Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) told supporters last Thursday that they “have an obligation to use” their Second Amendment rights and that the amendment’s provision of a right to bear arms is meant for “armed rebellion”.
The Second Amendment to The United States Constitution reads: “A well-regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.” It was adopted into our Constitution in 1791. At that time, we did not have a standing army or a readily available navy. We lacked a federal taxing authority to pay for a professional military. We relied on volunteers, young men of fighting age, to be trained locally if they should be needed by our state, or federal government, to defend our nation. It is only the executive branch of government that has the authority to activate and deploy these local militia. The 2nd Amendment was never intended to be a constraint on government, but a tool of government. There is not now, nor has there ever been, a right for a militia to self-activate as force of rebellion against our government. That would be treason.
The armed rebellion envisioned by the congressman is illegal. It is a perversion of what the framers intended. The militia was intended to be under the control of Congress and the command of the President. Our modern professional military replaces local militia with The National Guard and Military Reserves.
Which makes the insurrection of January 6th so diabolical and Matt Gaetz’s words so dangerous. Several Republican members of Congress and the former President were inciting the attack. The attack was not just condoned but was authorized by President Trump. This effort continues. It remains a threat to this nation.
Only Congress can give authorization to use military force. Any President’s attempt to give an order outside of an act of Congress can only be done in the case a national emergency, a direct threat to our national security. Nothing about Trump’s loss in the 2020 is a threat to our nation.
Any attempt to pervert the 2nd Amendment to justify rebellion is insurrection. Any violent attack on an agency of government is not patriotism. It is treason.
Francis Caraco