The Kansas City Star is reporting disagreements among Missouri law enforcement officials over the state’s new Second Amendment Preservation Act (SAPA) preventing state lawmen and women “from enforcing a variety of federal gun laws,” and at least one Democrat state lawmaker has raised an argument about violation of the Supremacy clause in the U.S. Constitution.
NPR quoted State Sen. Lauren Arthur, a Kansas City Democrat, declaring, “This is a stupid, dangerous and unconstitutional law.”
That’s an argument which might equally apply to the sanctuary laws adopted by cities around the country where it comes to enforcement of federal immigration laws. Predictions of higher crime may or may not be accurate, but in both scenarios—ignoring federal gun laws or federal immigration laws—the main point is that if one advocates against the SAPA statute, one should also oppose sanctuary laws prohibiting local law enforcement from cooperating with Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers.
Writing in the Washington Post back in April 2019, Marc A. Thiessen noted, “Well, it was Democrats who created ‘sanctuary cities’ as sanctuaries for illegal immigrants.”
The dilemma liberals face is that one scenario ostensibly protects people who are in this country illegally, while the other is aimed at protecting the constitutional rights of people who were born here or who immigrated legally and became citizens.
As noted by the Star, “St. Louis city and county have sued the state over the law, seeking to block it from taking effect. Last month, a US. Justice Department official wrote to Parson and Attorney General Eric Schmitt saying HB 85 ‘conflicts with federal firearms laws and regulation’ and threatens to disrupt the working relationship between federal and local authorities.”
Missouri banned sanctuary cities in 2008.
The Star reported the new Second Amendment law “has drawn an ambivalent response from Missouri law enforcement officials. Some say they are supportive of Second Amendment rights but concerned about their ability to investigate crimes alongside federal agents when guns are used or involved. In those cases, prosecutors often pursue gun charges because they come with additional penalties upon sentencing.”
Whether the new Missouri law will be successfully challenged on constitutional grounds, it has raised eyebrows and blood pressures all over the map.
