Luis Valdes and the 'Big Beautiful Bill"

Luis Valdes, Florida Director of GOA, joins Royce on this episode to talk about the NFA and 2nd Amendment implications of the "Big Beautiful Bill". Tune in and share!!

Transcript

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number nine. you'd better believe it. You better. I'll tell you what, we got a lot
to talk about today, got a great guest waiting going to bring him on here. He's
been on the program before and you're going to know him as soon as he starts
talking. But if you've been following the big, beautiful bill going on in Congress
in the Senate now, then you're probably aware of a lot of the, what should I say,
anomalies going on there. And some other things that have me gnashing my teeth too.
We'll be talking about those in just a moment. One of first reminds you, you can
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All right, I am always happy to have this next guest on the program. He is my
Cuban constitutionalist brother from another mother and he is a freedom lover.
He will tell you his own story here in just a minute by way of
And many of you already know who I'm talking about, and that will be none other
than the Florida director of gun owners of America, Mr. Luis Valdez.
Luis, brother, how you doing, man? It is a pleasure to be on the show and love
what you do, love the fact that you are a shining beacon of liberty in these dark
and troubling times on the airwaves. But more importantly, I am so glad that you
allow someone like me who has a face for radio and a voice for literature to come
and pollute your show.
Well there's a reason I'm on audio and not video brother is that I'm going to
start a home later when I get old enough to retire. I think I'm going to call it
a home for the visually reprehensible. What do you think?
Not just the president. I am also a Yeah. Perfect then. You're hired.
Let's get her done, man. Let's get her done. We've got a lot to talk about. You
have your finger on the pulse of GOA. And I know you're more of the Florida
director, but that doesn't mean, of course, that you don't know what's going on
nationally. And I'm sure you've been following the, I put in my notes, BBB.
And I keep wanting to say build back better, But it's the big, beautiful bill that,
well, there's some NFA things in there that we were trying to get straightened out.
But apparently there's this unconstitutional position and a constitutionally dyslexic
person in that position. I've never heard of a parliamentarian until recently. How
about you? But go ahead. So, i've heard of the parliamentarian it goes back to
uh... the days of f _t _r _ has like many things that are staying upon our upon our
country yes it's like the national firehack itself they both go hand in hand but
um... put it shortly to put it mildly what it came down to is this gun owners of
america has been fighting tooth and nail to repeal the n to repeal the NFA since
day one. We have fought tooth and nail to prove that the NFA primarily is a budget
issue. It's a tax. In 1937, the U .S. Supreme Court even ruled it as such.
Remember, the original enforcement agency was the forerunner to the IRS. They were
enforcing the NFA, so it's always been a tax. And what happened was is we fought
tooth and nail in the house with the BBB to get NFA repeal,
to get a version of the Hearing Protection Act added to the bill.
And in the Ways and Means Committee, they tried to water it down to what it is
right now, which is simply a repeal of the $200 tax down to $0,
a tax break, doesn't repeal the registration scheme, doesn't repeal the fact that you
have to jump through hoops, doesn't repeal that you have to get a permission slip
to take an NFA item across state lines, doesn't repeal any of that. That's not what
the Ways and Mean Committee pushed. GOA fought with members in the House to restore
that provision in the BBB back to a more fully, what's the best word here I could
say, a fully structured and formatted HPA,
Hearing Protection Act, that would strip suppressors from the NFA in its entirety and
treat them as common Title I firearms, meaning that if you went to your local gun
shop here in Florida or elsewhere, you know, depending on your state law and
jurisdiction, but in Florida, for instance, as we were originally pushing,
you could go to your local gun shop and say, "Hey, I want that suppressor." You
fill out a 44 .73, the background's done at FDLE. If you have your concealed carry
permit, you skip the waiting period, you take it home right then and there. It'll
be treated as a normal firearm. That's it. In the Senate, we kept that provision
originally in the bill, and we got a version of the short act attitude,
which would have done the same thing for short barrel rifles, short barrel shotguns,
and AOWs. And everyone goes, "What is an AOW?" Well, it's to catch on any other
weapon. So a great example of that is a short barrel rifle, by definition,
is a showable firearm that has a rifle barrel a short roll shotgun same thing
except the smooth board it's showable and a _o _w _ is the oddball stuff you know
that fancy -looking pen gun that looks like a pen and then it shoots like a pen
yep well that's an a _o _w _ cane guns those are a _o _w _ 's uh...
the little tiny serbu shorty shotguns that mark serbu used to make back in the day.
