From a man whose entire policy agenda is unconstitutional, this is, er . . . surprising, to say the least:
Bernie Sanders, believe it or not, is standing up for American property rights—at least when it comes to guns. Asked at a rally Sunday in Iowa whether he supports “mandatory buybacks for AR-15s and AK-47s,” Mr. Sanders didn’t equivocate in the slightest.
“A mandatory buyback,” he said, “is essentially confiscation, which I think is unconstitutional. It means that I’m going to walk into your house and take something whether you like it or not. I don’t think that stands up to constitutional scrutiny.”
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He’s not wrong. About this.
Of course, this is the same guy who wants to walk into your house and confiscate the wealth you’ve a) earned through your own efforts; and b) already paid taxes on. That’s unconstitutional. He also wants to make you pay 45 percent “exit tax” if you try to leave the country and take your money with you because you don’t want Bernie confiscating it.
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That’s unconstitutional.
He also wants to make it illegal for you to purchase health insurance from a private provider because, in Bernie’s mind, that only legitimate provider of health care is the federal government. You will not have the option to seek it elsewhere. That’s a violation of the right to free association and that’s unconstitutional.
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Bernie Sanders cares about as much about the Constitution as I care about soccer. If anything he usually regards it as a gigantic inconvenience that complicates his desire to put the federal government in charge of pretty much everything. So where did his sudden concern about constitutionality rear its head with respect to guns – especially since the Second Amendment is far and away the left’s least favorite?
The political analyst/cynic would suggest he’s trying to gain some sort of strategic positioning vis-a-vis other candidates who are out-and-out in favor of gun confiscation. But who? Beto’s out. Fauxahontas may be in favor of gun confiscation but she hasn’t made it a major tenet of her platform.
And since when does it help you in a Democratic primary to be moderate on guns? Does he think this is somehow going to make him – an avowed socialist – the favorite of centrist voters?
Hey, he wants to turn us socialist but at least he’s read the Second Amendment!
I suppose this could just be a stunning moment of clarity for a man whose mind is in the clouds just about all the time. And yes, it’s a welcome nod to truth in a primary race that sees such things very rarely. We welcome Bernie Sanders to the side of the angels on the question of gun confiscation, even though we’re more than wee bit skeptical he really means it.