The message is clear from a growing resistance to anti-gun Initiative 1639 in Washington State. (Dave Workman)
Another county commission in Washington State has resolved to oppose the implementation of gun control Initiative 1639, which was passed in November by about 60 percent of voters, bringing to six the number of counties that are now on record against the anti-gun law.
An image of the resolution, No. 19-05, has been posted to Facebook. It was adopted earlier this week by the Lincoln County Board of Commissioners. They join commissions in Ferry, Mason, Stevens, Cowlitz and Franklin counties in opposition. People are calling these “sanctuary counties,” which seems to annoy Evergreen State liberals who have not made similar squawks about “sanctuary” declarations when they deal with protecting the immigration status of people who may be in the country illegally.
This comes at a time when Evergreen State gun rights are under attack as never before, according to rights activists who have bene busy battling gun control bills submitted by Democrats who control both the state House and Senate. Proposed legislation ranges all the way from banning so-called “high capacity magazines” to repealing the state’s 35-year-old preemption law that prohibits local cities, town and counties from adopting their own gun control laws.
While many of those bills died in committee about ten days ago, others—including one measure that would require proof of safety training in order to get a concealed pistol license—remain alive. A second deadline is looming March 13, according to the Gun Owners Action League of Washington, which tracks all gun legislation.
Anti-gun state Attorney General Bob Ferguson has advised county sheriffs about enforcing the new law, which makes it illegal for young adults to purchase and possess so-called “semiautomatic assault rifles.” There is a registration and training provision, a medical privacy waiver, a ten-day waiting period and storage requirement.
The initiative is being challenged in federal court by the Second Amendment Foundation and National Rifle Association. About 20 county sheriffs have announced they will not enforce provisions of the initiative, which they believe are unconstitutional. They will conduct background checks for gun sales, as required by existing law.
There is an active Facebook page devoted to I-1639 opposition called “Washington Strikes Back 1639.”
According to MyNorthwest.com, Ferguson recently sent a follow-up letter to the sheriffs in an attempt to clarify the situation.
“Recent public statements from your colleagues regarding the refusal to enforce Initiative 1639, approved by nearly 60 percent of Washington voters last November, suggest widespread misunderstanding regarding the requirements and status of the new law,” Ferguson’s letter states.
However, opponents of the gun control law contend that there is not a bit of “misunderstanding” regarding the requirements of the new law, which explains their opposition.
