By: José Niño
Albuquerque, NM – On September 13, 2023, the National Association for Gun Rights (NAGR) and Foster Haines — a NAGR member and resident of Albuquerque — were granted a Temporary Restraining Order against Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham and Secretary of Health Patrick Allen’s Executive Order 2023-130 and a separate Public Health Emergency Order that the secretary issued, which prohibited the public carry of firearms in Albuquerque for 30 days.
Per KRQE News, Lujan Grisham’s order “has been stirring up frustration among politicians and civilians.” Gun rights proponents have railed against Lujan Grisham’s order, declaring that it is an egregiously unconstitutional act. In fact, some elected officials and grassroots activists are pushing for the impeachment of the New Mexico governor for her unconstitutional action.
NAGR contends that the order is unconstitutional based on the precedent established by the Supreme Court’s ruling in NYSRPA v. Bruen, which maintained that the state of New York’s prohibition on the public carry of firearms was unconstitutional. The Bruen ruling also declared that any gun control regulation that does not comply with the text, history, and tradition of the Second Amendment is unconstitutional.
“We are thrilled to win a temporary restraining order today from a federal judge blocking the governor’s wildly unconstitutional public health gun ban. This ruling emphasizes what our legal team has said all along – there’s not a shadow of an excuse under the Supreme Court’s Heller and Bruen precedents for an executive to suspend the United States Constitution,” declared Hannah Hill, executive director of the National Foundation for Gun Rights — the legal arm of the National Association for Gun Rights.
“As our attorney said in court today, there is no exception to the Second Amendment. As a result of today’s temporary restraining order, the law-abiding gun owners of Albuquerque are able once again to exercise their right to bear arms,” added Hill.
Governor Lujan Grisham declared this state of emergency over an alleged spike in “gun violence” and used emergency powers to implement the prohibition.
“Governor Grisham’s tyranny is temporarily in check today,” declared Dudley Brown, president of NAGR. “Her own Attorney General has refused to defend her in court and the Biden appointed judge won’t back her play.”
“The governor stirred a hornet’s nest with her abuse of ‘emergency powers,’” Brown continued sounding off. “Gun hating liberals in positions of power are put on notice: So-called ‘emergency powers’ are not to be used for their unconstitutional gun control tantrums.”
NAGR contends that Governor Lujan Grisham abused her constitutional authority in issuing Executive Order 2023-130 and anticipates making its case in court.
According to a KRQE report, the TRO will “last until Oct. 3.” The TRO went into effect immediately.
Following the filing of several federal lawsuits, New Mexico Attorney General Raul Torrez announced that his office would not be representing the governor in court.
“Though I recognize my statutory obligation as New Mexico’s chief legal officer to defend state officials when they are sued in their official capacity,” Torrez said in a letter, adding that “my duty to uphold and defend the constitutional rights of every citizen takes precedence. Simply put, I do not believe that the Emergency Order will have any meaningful impact on public safety but, more importantly, I do not believe it passes constitutional muster.”
What Lujan Grisham has engaged in is the embodiment of despotism. Under the pretext of fighting gun violence, the New Mexico governor has implemented one of the most egregious violations of the right to bear arms in recent memory. Such actions merit her removal from power.
Tyrannical politicians must learn that their anti-freedom actions will come with a massive political cost. Failure to punish statist politicians will only encourage them to continue pursuing additional infringements on our freedoms.
José Niño is a freelance writer based in Austin, Texas. Contact him via Facebook, Twitter, or email him at [email protected]. Get his e-book, The 10 Myths of Gun Control, here.