Those were AOWs. Something as simple, and this is going back, I mean this is
actually going back before I was breathing, but this is going back to your days as
a youth, remember high standards 22 magnum derringer that they made back in the 70s?
Yes, sir, sure do. Remember how they used to make a leather holster that let you
shoot the gun from the leather holster yep that's an a _o _w _ all the whole story
i don't know what you in the whole sir combined with the derringer makes an a _o _w
_ so that was things we were tackling you know that they would all be treated as
regular farm so it wouldn't matter the barrel length of the overall length of the
traditional rifle shotgun so if you wanted a of fourteen inch lever action.
Hey, that'd be fine. It wouldn't be considered a short barrel rifle. If you wanted
an 11 -inch AR, if you wanted a cane gun, if you wanted a 10 -inch barrel shotgun,
wouldn't be a short barrel shotgun, wouldn't be a short barrel rifle. Would be the
same thing. You would go to the gun shop, you'd fill out a 44 .73, the background
would be done, you'd take it home, it'd be treated like a normal fire. So, we got
that added to the BBB. So, it had suppressors, short pull shocks and short pull
rifles and any other weapons removed. Goes for the bird bath. The bird bath is
this, I still can't believe, named after a literal member of the KKK and Democrats
are defending it. Robert Byrd, yep. Yep, shows you how screwed up it Because the
Democrats there still defending stuff done by racist bigoted KKK members.
But the bird bath, the bird rule says that for reconciliation,
for budgetary bills, you could pass a bill on a simple majority, but the
parliamentarian, this non -elected position whose opinion is supposed to be only
advisory gets to determine what is and isn't in the bill.
Basically, they get to go through the bill, it's like, "I don't think in my
opinion, this is a budgetary item, I'm taking it out." That's exactly what the
parliamentarian did. The parliamentarian looked at the provisions, we had it added to
the bill, and said, "This isn't germane to the budget.
Mind you, the Supreme Court in 1937 ruled that the National Firearms Act was a tax.
Right. So you had the parliamentarian say gun control who is only affected and
enforced via a tax isn't a tax. Doesn't that remind you of something kind of like,
kind of like healthcare related when the Supreme Court said that it's not a fine,
it's a tax. Right. Obamacare. Yep. Yep. So basically they did the,
the parliamentarian did the opposite and this is supposed to be a nonpartisan
advisory position, except clearly this individual is very partisan because it's not
just on this issue. There's numerous Conservative issues that parliamentarian has
decided to rule that these items are not attacks are not germane to the budget and
Has basically stripped them and argued and gutted them from the bill now the Senate
majority leader Could replace and terminate the parliamentarian they work at the
behest and at the privilege of the Mm -hmm.
They could be replaced The new parliamentarian can review and say, you know what?
No, you're right. This is budget. This is germane. This is good to go So that's
what we're fighting for right now Because as it currently stands in the BBB The
only thing that they're doing is they're literally doing a tax cut They're dropping
the NFA from two hundred dollars to zero Is it a small small step in the right
direction is it what we were promised now but more importantly what stops the
democrats in the future from regaining legislative power and deciding to raise the
tax yet not just re -instated but raise it yeah remember back in uh...
nineteen thirty four In 1934, $200 was the equivalency of about five grand today.
The NFA was never intended to be about collecting revenue. It was a way to stop
people from exercising their civil rights.
It was a political tool no different than poll taxes to disenfranchise common Yeah.
Because back then, I mean, this is still bizarre. They wanted to violate American
civil rights, but they actually looked at the Constitution like, well, we can't ban
guns, but it doesn't say anything about, we can't tax them. Hey, let's just slap a
tax on this that's so erroneous at the time that the common person can't afford it.
