By Liz Nass
Gongwer News Service
Republican gubernatorial candidate Tom Leonard announced his “Michigan Second Amendment Freedom Plan,” which includes repealing firearm safety laws and making Michigan a “constitutional carry” state.
Leonard cited the need for mindset change around the Second Amendment in Michigan to a recent clip of Grand Rapids Mayor David LaGrand saying gun owners should be ashamed of themselves, comparing owning a gun to smoking cigarettes by saying there’s a lot more harm than benefit to it.
Leonard said that mindset is “sick and dangerous,” and his new plan is a “proactive response” to remarks from local officials.
“When public officials spout nonsense about law-abiding citizens, silence only encourages more nonsense,” Leonard said in a statement. “I’m not in the business of standing by. Michigan families have a constitutional right to protect themselves and today we’re putting a plan on the table to make sure they can.”
His plan includes Michigan becoming a “constitutional carry” state which would remove the requirement for a person to obtain a permit and take training courses to carry a concealed firearm. There are 29 states with these laws including Indiana and Ohio.
Leonard has been a longtime supporter of constitutional carry. The House moved bills on permitless carrying in 2017 when he was House Speaker.
Rep. Mike Hoadley, R-Au Gres, sponsored a series of bills, HB 5653, HB 5654, HB 5655, HB 5656 and HB 5657, to eliminate current permit requirements Tuesday.
“We’ve been putting this off long enough,” Hoadley said in a statement. “The Second Amendment is exceptionally clear. For decades, authorities at both the state and federal level have worked to erode our rights that are explicitly protected in the Constitution. Requiring an American citizen to have a permit in order to carry a concealed pistol is outrageous, and it’s a direct barrier to our basic freedoms.”
He also called for the repeal of red flag and safe storage laws, signed into law in 2023, that created extreme risk protection orders to remove guns from people who were deemed dangerous by a court and require guns to be securely stored when a minor is present in a home.
Rep. James DeSana, R-Carleton, recently introduced bills to repeal red flag laws.
Leonard is also calling for protecting and expanding Stand Your Ground protections, creating a law to ensure state resources should not be used to enforce unconstitutional federal gun laws and strengthening state preemption laws over local governments if they were to create rules around firearm policy.
Other policy Leonard introduced includes protecting firearm manufacturers and retailers from “political motivated lawsuits,” prohibiting state contracts with financial institutions that he claims discriminate against firearm businesses and promoting voluntary hunter safety education.
Current gun control rhetoric, Leonard said, ignores “basic reality.”
“As a former prosecutor, I can tell you this: criminals don’t follow gun laws,” Leonard said. “They don’t apply for permits. They don’t comply with restrictions. And the more we restrict the constitutional freedoms of law-abiding citizens, the more we empower the very criminals we’re supposed to be stopping. Public safety starts with allowing innocent people to protect themselves and their families – not tying their hands.”
He plans to work with lawmakers to introduce a package upon taking office if elected governor.
Gongwer News Service
Republican gubernatorial candidate Tom Leonard announced his “Michigan Second Amendment Freedom Plan,” which includes repealing firearm safety laws and making Michigan a “constitutional carry” state.
Leonard cited the need for mindset change around the Second Amendment in Michigan to a recent clip of Grand Rapids Mayor David LaGrand saying gun owners should be ashamed of themselves, comparing owning a gun to smoking cigarettes by saying there’s a lot more harm than benefit to it.
Leonard said that mindset is “sick and dangerous,” and his new plan is a “proactive response” to remarks from local officials.
“When public officials spout nonsense about law-abiding citizens, silence only encourages more nonsense,” Leonard said in a statement. “I’m not in the business of standing by. Michigan families have a constitutional right to protect themselves and today we’re putting a plan on the table to make sure they can.”
His plan includes Michigan becoming a “constitutional carry” state which would remove the requirement for a person to obtain a permit and take training courses to carry a concealed firearm. There are 29 states with these laws including Indiana and Ohio.
Leonard has been a longtime supporter of constitutional carry. The House moved bills on permitless carrying in 2017 when he was House Speaker.
Rep. Mike Hoadley, R-Au Gres, sponsored a series of bills, HB 5653, HB 5654, HB 5655, HB 5656 and HB 5657, to eliminate current permit requirements Tuesday.
“We’ve been putting this off long enough,” Hoadley said in a statement. “The Second Amendment is exceptionally clear. For decades, authorities at both the state and federal level have worked to erode our rights that are explicitly protected in the Constitution. Requiring an American citizen to have a permit in order to carry a concealed pistol is outrageous, and it’s a direct barrier to our basic freedoms.”
He also called for the repeal of red flag and safe storage laws, signed into law in 2023, that created extreme risk protection orders to remove guns from people who were deemed dangerous by a court and require guns to be securely stored when a minor is present in a home.
Rep. James DeSana, R-Carleton, recently introduced bills to repeal red flag laws.
Leonard is also calling for protecting and expanding Stand Your Ground protections, creating a law to ensure state resources should not be used to enforce unconstitutional federal gun laws and strengthening state preemption laws over local governments if they were to create rules around firearm policy.
Other policy Leonard introduced includes protecting firearm manufacturers and retailers from “political motivated lawsuits,” prohibiting state contracts with financial institutions that he claims discriminate against firearm businesses and promoting voluntary hunter safety education.
Current gun control rhetoric, Leonard said, ignores “basic reality.”
“As a former prosecutor, I can tell you this: criminals don’t follow gun laws,” Leonard said. “They don’t apply for permits. They don’t comply with restrictions. And the more we restrict the constitutional freedoms of law-abiding citizens, the more we empower the very criminals we’re supposed to be stopping. Public safety starts with allowing innocent people to protect themselves and their families – not tying their hands.”
He plans to work with lawmakers to introduce a package upon taking office if elected governor.
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