Congress and our own state legislature will be kicking off the 2022 session in just a couple of days, which is why our team has been working around the clock to finalize our battle plans for the upcoming year — and the budget we need to be effective.
I have to tell you, in all of my years of fighting for the Second Amendment in Albany and in Congress, I have never seen our gun rights in a more precarious situation.
The good news is that grassroots gun owners have stood tall and fought for freedom in 2021 in ways that we haven’t seen since the early days of the Obama Administration.
And so, while Nancy Pelosi has passed two gun control bills through the House, neither of them have advanced in the Senate as Schumer simply can’t get the 60 votes he needs to proceed.
The bad news is that after Democratic candidates were crushed in the recent Virginia and New Jersey elections, Biden’s handlers know there is a real chance they will lose control of Congress in November, so they are going ‘all in’ on gun control!
And while Senate Republicans in D.C. have blocked the gun control bills that Pelosi has sent over from the House so far, if we have a mass shooting any time in 2022, we will almost certainly see ten to twelve RINOs betray us immediately.
But we also have a major fight shaping up here in Albany over mental health gun control, civil liability insurance requirements for gun owners, and the omnibus gun control mega bill AB-7771/SB-3018!
And when you add in the critical midterm elections that are already shaping up -– with the chance that gun owners could flip the State Senate — it’s obvious that 2022 is going to be a BIG YEAR for the NYS Firearms Association!
That’s why I am writing you today.
I have to make some difficult choices on where the NYSFA will be focusing our time and money in 2022. And since this has always been a member-driven organization, I am asking for your advice on how you want us to proceed.
That’s why I have prepared your 2022 NYS Firearms Association Membership Ballot, so I can hear directly from you firsthand. Please complete your ballot right away!
The truth is that without a quick infusion of funds from NYSFA members, we may have to sit out some of these fights.
Right now, we simply don’t have the budget to keep the heat on New York’s Republican Congressional delegation to oppose Biden’s gun control agenda, go on the offense with Stand-Your-Ground law in Albany, fight against Governor Hochul’s gun control mega bill and expose gun grabbers during the mid-terms.
At the same time, the thought of having to ignore ANY of these fights makes me sick, as they are all important.
One thing is clear, now that Attorney General Tish James has ended her primary against Governor Kathy Hochul, Hochul’s people are working overtime to make sure that no one else tries to primary her from her left flank.
And that’s why Hochul is working with rank socialist thugs in the legislature to pass AB-7771/SB-3018, the gun control mega bill that we’ve been warning you about all fall!
New Yorkers are no stranger to gun control bills being filed in Albany, but this one is different. This is the kind of bill that would make China’s Chairman Mao smile as it would DESTROY the Second Amendment here in New York State for good.
Just some of the things that this bill would do include:
>>> Requiring gun owners to provide notarized proof that you’ve passed a state-administered mental health exam before you can buy any rifle or shotgun!
>>> Requiring gun owners to provide notarized proof that you’ve passed a state-administered drug test before you can buy a rifle or shotgun!
>>> Requiring gun owners to submit to a five-hour safety course every time you want to buy a shotgun or rifle, including a live fire shooting test where you need to score at least 90% to be able to possess the gun!
>>> Requiring gun owners to provide a receipt, documenting the safe that you’ll store the rifle or shotgun in should you be allowed to purchase it.
This bill won’t stop a single criminal from robbing, raping, or murdering innocent New Yorkers. Criminals will simply ignore this law, like they ignore New York’s existing gun control laws.
But make no mistake, this legislation was never designed to stop violent criminals. It was designed to stop gun owners like you and me from being able to defend ourselves against criminals and tyrants!
The only good news is that Joe Biden’s plummeting poll numbers are scaring Democrats around the nation, as the 2022 elections are already coming into view.
And a growing number of State Senators in vulnerable districts DO NOT want to vote on such a nasty gun control bill knowing they are facing the voters later this year.
That’s why I think that we can defeat this wicked legislation if enough gun owners stand with us and flood the legislature with calls, emails, and petitions opposing it!
But we can’t just stay on defense all year.
Every other gun rights organization in the state has done that for decades, and it’s gotten them nowhere. That’s why the NYSFA is working with Senator George Borello and Assemblyman David DiPietro to push for Stand-Your-Ground law in Albany!
Currently here in New York State, if you are confronted by an armed attacker outside of your home, you are legally required to retreat before you can defend yourself or your loved ones.
And if you don’t, you will be the one facing criminal charges, especially if you dare to defend yourself in one of New York’s ‘blue’ counties!
Sounds crazy, right?
It’s not.
Gun owners are routinely prosecuted across the state (not just in NYC) for the ‘crime’ of daring to defend themselves. But that’s not all. Our lack of a Stand-Your-Ground law means that the same criminal (or his estate) who attacked you once, can attack you again, in civil court, for damages if you shoot him.
Imagine what that would be like, rotting away in a state penitentiary somewhere because you dared to defend yourself or your family from a violent criminal — then getting hit with a $2,000,000 civil suit on top of it!
And I’m sure you’ll agree, there has never been a more important time to advance this life saving legislation.
Violent crime is completely out of control across New York State because innocent New Yorkers can’t fight back, and because the State has demonized our cops while releasing thousands of violent criminals onto our streets over the last few years!
