Virginia legislators that will be on the ballot on November 5th did not want to piss off a large portion of the voters this close to election time. Watch out for another special session, or in the regular session for most or all of the gun control measures.

  48. That’s despicable for Governor to act in this wsy.

    Wait people of VA. need vote you out! You use a major Tragedy to promote yourself and try to get votes. Come on wake up you are going to be the past. The people of Virginia no matter what color you are know this Representative is not working for we the people.

  49. After hearing this, I went out and bought another assault weapon and a brick of ammo. Not because I needed it, but because I can! The more these anti American treasonous traitorous liberal filth scream gun control and then murder more babies, I always buy more guns to celebrate my rights they failed to take away through fear mongering!
    Everytime these morons scream gun control. Gun sales go through the ROOF! Hmm… Maybe they secretly own gun company stock… Wouldn’t suprise me at all!

    • Amen brother they actually help our rights to keep and bear arms stock up practice and get junkyard dog mean when they come to take Guns kill all who trample on don’t tread on me

  50. This So-called Governor is a real dirtbag Democrat that needs to get his ass kicked to show him the light and our 2nd Amendment Rights shall not be infringed.

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