U.S. Rep. Mo Brooks (R-Huntsville) on Tuesday came out in support of a constitutional carry bill that was recently introduced in the Alabama House by State Rep. Andrew Sorrell (R-Muscle Shoals).
Sorrell’s bill, HB405, would allow citizens of Alabama to carry a concealed pistol on their person without a permit. The National Rifle Association (NRA) and National Association for Gun Rights (NAGR) both support the measure as well.
“The Second Amendment is clear, ‘the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.’ Period. The Constitution doesn’t say the right to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed unless a state government disagrees,” remarked Brooks in a statement on Tuesday.
“I wholeheartedly support the Second Amendment and Representative Andrew Sorrell’s Constitutional Carry bill. The vast majority of Alabama Republican voters support constitutional carry. The Alabama House should pass HB 405 without delay,” he added.
Similar bills to Sorrell’s have been introduced in the Alabama Legislature in recent years. They are often opposed by county sheriffs whose departments often rely on fees from pistol permits to cover a certain portion of their yearly budgets. Members of the Democratic Party also frequently oppose such measures.
“I want to thank Congressman Brooks for taking a stand for Alabama gun owners. Constitutional Carry is gaining momentum in Alabama, as evidenced from an increase in cosponsorship in the House from a handful of Representatives in 2019 to 24 cosponsors in 2021,” Sorrell told Yellowhammer News.
State Sen. Gerald Allen (R-Tuscaloosa) has introduced a similar measure, SB5, in the legislature’s upper chamber. Constitutional carry legislation has passed the State Senate in years past but not made it out of the House.
Per the NAGR, 17 states currently have constitutional carry laws in place.
“Congressman Brooks said it well, no state government should be allowed to sell you back your Constitutional rights. I am grateful for the Congressman’s support for my bill, and I thank him for his defense of our liberty in Washington, D.C.,” concluded Sorrell.
Henry Thornton is a staff writer for Yellowhammer News. You can contact him by email: [email protected] or on Twitter @HenryThornton95.
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