by Michael Girard

November 7, 2001

I will be working in Florida to move the "Ashcroft Petition."  I also wanted to point out that California, as well as other States, can be compelled to recognize the unfettered right to keep and bear arms by including the catch-all individual rights amendment of the Ninth Amendment, but more importantly, consider this: 

By use of the Fourteenth Amendment with the First, the States have been compelled by Judicial decree to apply the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment to the States' regulation of religion. This technique can be similarly employed to our advantage using in combination the Second, Tenth and Fourteenth Amendments.

The Tenth Amendment says that unless powers are prohibited in the Constitution, the State then is assumed to have them (or the people). This is where the Fourteenth comes in. It specifies the prohibition to the States. 

Now, the Fourteenth Amendment levels a prohibition to the state that burdens each state with the Second Amendment in a similar binding way that each state is burdened by the "Establishment Clause" of the First Amendment, which likewise is written as a prohibition on Congress.

The Fourteenth Amendment in Section 1, the privileges and immunities clause, clearly states that: 

"No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States;" The Second Amendment specifies a "privilege" (the use of this term is that of a right) or immunity as being: "...the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed." 

This must, by the Fourteenth Amendment, be applied to the states without restriction due to the prohibition on abridging rights. 

We also have as a backup the catch-all Ninth Amendment: 

The Ninth Amendment alone also allows the people the right to reserve to itself the right to bear arms unimpeded by regulation of the state for the purpose of self defense, defense of state, and if necessary, to overthrow a tyrannical government whether state or federal. Basically, the people have the right to claim any right. 

By the understanding here, all gun laws whether at the federal or state levels, are by definition unconstitutional. No one may be barred from possessing firearms. 

This important concept needs to be brought to the attention of the Attorney General with the Petition. You are authorized to use this without restriction. Pass this concept to every freedom loving member, lawyer, etc. 

Michael Girard is Vice President of Operations, American Sons of Liberty. Visit them online at: http://www.americansonsofliberty.com.  Email: [email protected]. Join: http://www.americansonsofliberty.com/mission.htm.