Rep. Eric Swalwell stepped on a rake in his gun control argument using comments by Ben Shapiro about his constitutional rights.
The California Democrat attempted to expose an “a-ha” moment in the conservative commentator’s show that proved why “America needs red flag laws.” But unfortunately for himself, Swalwell only served as an example of the complete opposite argument.
Please tell me this lunatic does not own a gun. Reason 1,578 America needs red flag laws. https://t.co/NA9IPs0CDV
— Rep. Eric Swalwell (@RepSwalwell) October 12, 2019
Shapiro railed against Democratic 2020 candidate Beto O’Rourke during his podcast Friday, slamming Democrats for threatening to remove the tax-exempt status of religious organizations that oppose same-sex marriage. O’Rourke doubled down on his campaign platform during a CNN-hosted town hall on LGBTQ rights on Thursday. His comments sparked a heated backlash from conservatives like Shapiro.
“Your mere existence is an infringement, according to Beto O’Rourke,” Shapiro said, addressing people whose religious beliefs don’t line up with the 2020 hopeful.
“The institutional existence is an infringement on liberty, according to Beto O’Rourke, and you must be shut down. You want a culture war in this country? You damn well have it, Beto O’Rourke,” Shapiro continued. “You want a culture war in this country? You want this country to come apart at the seams? This is how you do it.”
His defense of religious freedom and constitutional rights sent the left into a meltdown as they tried to characterize his remarks as threatening to use violence.
“Because, I promise you, if you come to tell me that you’re going to indoctrinate my kids into a particular policy and that I can’t pull my kid out of the school and send my kid to a school I want to send them to,” Shapiro said, “that I can’t go to the church or synagogue that I want to go to. And if you make that national policy — not just California policy, where I can move, but national policy, people are not going to stand for that.”
“They’re not going to stand for that. And if you send a truant officer to remove my child, I have two choices at that point, right? If I have no place to move because you have now made this national, federal policy,” he continued. “I now have two choices: One is to leave the country utterly. Two is to pick up a gun. Those are the only choices you have left me.”
Shapiro predicted the left would accuse him of being “extreme.”
“It’s not extreme to defend the fundamental rights that the Constitution was created in order to protect. These rights pre-exist government. My right to raise my child in my faith is my right. That is a First Amendment right,” he argued.
“There is only one reason the government exists: to protect those rights, not to invade those rights. It is my right to raise my child with the moral precepts that I find to be beneficial for my child,” Shapiro added passionately. “Beto O’Rourke does not get to raise my child — and if he tries, I will meet him at the door with my gun. That is insane.”
Jason Campbell, a researcher for left-wing Media Matters, shared the clip of Shapiro in a tweet framing the remarks as aa violent threat, a characterization many were happy to echo, including Swalwell who called the conservative pundit a “lunatic.”
“Reason 1,578 America needs red flag laws,” he tweeted, fanning the flames of contention.
But the former 2020 Democratic candidate missed the irony in his own attack, giving critics strong proof for a counter-argument.
Reason 1,776 red flag laws are a terrible idea… because liberal politicians who hate the 2nd amend would use red flag laws to take away guns from conservatives based on our political views.
— Liz Wheeler (@Liz_Wheeler) October 12, 2019
If this is your criteria for the necessity and efficacy of #RedFlagLaws, then we DEFINITELY do not need them.
Then again, @benshapiro must be a violent extremist since words are violence to the new left.
Next you’ll call him an anti-Semitic Nazi fascist white supremacist.
— JD Rucker (@JDRucker) October 12, 2019
You literally just demonstrated in your tweet why red flag laws are a terrible idea. Because of politics. The idea that you’re are in a position to influence law is horrible yet you’re the exactly type of person I expect to WANT to wield that power. Just terrible.
— Phil, but spooky (@philthatremains) October 12, 2019
So when someone lays out a reasonable argument for why one could be pushed to protect the Constitution by force, your response is I will remove another one of your Constitutionally protected rights….interesting…#BothPartiesSuck
— Felestarian Jenkins (@lcamilo67) October 12, 2019
How about red flag laws for congressmen who think it’s crazy that a father would defend his children from government ownership? https://t.co/gGlK2xz3QT
— Fuzzy Chimp (@fuzzychimpcom) October 12, 2019
I don’t ever want to hear “red flag laws won’t be used against people with politically incorrect opinions” talking point again.
— Cᴜʀᴛ ᴛʜᴇ Lɪʙᴇʀᴛᴀʀɪᴀɴ (@checkmatestate) October 12, 2019
Many Twitter users were also reminded that Swalwell once threatened to use nuclear weapons to force compliance by gun owners in his ban on “military-style semi-automatic assault weapons.”
You threatened to nuke Americans. https://t.co/r83Cr7uZm3
— John Ekdahl (@JohnEkdahl) October 12, 2019
Duke Nukem coming for your guns for political disagreement.
— Underdog (@rdbrewer4) October 12, 2019
@RepSwalwell gets triggered any time WeThePeople stand up for family, God, country and freedom
— scott smith (@hpshooter1) October 12, 2019
Ben Shapiro doesn’t own a nuke, Congressman Swalwell.
Nor has he intimated he would use one on a non-compliant population.
Ben Shapiro’s point is something you, as a psychopath, will never, ever understand. I disagree with his rhetoric.
But Shapiro doesn’t terrify me. You do https://t.co/lEpME8QhnL
— Jerry C (@JerryChilds) October 12, 2019
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