Will the legislature pass this bill and send it to Governor Hochul? Of course not.
But just filing this legislation will be a huge win for us, as it allows gun owners to go on the offensive while putting every single lawmaker in the state on record — giving us another avenue to expose gun grabbers at election time!
Just ask former Senators Metzger and Martinez, who refused
to support this legislation in the past and were booted out of office in 2020 after we exposed them in their districts!
But we’re also going to be facing one hell of a fight in Washington, D.C. this year, too.
As I said earlier, the leftist machine that is running Joe Biden in D.C. knows that they are likely going to lose control of the House, Senate or both when ‘We the People’ head to the polls next year. So they are going ‘all in’ on gun control.
And while there are plenty of bills that Biden and Pelosi would like to pass, there are two bills at the absolute top of their list because of the devastating harm they would do.
First is H.R. 8, the ‘Universal Background Check’ legislation that has already passed the House and that would require gun owners to obtain government permission each time they try to buy a firearm.
The real reason why Biden and Pelosi want to pass H.R. 8 is to give the federal government a list of every gun owner in America, while making felons out of Americans who don’t comply.
Second is H.R. 2377, the massive ‘Red Flag Gun Seizure’ bill that would enact New York-style gun confiscation laws across the country, empowering liberal judges to disarm Americans who have never set foot in court, let alone been convicted of a crime.
What makes both of these bills so dangerous (besides the harm they would do to our gun rights) is the fact that a growing number of Republicans are already supporting BOTH OF THEM!
When Nancy Pelosi passed H.R. 8 out of the House, a dozen Republicans joined her in voting for this garbage. And over the last two years, Republican Senators like Rob Portman, Pat Toomey, Lindsay Graham, Susan Collins, Mitt Romney and others have come out in support of a national registry of gun owners!
And while Nancy Pelosi is leading the charge for ‘Red Flag’ laws in the House, in the Senate, Republican Marco Rubio is the LEAD SPONSOR on ‘Red Flag’ legislation and over a half-dozen other Republicans have already come out in support of the idea.
So while we have held the line against these bills in the Senate so far, you can bet that these RINO traitors will be lining up to betray us if we have a mass shooting incident anywhere in America this year.
But it’s also crucial that the NYS Firearms Association is in a position to hammer on the records of gun-grabbers during the critical midterm elections that will be here soon.
This is what separates the NYSFA from other state groups and the national gun groups that all love to take money from gun owners here in New York — but don’t lift a finger to hold the left accountable for their votes at election time!
If the politicians in Albany can attack our gun rights all session long — and pay no price for their actions during the election season — why wouldn’t they continue their attacks?
NYSFA’s election-timed programs involve a combination of radio and TV ads, digital and social media advertising, uncensorable direct mail, and a massive email program. It’s brutally effective, but it is not cheap.
The alternative is to do what most other gun groups do, sit on the sidelines and whine while the enemies to our freedoms take a sledgehammer to our beautiful Second Amendment.
I’m sure you can see why I’m so torn. Each of these fights deserves our full attention. But I have to be realistic. And right now, I just can’t engage in all four of these fights.
That’s why I’m counting on you to please fill out your NYS Firearms Association Member Ballot and tell me where to focus the resources that we have.
Of course, when you do so, you’ll notice that I have included another option on your membership ballot — an option that we haven’t talked about yet, because it’s just not possible without a major influx of funds.
Nevertheless, it’s the option that I am secretly hoping you will choose. And that’s OPTION #5: “FIGHT EVERYWHERE! CRUSH AB-7771/SB-3018! PUSH FOR STAND-YOUR-GROUND! DEFEAT BIDEN’S GUN CONTROL AND EXPOSE GUN-GRABBERS IN THE FALL! DO IT ALL!
To be clear, if you select Option 5, I need you to dig deep and include the most generous donation that you possibly can to help the NYSFA put this plan into action.
We simply can’t afford to run these programs simultaneously without it. In fact, without considerable help from gun owners like you, running even TWO of these programs at the scale they would need to be run will be very tough.
But everything is on the line in 2022.
And if we just sit back and hope for the best, we are very likely going to see sweeping gun control pass into law in D.C. which will only encourage more attacks on our rights at the state level.
But if we stand together, we can defeat the gun control mega bill in Albany, fight for Stand-Your-Ground law, shut down the biggest attack that gun owners have ever seen coming out of D.C. and then SEND A MESSAGE in November!
I know that’s a lot. But you’ve seen the incredible impact your donations have had in the past. And with everything we’re facing this year, we are counting on you more than ever!
Whatever you do, please act fast as the legislature (and Congress) is reconvening in just days! I need to hear from you RIGHT AWAY!
For New York State,
Aaron Dorr
Executive Director
NYS Firearms Association
P.S. The 2022 legislative session begins here in Albany —and in Washington D.C. — in just days and I have to make some very difficult decisions about where to focus our resources and our time this session.
We need to fight like hell to stop Gov. Hochul’s gun control mega bill! But we also need to rally support for Stand-Your-Ground law, keep the pressure on New York’s Congressional delegation in D.C., and get ready to expose gun-grabbers in vulnerable districts this fall.
I need to know what YOU want the NYS Firearms Association to focus on in 2022. So please complete your Member Ballot and right away.