'Never let a crisis go to waste' has been the mantra of the Left for quite some time.
We saw it most vividly during COVID, when Leftists jumped at the chance to lock us in our homes, impose draconian mask mandates, shutter our 'non-essential businesses', threaten our jobs via vaccine mandates, and even proposed denying us healthcare if we didn't do what we said.
And we're seeing it play out again in the wake of the shooting at Florida State University.
The shooter was identified as 20-year-old Phoenix Iker, the son of a Leon County Sheriff's deputy. He allegedly used one of his mother's weapons to commit the crime. Two were killed and five others were wounded.
Leftists wasted no time in their rush to strip Americans like me of our Second Amendment rights. Without the 'due process' they've been insisting applies only to the tens of millions of illegal immigrants their party imported over the years.
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Wisconsin Rep. Mark Pocan pushed -- once more -- for 'common sense' gun laws:
My heart breaks for the FSU community and families of yet another tragedy. It's beyond time for action. It's time to pass commonsense gun laws so that we can end this gun violence epidemic once and for all. https://t.co/EiHfVWYXde
— Rep. Mark Pocan (@RepMarkPocan) April 18, 2025
What laws, pray tell, would have stopped this shooting? I asked Pocan to name them and be specific.
He won't.
Because he can't.
I will, however, go through the most suggested 'common sense' gun laws the Left pushes after such tragedies and demonstrate how they wouldn't have stopped this.
Universal Background Checks
Iker stole the gun from his law-enforcement officer mother.
Age Restrictions
Iker is 20 years old. Current Florida law prohibits anyone under the age of 21 from purchasing a firearm.
'Assault' Weapon Bans
The gun used was reportedly his mother's service weapon, a handgun.
High-Capacity Magazine Bans
Once more, the gun was a Sheriff's deputy's service weapon, most likely with a standard magazine.
Red Flag Laws
So far, it doesn't seem there were major warning signs with Iker. That could change. But as the Left screams about due process for illegal immigrants, they demand the ability to strip an American of his gun rights based on scant evidence under the guise of 'safety.' As we noted in 2020, when Virginia passed red flag laws, individuals could be accused in ex parte hearings and never know about it.
Oh, and by the way: homicide is also illegal in Florida. We see how well Iker obeyed that law.
As we can see, there is currently no proposed 'common sense' gun control law that would have stopped Iker from committing this crime. Unless, of course, the Democrats are working towards banning handguns and prohibiting law enforcement from carrying weapons, too.
Perhaps they are. Colorado Governor Jared Polis signed sweeping anti-gun legislation that prohibits the manufacture, sale, and purchase of most semi-automatic weapons:
On Thursday, Polis signed SB25-003 into law. As a result, beginning in August 2026, the manufacture, sale, and purchase of most semi-automatic firearms that can accept detachable ammunition magazines will be outlawed in Colorado. Only those who undergo special vetting from their local sheriff’s office, take up to 12 hours of training over multiple days from a soon-to-be-developed state-sanctioned class, and pay an undetermined amount in fees for both processes will be permitted to buy the common weapons covered under the law.
Most handguns have detachable ammunition magazines, FYI. And Kamala Harris ran on radical gun confiscation platform in 2020.
A 2023 Pew Research Center survey reported that 32% of U.S. adults -- 82.9 million people -- reported owning at least one firearm. So with a swipe of the pen, Democrats want to strip tens of millions of Americans of a constitutionally protected right.
Without a court date. Without a hearing. Without providing one shred of evidence that we have broken a single law that negates our right to own a gun.
Undoubtedly, they'd tell us it would be a legal and logistical nightmare to give 83 million Americans a hearing before robbing us of Second Amendment protections. Hence, those red flag ex parte hearings and why the actions of one man in Florida mean collective punishment for every other gun owner.
In the same breath, they'll tell us the tens of millions of illegal immigrants are owed due process, and anything less is an affront to their rights. Even though they've broken -- at a minimum -- federal immigration laws.
And they'll tell us they're the good guys in all of this.
Fortunately, voters see right through their obvious hypocrisy.
Perhaps this is why the Democratic Party is enjoying a 21% approval rating, and confidence in the party is at an all-time low.
