HIS GUN NEVER LEFT THE HOLSTER

His gun never left the holster. How do you win, if your gun never leaves its holster? If your home is attacked; if your wife is threatened, would you put up your very best defense? Or would you sit back and say, “Well, the [robber, rapist, squatter – whoever] had a bigger gun”, or “There were two of them, so what’s the use?” I’ll just wait and see what happens…

Of course, you wouldn’t. That’s against nature. You do whatever it takes to protect your family and your home. We are not passive people! We were forged in the American Revolution and have been tested countless times since. We’ve emerged victorious from wars, crises of all types, hellacious weather events, and terrorism. We understand conflict. And one thing we KNOW about conflict is that if you don’t engage, you lose.

VOTING STATISTICS FOR GUN OWNERS

So why, then, with our Second Amendment rights under attack by the current Vice President (who is running for President), why would you not engage? Do you WANT to lose? Are you going to leave your gun (vote) in the holster?

According to Vote4America, quoted in Shooting News Weekly, over 10 million hunters and other gun owners are not registered to vote. TEN MILLION is a big number. Many hunters and gun owners have told them, “My vote doesn’t count; the system is rigged.” But, according to the article:

“Despite the pessimism, even marginal wins could pay big dividends come November. “​​If we could convert 2% of all licensed hunters and get them to vote, GOP would win in a landslide,” Leavitt told Hoffman.”

 

 Hoffman noted that “a lot of hunters and gun owners, they’re very animated in social media, they have a lot of opinions, but they don’t go out to vote. They talk a great deal, often about preserving your rights, doing this — hunting — but a lot of people don’t follow through with voting.”  …leaving their gun in the holster, yet again!

CLOSER TO HOME

Constitutional Carry became effective on July 1, 2021 in Iowa. This law allows residents and non-residents to carry a firearm openly or concealed without a permit, with some exceptions. As a result, some Iowa permit holders have since let their permits lapse. But even now, Iowans holding a Permit to Carry still represent 13.82% of the population, or over 400,000 Iowans. In fact, per USCCA, Iowa ranked 6th in the top 10 states for Concealed Carry Permits (2023). Translation: Iowa is a freedom-loving state. Iowa has many hunters, trap and skeet shooters, 3-Gun and other competitive shooters, and shooting sports enthusiasts. 

The Freedom Amendment to our State Constitution was passed in November 2022 with OVER 65% of all votes statewide. Clearly, Iowans want to protect their gun rights. You might be thinking, what can we do to change the national gun-control narrative? (There you go again: leaving your vote in its holster.) Don’t forget down-ballot races. Iowans will elect state and federal representatives that will support or hamper the next President. If you don’t engage, you lose.

Why would you risk having your rights taken from you, when you can do something as simple as voting, to try to protect them? Because make no mistake, if they get to the guns, the rest of the rights will fall like dominoes [cue John Kerry saying Free Speech is the enemy…cue the ATF gunning down an airport CEO at his home in Arkansas at 6:00 a.m., in front of his wife…cue the countless court cases meant to break our pocketbooks and our spirit…etc.] If you’re not mad yet, get mad! And vote.

VP Harris has been very clear about her gun-control mission. If she wins the office of the President, she will do everything in her power to create gun registration, mandatory gun buybacks, “assault weapon” bans, destroy American gun manufacturing, and eliminate the supply of ammunition. Not to mention red-flag laws; endless lawsuits; coercing states, businesses, and media to use every means to identify and limit gun owners; and even implementing school programs that trick children into identifying whether Mommy or Daddy (or, oh my God – BOTH!) have firearms. They have shown their hand already. For gun owners, Harris spells big trouble. And she is counting on gun owners not to engage; not to vote…instead, to leave their guns in the holster.

Gun rights groups across the nation are alarmed by the number of gun owners who do not vote, or who are not even registered. Gun Owners of America is currently working to register as many gun owners as possible between now and Election Day and says on their website:

“When the margin of victory is small in battleground states– getting out the gun vote is IMPERATIVE! Remember, some of the most competitive races have been decided by a few hundred or a few thousand votes.

A Guns.com article provides a brief description of the 2A Platforms from Harris and Trump. Also, read here: USCCA breaks down the differences in the party platforms relative to the RKBA. You can also read an article here by the National Shooting Sports Foundation, and they have this message for gun owners:

The National Shooting Sports Foundation, is “urging all gun owners, hunters, recreational target shooters, and supporters of the Second Amendment to register to vote by visiting GunVote.org and heading to the polls on Election Day.” 

An article in the Daily Caller sums it up neatly:

“We believe [gun owners] will be a determinant factor, particularly when the contrast is so stark. You have a candidate on the Democrat side who was coronated and wants to literally, wants to send the police to your home to see how you store your guns, and wants to confiscate firearms,” Keane added.

 

“Former President Donald Trump himself believes gun owners can sway the election. Speaking at a recent rally, he said that the National Rifle Association had shown him numbers about how infrequently gun owners vote. “If you would vote, nobody would beat us,” Trump said.”

As it says on the Iowa State Flag: Our Liberties We Prize and Our Rights We Will Maintain

To do that, you must vote!

To amplify your impact: Join IFC!

NEED HELP?

• Early voting in Iowa begins tomorrow, October 16th
• You can register to vote in person during early voting, or on election day
• You can also register to vote online by October 21st
• REMEMBER: You cannot carry (OPEN OR CONCEALED) at a polling location

If you are not registered (or not sure if you are); or if you need voting info:

• https://sos.iowa.gov/elections/voterinformation/

And if you need information about how your State Senators and Representatives have voted on Second Amendment-related bills in the past, look here: https://www.ifcpac.org/legislative-scorecard/

Finally, if you want to know which State legislators are currently running for office and who  IFC is endorsing, look here: https://www.ifcpac.org/2024-endorsements/

Second Amendment Matters