It's the same thing as banning it, but under the law, under the letter of the law,
we're not. Well, their only problem with their Louise, if I may interrupt, is they
did not understand the plain language of the Second Amendment. And it says, "Shall
not be infringed." There was no proviso that said, "Except by attacks." It said very
plainly, "It shall not be infringed." And I'm pretty sure that covered every way,
shape, and form of a tax. There have actually been, and I know you know this, and
I'm saying this for the benefit of the audience, The, how many, how many,
I don't know if they're supreme court, but they're certainly federal court rulings
like Marbury versus Madison, where says no state shall attach a fee to a,
or charge for a license for a liberty. Maybe, I know I'm butchering the quote,
but basically you cannot tax a right. And that's, that's essentially what those
rulings were. Or, but yet the federal government has been.
you can't mess with that yes it's simple enough but what do i know i'm i'm not a
uh... i'm not a phd i'm not a lawyer i'm not a member of chrysum i'm just an
everyday american would you do stay at holly and express sometimes
sometimes if i could afford it under the the current economic conditions which should
be used don't get me started on that yes sir But what it comes down to is right
now, we are fighting to make sure that the best possible outcome will happen.
And for us, that means getting the Senate to reinstate the full NFA repeal to the
bill. That's our end goal. That's what we're fighting for. Our end goal is simple.
We're going to repeal NFA one way or the other.
Well, let me ask you this, what are the chances of us being able to do that?
Well, the chances are it's always there if you're willing to put in the effort and
fight for it. If you sit on sidelines, that's what a lot of people fail to realize
is this is a long protracted conflict. protracted content
everyone wants a quick victory and an immediate solution what i personally do i do
too but i know through history that's not the case we are we have not reached the
point we are at historically speaking with our rights because it was done in a day
was done over a century's time sa yes and i'm not saying it's going to take a
century century to restore our rights. We're doing it far quicker. We are on the
offensive. We're no longer on the defensive.
But this is a protracted fight, which means we have the beachhead,
we're pushing, we're driving our forces, we're no longer on a defensive position,
we're on an offensive position, and we're looking at every angle possible. And as
you know, Every minute right now things are shifting in Congress. Our federal affairs
team is working hard. And I mean hard. These guys haven't slept in days.
They're basically living at the Capitol and they ain't doing it like lawmakers where
they get their own private offices and they could retreat and all that. No, no, no.
Our federal affairs team is busting their hump. And our entire support staff,
all of our state directors, all our regional directors, we are on the offensive. We
are trying to get as many of our members across the country to contact their
senators, to contact their lawmakers, and especially to contact the Senate Majority
Leader and say, "Look, fix this. You guys campaigned on a pro -gun promise." Yes.
It's put up a shut up time. Amen to that, brother. Amen to that. Well, what can
we do? Not just me, but the listening audience.
202 -224 -3121. Again,
that's 202 -224 -3121. That's the Senate Majority Leader's office.
That's Thune's office. Call him and say, "You want full NFA repeal added to the
BBB." And that's Thune? Thune,
T -H -U -N -E. T -H -U -N -E, yep. Yeah, he is certainly not making himself a very
liked individual recently, and I've got some things to say about him, but I'm going
to defer right now. But you heard Luis Valdez 202 -224 -3121,
that Senate Majority Leader Thun, and make your thoughts known because this is a
government of and for the people you do have a civic duty to do these things by
the way and the nice thing is you can do it free it doesn't cost a stamp even
you get on email or get on the phone and give them a call and you can make this
thing happen so you're saying get a hold of Mr. Thune and put our make our words
known what else can we do Luis besides join GOA if we're not members already.
