New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham’s “emergency” order banning the carrying of firearms in Albuquerque appears to have produced some unintended results. Local gun shops in the area have reportedly seen a spike in sales as the order was in effect. This lends credibility to what many in the gun community say about anti-gunners being the best salesmen for firearms.
Several gun store owners and employees told reporters that their sales went up while Lujan Grisham’s order was in effect. She recently repealed most of the order, applying it only to public parks and some other areas after a fierce backlash from the community.
An emergency order that banned the carrying of firearms in and around Albuquerque, New Mexico, appears to have backfired, as some gun stores in the city have reported the prohibition has led to an increase in sales.
“Today was the busiest day I’ve had in months,” Arnie Gallegos, owner of ABQ Guns in Albuquerque, told The Epoch Times. “I’ve been getting a lot of people who have never come into a gun shop before who are rightfully concerned about their freedoms.
“A lot of people are saying, ‘I can’t rely on the police anymore, and I need to be able to protect myself,’” added Mr. Gallegos.
The gun ban was ostensibly intended to impose a 30-day “cooling-off period” after a series of gun-related homicides, including the shooting of an 11-year-old girl. Critics noted that the order violated the Second Amendment and would make people even more vulnerable to violent criminals in the city. She responded by claiming that Constitutional rights were “not absolute.”
Her comments prompted even more of an outcry, with state lawmakers calling for her impeachment. New Mexicans held a rally carrying their firearms in defiance of the order.
Walt Bracken, another gun store owner told reporters that “people are upset” and that “there is an attitude that our governor isn’t respecting our rights.”
Bernalillo County Sheriff John Allen, shortly after the order was put in place, announced that he would not be enforcing the ban, arguing that it would place more people in danger and would constitute a violation of the right to keep and bear arms.
My job is to keep the peace and to make sure that the citizens of Bernalillo County are safe. And I do not believe that this order will help me do so. I’m a law enforcement professional. This order will not do anything to curb gun violence other than punish law abiding citizens from their constitutional right to self-defense.
Lujan Grisham issued a condescending response to the sheriff, telling him to “stop being squeamish.”
Criticism of the governor’s order did not only come from the right. Attorney General Raul Torrez, a Democrat, indicated in a letter that he did 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.”
While the governor has rescinded most of the order, people still remain suspicious of her motives and that of the overall anti-gunner element. Gallegos indicated that orders such as these are simply “litmus tests” intended to gauge public reactions and see how far they can push the envelope. “The message is clear: don’t let anyone take your freedoms in exchange for the promise of safety because, in the ned, you’ll have neither.”
