Iowa Passes First Hurdle in Guaranteeing Gun Rights in the State

By Patrick Richardson

As states across the country are considering new gun legislation in the wake of the Parkland shooting, and the feds are considering bans on accessories like “bump stocks” (which have been used in exactly one incident), Iowa is planning to let its voters decide what to do next.

Senators voted 34-15 to approve House Joint Resolution 2009, a one-page document that proposes a constitutional amendment providing that the right of people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed by government.

All 28 Republicans, one independent and five Democrats voted for the resolution, while 15 Democrats opposed it.

“The sovereign state of Iowa affirms and recognizes this right to be a fundamental individual right,” according to the resolution, which the Iowa House approved, 54-42, last week. “Any and all restrictions of this right shall be subject to strict scrutiny.”

Strict scrutiny is the most stringent method of judicial review, meaning that the courts must weigh the government’s compelling interest in a law with — in this case — possible infringements on the Constitution, with greater weight given to the Constitution, rather than the government. Generally speaking, a law will fail the Constitutional test when …Read the Rest

Source:: Bearing Arms