- Well, besides joining GOA, you know, one of the other useful amazing tools is
actually social media now. - Yes. - X is a fantastic platform. Every lawmakers on it,
you know, when Elon Musk purchased X, his goal was to make it the 21st century
digital town square where people could congregate and voice their opinions and their
grievances and their ideas. and it's an effective tool. If you go on X and you
actually go after lawmakers in a political sense and debate them and call them out
on their hypocrisies, they notice. Well, yeah, they did. They noticed it on me and
they banned me from X. Of course, I said some less than kind things to Mr. Adam
Schiff. I didn't make any threats or anything, but I'll let you know sometime in
private what I told what what I said and they said that you're in you're inciting
violence and I know I wasn't I was calling for you know judicial propriety and
having him arrested tried convicted and hanged and all I said was he had to wear a
white the day he got hangs for everybody to see him mess himself as he said to
the gallows they didn't like that they they they felt that was inappropriate enough
to ban yours truly from the platform and So no matter how I've tried to re -sign
back up. Nope. We recognize you you're you're persona non -grana get out of here
If you just said look he should just be treated. He should get the same Christmas
Gifts at Nicolai's Trashescu and Romania cop. There you go Just wishing him a merry
Christmas. Yeah, that's true with a bunch of 7 6 2 by 39 rounds, but But whatever
I didn't say that I know I know we were I was referring to Nicolai by the way
and not Adam I would I would never advocate for the assassination of a elected
official I am not the left and you're not the left and we are not the left we
don't make that we don't do those kind of things we might voice our quasi fantasies
about it, but we would never call for it because we're just not that way. We're
not that kind of people, and we're more responsible than that. Unlike those that
wish to strip us of our rights, we actually understand the responsibilities that come
with our rights, and part of that is being a productive, contributing member of
society, and that means we might disagree with our elected officials, but we
understand That's why we have the First Amendment and the Second Amendment. The
Second Amendment makes sure we have our First Amendment rights so we don't have to
resort to the Second Amendment. And one of the greatest dangers that anyone in
government does is to strip us of our Second Amendment rights because that is the
canary in the coal mine, that is the litmus test. When anyone wants to take
someone's guns away, The next thing that they will take is their freedom of speech,
their ability to congregate, their ability to peacefully protest their grievances to
their government. And that usually ends up purifically with people being blindfolded
and taken to an unmarked grave in the middle of the night. Yes, sir. Well, we end
up like England is right now, where people are arrested for praying silently on a
sidewalk in front of an abortion clinic. clinics. I mean, they come up and actually
grilled a couple of women. Are you praying? Well, number one,
what's at any of your stinking business? But we think like that as Americans, but
those people over there have been subjugated badly and now they're unarmed and now
they are nothing but victims and waiting for their government and for the invasion
of Islamists over there. So I don't want to run that rabbit trail too bad. I'll
let you keep going
So that's where we're at We are pressing the issue in in DC We're having our
members nationwide call text and comment on the minor on the majority leader and on
Everyday members of the Senate in the House of Congress all together. Yes, sir And
we will not stop and you know, legally speaking, our, our illustrious legal eggheads,
they are putting their brain power together and that gray matter is looking at every
legal avenue also to challenge this of course. Yep. Um, and that's what we're going
with it. And as you know, things are literally changing minute by minute. Well, I
tell you what, I appreciate you guys, especially out there at GOA. Uh, y 'all are
the I've said this for since I started this program back in 2014. You guys are the
pit bulls. I really I hold a second amendment foundation and firearms policy
coalition in high regard also but you guys get the work done and I want to go
ahead and throw a plug in here before we go to break just to the audience members.
If You're not a member of GOA. I will tell you right now, these people make it
easy for you to be in the fight. Literally, they will send out an email with a
little red button in it. You simply click on that to take action. It takes probably
30 seconds to a minute, maybe two or three minutes, and your voice is heard in
Washington, DC. They also do this on the state They,
I can't emphasize just how easy they make it to be in the fight. It is the best
$35 a year that you will ever spend. And frankly, I like to give more than that.
But do it. Again, you, you'll get an email.
You get an email whenever there's a pressing issue or an agenda and they make it
easy for you to take action. They is let you click a button and they get it done.
So you do that. If you're not a member of GOA, join them today.
And Louise, if you don't mind holding through the break, brother will be right back
with some more shooting straight. - You got it. - All right, and that goes for the
rest of you. Don't go anywhere because all the listener retention squad leaders are
all on standby. Know what that means. Be right back with more Shooting Straight.
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Let's create your musical identity. Thank you. Welcome back to the program.
We've got special guest Luis Valdez, the Florida Director of Gun Owners of America
and you heard me before the break saying that you need to join them if you have
not done So already get it done because they get it done and know how to get it
done And they will show you how to help them get it done And just by simply
clicking on an email that they will send out to you You can go to gun owners dot
org and sign up and while you're there, look at all of the articles they've got.
They're all of the memos and press releases and things like that. And you'll find
action buttons on those also. So make sure that you get your voice heard in
Washington, DC. Make sure that your representatives hear from you. I know you've
heard me talk about this ad nauseam on this program, but I will never stop talking
about it because that is not only our right, but our civic duty as Americans.
