A. Barton Hinkle: Virginia Aims to Restrict the Second Amendment
Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe calls the gun-control proposals he unveiled Monday "common-sense" measures. Brian Moran, his secretary of public safety, also calls them that. You can bet that supporters of the measures—a one-gun-a-month limit, background checks at gun shows, a prohibition on gun ownership by persons subject to protective orders, revocation of concealed-carry permits for parents who fall behind on child support—will call them common-sense, too.
McAuliffe also claims to support the Second Amendment. But calling for new laws to infringe on gun rights sure is a funny way to show it. As A. Barton Hinkle observes, that's like claiming to support gay rights while pushing "common-sense" proposals to restrict homosexual activity, or insisting you're a big fan of free speech while advocating "common-sense limits on what people can say."