Wydle,
There has been discord for a long time in Virginia between the Gun Rights Crowd and the P4P crowd. In your statement above, we cannot agree on what "the real issue" is. For me, at the State and local level, the center of gun rights is Constitutional Carry.
Our current problems came to a boil when politics, gun rights, a PAC, an organization president and some over zealous posters on this board all collided. (I am one of those over zealous guilty bastards) It wasn't a pretty sight. Eventually we must confront the issues that are harming us if we are to heal and come back together.
My .02: ACTA non VERBA - Deeds not words - Constitutional Carry is one of my core beliefs and is a basic tenant of gun rights. I cannot and will not support politicians or organizations that do not support Constitutional Carry. There are others on this board that also feel this way.
Here is some perspective: Question: Would VCDL PAC have endorsed the Cooch if the Cooch had wanted to "close the gun show loophole and institute universal background checks in Virginia?" Answer: Depends on whether the issue was a core value for VCDL PAC.
VCDL PAC made a choice and clearly indicated that Constitutional Carry was not a core value and that opposition to Constitutional Carry was OK.
So, I am all for healing and coming together, but not at the cost of compromising core values.
I write here in a very unemotional tone because that is the way to confront the issues that divide us without throwing gasoline on the fire.
Live Free or Die,
Thundar
The problem with this argument is the reverse of what some people have pointed out about McAuliffe's win. Just like there are limits to how much gun control McAuliffe can impose on his own as Governor, there are limits to how much Sarvis could have done to advance the cause of Constitutional Carry as Governor. Until we can gain and hold a solid pro-liberty majority in the Senate, there's no chance that we'll get a Constitutional Carry bill through the legislature and onto the Governor's desk.
For now, our major focus needs to be on 1) the upcoming special election to replace Northam (as that will determine control of the Senate), and 2) finding and supporting good candidates for the Senate elections in 2015.
If we can get a 2/3 majority of pro-liberty people in each House, then it doesn't matter who is governor. We can pass Constitutional Carry and override his veto. Alternately, we can push for a Constitutional Amendment clarifying that the right to bear arms includes the right to carry concealed without a permit. That requires a majority in each house in two different, consecutive legislatures and a majority vote by the People in the next general election.
We are close to a 2/3 majority in the House (requires 67), but the Senate is nowhere near that strong for us (requires 27).
I voted for Sarvis when he ran against Saslaw in 2011, and I would do so again in a heartbeat. Had he been running for the House of Delegates in my district, I would have voted for him easily. Why? Because those are the areas where we need the strongest support.