This is the government of buy -in for the people. And Louise, I appreciate you
holding through the break, brother, and more than that, taking the time to be with
us today on shooting straight, man. - Look, I cannot say it more,
more enough, but thank you for having us on the program. Thank you for having me
on the program 'cause you take time out of your busy day to do this program.
So thank you for that. And my brother, I'm glad to be in the fight. It's a
purpose that I have and I believe the good Lord has laid this in front of me as
a mission almost and I plan on being here until they cart me out of here in a
bag. So we're getting it done, man. So let's just move on to Florida because you
are the Florida director of Gun Hunters of America. What's going on here in Florida?
I know recently we had a federal judge say that, "Oh no, that 2018 Marjory Stoneman
Douglas Law that banned guns from the hands of 18 to 20 year olds, that's
constitutional." I think they said, "It's not unconstitutional." Either way, you might
as well go ahead and say it's constitutional. Take it away, brother. You just hit
the nail straight on the head, the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that
that legislation was filed, that we backed, that we testified on, that we supported
to repeal this. And this was the third year in a row that a Republican
supermajority legislature failed to pass it and get it to the governor's desk.
Especially after Governor DeSantis has said multiple times that he was against the
Parkland bill, that if he was governor then, he would have vetoed the bill
wants it, he wants it repealed. But the legislative leadership has refused to advance
the bill to where it could pass both chambers and reach his desk. And with the
latest case in the 11th Circuit, it has been appealed to the U .S.
Supreme Court. Organizationally, we have filed an amicus brief, and in it we go
through it and basically make argument of this is why scotis the supreme court needs
to take this case it's a vital importance all americans eighteen and up half the
constitutional right to keep their arms so we are waiting to see what the supreme
court says on that but that is sadly just the tip of the iceberg of the failures
that is the florida legislature when it comes to gun rights That's uh, yeah,
I picked up on that over the years It kind of shocks me that there are so many
people up there with an R after their name that I have come to believe stands for
Rotten to the core rather than Republicans Good night. I mean we've chronicled some
of your Escapades up there in Tallahassee delivering hand delivering petitions and
things to Elected officials officials up there and come back later and find them in
the trash can. We talked about that when you were on the program before when that
happened to you. It's an arrogant lot that we're dealing with up there and too many
of them are constitutionally dyslexic, that's the problem. But go ahead, brother.
Yeah, you know, they have an R by the name and it doesn't mean Republican, it
means reprehensible. No, I don't take that. Let's go with that, or Rick Pugna, how
about it? I like that too. The issue comes out to,
look, you have a lot of anti -gunners, a lot of Democrats that have literally
changed their jerseys from team D to team R. And a great example of that is a
representative, Hillary Cassel, she left the Democratic Party after the November
elections, joined the Republicans, And she is one of the most vehemently anti -gun
members of the state legislature. And we rose an issue to the RPOF saying,
"Look, how can you guys welcome her into the party? This is screwed up.
She's going to vote against our gun rights." And she didn't vote against our gun
rights once. She did it twice this session. She voted against repealing the under -21
purchase ban in committee and then again on the House floor when the bill came up
for a full vote. She hasn't been censured, she hasn't been punished, she hasn't been
stripped of committee seats, none of that. It's just been walking to the party.
You're now a Republican. Thank you. -Yeah, and name only, unfortunately.
-It's not even a name only. It's it's a Republican supermajority in Mamo. It's a
Sino made up of a bunch of rhinos. But legislatively speaking,
this year, the scorecard is our open carry bill never even got out of drafting
because the bill sponsor was threatened by legislative leadership that they would be
politically exiled. The bill to repeal the bump Bumpstock ban, never brought up once
for voter debate. The under -21 purchase ban, never brought up in the Senate.
Campus Kerry was voted against and defeated in committee with State Senator Ileana
Garcia, voting with the anti -gun Democrats, defeating the bill there,
and then you had the entire fiasco with the budget. Remember, our session was
supposed to end in the first week of May, and Governor DeSantis campaigned on,
before session even started, and I remember this was January 30th, because I asked
him directly at that press conference, "Hey, Governor, you're going to call for a
two -way tax holiday, right? Yep, sure am. It's going to go from Memorial Day to
Independence Day. Fantastic. Guess what? That didn't happen because our Republican
leadership between the House and the Senate, a supermajority, couldn't even come to
an agreement for a budget and they only ended session literally a week ago.
Wow. A month and a half after session should have ended. But,
you know, I recently got a notification today at work that there is a sales tax
holiday on guns and ammo from September 8th until December.
Yes. Yes. So, wait, is that related to this? Is this a different thing?
What's going on with that? That is related to this, and luckily at least that
happened, but this sales tax holiday should have been happening right now as we
speak perfect timing for it. Yeah, literally. That is how disjointed our Republican
majority is. They couldn't pass a simple budget. Governors' words were enlightening
and disheartening at the same time because basically what he It was you guys spent
all this time to give me this This isn't anything special.
This isn't anything that'll blow my socks off This is a piece of junk And you guys
wasted all of that time that you spent taxpayer money
Wow on this because remember when they're in session, that means Capitol Police is
there. They're on a heightened staff. That means all of their staffers are there.
There's more people at the Capitol. So they were literally burning our money, arguing
on the stupidest things possible.
And yet they have the nerve to claim we're the free estate in the country. We're
fantastic. We're the This rank Republican state in the country when it comes to gun
rights, only Florida, New York, Illinois, and Connecticut outright ban open carry.
California is ambiguous. They, you know, some, it's, it's up to some, some rural
counties you could open carry if the sheriff allows it. But in terms of state law,
Florida, New York, Illinois, and Connecticut, they're the only states that outright
band open carry of both a long gun and a hang up and they call us the gun shine
state exactly but in the gun shine state the sunshine can't touch your gun if you
do it's an arrestable offense I like that I'm stealing that from you by the way
don't let the sunshine hit your gun shine right look I'm not just the I'm not just
the Florida state director of gun owners of America I'm also the president of gun
owners anonymous where we make sure that you go and purchase another farm. Food,
the food pyramid's a lie, don't worry, scratch the itch, go get another piece. But
other than the humorous side, other than the humorous side, which look, I have to
have some gallows humor because if not, I'd be screaming into the phone right now.
How both Tallahassee and DC gets us,
It's just appalling that we have a Republican supermajority That they campaign at
their program and then when push comes to shove they don't do anything. Yes. I
mean, it's appalling that I Could go to some Democrat states and I could open carry
there But I can't do that, but I can't do it in Florida and Florida not just on
top of the open carry ban, we have a campus carry ban, we have an under -21
purchase ban, we have red flag laws, we have mandatory waiting periods, and our
Republican majority doesn't want to tackle any of this. And the worst part about it
is, organizationally, we have had to file a lawsuit in federal court to challenge
this, because the legislature refuses to do the job, and that job is to listen and
do what their constituency has put them there for. Well, when you just said that
there, their job is to listen. But good grief, man. I stay in contact with my
people up there. And I know you do too.
More and more, I feel that we just are simply ignored.
It's like they're toned after what we're saying. And again, I'm not talking about
the ones with D's, I'm talking about the ones that call themselves R's. Go ahead.
No, it's very much that. They're in this isolated cocoon. They're in this walled
enclosure behind their ivory tower with their gates. They really forget who they're
representing, and that's the everyday common person. Look, the last two election
cycles, especially in Florida, there was a mandate. If you want to talk about a
measuring barometer and way to measure what the people wanted is,
look at the re -election of the governor. That is a statewide race, and he won by
numbers that not even President Trump won in Florida with.
That says something. And Governor DeSantis, and you know organizations, they didn't
even bumped head with the governors on a couple of issues. But for the most part,
Governor DeSantis is pro -gun, fiscally conservative, small government minded,
and pro -civil rights.
And that is what got him in office again. And there was a wave of that that got
a number of lawmakers in office. And the lawmakers, They have been fighting the
governor. I mean, it's insane. Florida's most popular,
supported governor, and the legislature's fighting him. Yes, and I know a couple of
people that were doing that. One of them was former state representative Randy Fine,
who still despises the air that Ron DeSantis breathes. And unfortunately, I believe
he's infected some other people with that same attitude and just the contempt that
those rhinos have towards our governor is not only is it nonproductive, it's for me
kind of frustrating and actually flabbergasting to a certain degree. - It is,
you know, the situation we have in Florida to me is dumbfounding because politically
speaking, I'm used to the idea of, okay you'll have a uh... a democratic governor
republican legislature vice versa and you know you have that political tit for tatan
fight now this is a republican supermajority a legitimate supermajority where democrats
have no say whatsoever and they are fighting a republican governor and it's not like
it's uh... rhino republican leftist governor governor. No, it's not. It's one of the
most conservative governors in the country. Yes, sir. That's frustrating for me. He
might as well be up against a wall full of Democrats.
Again, that's why I said what a lot of it is, is you just have Democrats who've
changed their jerseys from team D to team R. What they call turncoats.
Yeah, they literally And it's just it again, it's that's why I'm saying they're not
Republicans with an arm by the name It's just they're reprehensible. He meant to
that well because it is reprehensible. It is it. It's absolutely reprehensible And
it's infuriating that we sent Them up there and Ron DeSantis with the exact same
freaking mandate And he is the only one up there trying to see that mandate
through, while they're the ones there fighting him. They were, they're the ones that
campaigned on, "Oh, we're so pro -Second Amendment, we're so pro -Constitution," and
then you get up there and act like they're the antithesis thereof. And that's what
makes me start dreaming about building a large multi -occupant gallows in Tallahassee,
to be honest with you. [laughter] Well, that's one of the reasons why we found our
lawsuit. And just last week we filed a motion for summary judgment and our argument
is very simple. The Constitution and the historical history and the history of the
Second Amendment in the United States in no way defends Florida's position for an
open carry ban and an under -21 carry ban. Yes, sir. Adults are adults and when the
Constitution was written, Everyone talks about shall not be infringed.
Well, remember the first part is a well -regulated militia. Yes, sir a well -regulated
militia didn't mean the National Guard that it was government -controlled a well
-regulated militia simply meant that You as the private citizen Were able to self
-equip yourself yourself with the items of the time and be able to muster when
needed for war and For war. And part of that was carrying a six -foot long musket
with bayonets. Yep. How the heck are you going to conceal that?
Great question. Matter of fact, I think you probably know this already,
but for the audience, concealed carry laws were usually
in individual towns and the reason they were, even the permits were even issued for
concealed carry was because a concealed carry was considered to be that of the
rogues and the highwaymen. A gentleman carried openly and if you were a gentleman
and a law abiding citizen, you carried your gun openly and you didn't try to hide
it. If you tried to hide it, you were up to something, but that was the exact
flip -flop. Exactly. In the rest of the country...
tax because you, it was cold and you want to wear a coat while you were tearing
your pistol. Wow. And that, you know, but here in Florida, it's the exact opposite.
It's no, it's scorching hot. You have to wear a coat to conceal your pistol because
if not, you're going to break the law. I mean, it just, it's ludicrous. It makes
no sense. And it's, it well, it's been lucrative for the holster breakers as for
sure it is but it could all be distilled to one thing no matter the jurisdiction
no matter the geography of the climate it came down to a very simple thing all of
these gun laws have been put on the books because one group has wanted to oppress
and over another that's right orders history it goes back to jim crow it goes back
to segregation goes back to the end of the civil war the first thing the bigoted
southern Democrats did when they regained control of the state legislature was rewrite
the state constitution to say, "You have the right to carry, to keep it bearable,
but we have the right to regulate the method of carry." Yep. And going all the way
back, yep, and going all the way back to the 1890s, the Florida government in one
form or another has pushed a permitting scheme, just this ludicrous scheme that you
have to seek permission to own and carry a firearm across the state. And in 1941
in Watson B. Stone, and I never make up the name, he is not an extra of the
Dukes of Hazard, but Justice Rutherford Bieford in Watson B. Stone said, you know,
the paraphrase, the agreement, his statement, "I know of this law. This law was
written back in the 1890s specifically to disarm black laborers and we don't enforce
it against 80 to 90 percent of the population because they're white and they're all
violating the law but we don't care. If this law went up to the U .S. Supreme
Court right now it'd be rule unconstitutional and that's what he said in 1941 and
we still have remnants of that on the books to this day. Yes sir, that makes you
wonder if a little bit of that culture is still with us, and I do believe the
answer is yes. That's for sure. Well, Lewis, tell us what we can do here in
Florida to, besides get a hold of our reps, you got some contact info we can get
a hold of them? Well, right now it's becoming election season.
Next year is going to be an election year. So in August of 2026,
we're going to have our primaries And those are going to be the really important
crucial races. It's not going to be the general election because, remember, up to
one fourth of the entire legislature runs unopposed. So what we need to do is we
need to get good candidates in these Republican districts and that means primary
races. We need to support. We need to back. We need to vet the candidates that are
running. But more importantly, we need people to vote in these primary races. Again,
revoting this is part of our.
It's going to be the primaries, and right now, you already have candidates starting
to run. Yes, sir. I know. And it's amazing how close to the Constitution they
become, or claim to be, right before these primaries. And it seems that so many of
them love to ride Trump's coattails and Ron DeSantis' coattails until they get into
office and all of a sudden, then they turn into adversaries for some reason. I
wonder, obviously money involves somewhere, but I'm not gonna run that rabbit trail
right now. Brother, I tell you what, I appreciate you being part of the program
today and bringing your expertise and your experience here and filling us in on
things that we were unaware of. And I really am glad that you are the Florida
director of GOA and I really appreciate the work that you do. I'm not just trying
to pump sunshine up your tailpipe, brother. I really appreciate the Dickens out of
you and Eric Pratt and everybody else involved in GOA. And my program, I have said
this before, I'll say it again, is at your disposal. Your disposal,
Eric's disposal, anybody at GOA that thinks that my audience needs to hear what
you've got to hear, You just hit me up brother. You can invite yourself onto this
program, which by the way, the audience has Exploded all over the country and all
over the world literally now. It's in probably over 5 ,000 American cities now So
it's it's it's doing it's going really well That you you got something that you
think we need to hear you hit that you hit me up Shoot me a text that Royce.
Let's get it done and going to have a brother. Well, that is fantastic. And I'm
going to end it with this. As you know, we have goals 2025 coming up our gun
owners advocacy and leadership summit on August 9th and 10th, the Knoxville,
Tennessee. It's our national event. It's going to be two solid days or you're going
to have manufacturers and vendors there showing off the latest wares, but it's not
just that. GOAs are going to be putting on classes. You're going to, as GOA
members, you're going to be able to meet your GOA team, you're going to be able to
meet your state and regional directors, along with federal affairs, our legal side,
our outreach programs, and it's just, it's going to be a blast. So again, you know,
goals 2025, August 9th and 10th, Knoxville, Tennessee, I'm going to be there and I
guarantee you a lot of other people are going to be there. And the problem that
that I'm gonna have is I get to check in all the guns. So I'm gonna try to take
some home, but I know I can't do it.
Well, maybe one of them, maybe one of them checked their guns has a few too many
to drink. He'll forget he left it there with any luck, right? I'm just hoping, you
know, I'm hoping one of the vendors like, ah, this is so much stuff to take home.
You could just keep it, Lou. You could just keep it. We hoped up what's going to
happen with one of the manufacturers, but I mean, look, it's real tempting when, you
know, they all come out with the newest toys and I'm there getting my grubby paws.
And I'm like, Hey, you guys really don't need this. Do you? Like, come on. You
guys have a bunch of these, but it's going to, it's going to be a fantastic event.
And I hope to see you there, brother. Well, if I have the time and the ability to
make it there, I would love to be there. So, uh, When we get closer to that date,
we'll do a check of the finances and the time factor and see if it's possible and
if so, I'd be more than honored to meet you guys there and hang out with you. I
always love being around like -minded Americans who love and uphold and defend the
Constitution and I know I find that a G .O .A., brother. All right,
man. Well, listen, if you don't mind hanging on the phone while I sign us off and
I'll be right back, all right? - You got it. - All right, well thank you very much
for joining us on this episode of Shooting Straight. And I'm glad that you got to
listen to Luis Valdez. He will be on even more again. He's been on here many times
before. He will be on many times more after this, I assure you. And stay in
contact with your reps. You know, I know you've heard me say this every show,
literally. I'm not just saying that. Get in contact with your reps. Their phone
numbers should be dialed into your phone preset. Give them a call, blow up their
emails and make sure that your voice is heard because that's one of the
distinguishing characteristics about GOA members. We are loud and we are locked loaded
and loud on the shooting straight radio podcast stay trained up don't leave your
home without a loaded firearm and at least two extra mags and never forget incoming
rounds always have the right of way Royce and vile does are out of here