The Second Amendment has taken center stage in the already contentious presidential race, and Florida gun groups are taking sides in the political fray.
The latest controversy in the 2016 presidential race came from a comment made by Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, who suggested Tuesday that Second Amendment activists carried significant power capable of stopping Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton from sitting in the White House next year.
"Hillary wants to abolish -- essentially abolish the Second Amendment. By the way, if she gets to pick, if she gets to pick her judges, nothing you can do, folks. Although the Second Amendment people, maybe there is, I don't know," Trump said.
The ambiguous remarks sparked a firestorm from the media, with many unable to discern whether Trump was actually threatening Clinton or simply making a remark about the political power of Second Amendment supporters.
One Florida gun group, Florida Carry, seemed to run with the latter theory, dogging Clinton for gun law proposals the group says she will enact if made president.
“Hillary Clinton has also promised to push for the enactment of the most sweeping gun control laws our nation has ever seen,” wrote Florida Carry, a group of Second Amendment supporters in Florida. “New criminal laws that will punish you while doing nothing to stop the real criminals who already illegally use firearms to commit horrible crimes.”
The group continues to say Clinton would enact Chicago-style gun control laws nationwide “while the administration again does nothing to stop Chicago-style violence from spreading to our hometowns.”
Chicago has one of the highest rates of gun violence in the country and some of harsher gun laws, though most of the guns used in violent crimes in Chicago come from areas outside the city where gun laws are more lax.
Both Florida Carry and Trump agree a Clinton presidency could have severe implications for guns in the U.S. due to a vacancy in the U.S. Supreme Court left by the late conservative Antonin Scalia.
That vacancy could swing one of two ways depending on who claims victory Nov. 8 and it has groups like Florida Carry worried.
“We simply cannot sit idly by and let Hillary change the Supreme Court to an Anti-Second Amendment rubber stamp for the gun control lobby,” the group wrote.
Florida politicians are all too familiar with the power of gun rights advocates in the Sunshine State. Nationwide gun groups like the National Rifle Association wield significant political power, funneling money and votes to and away from candidates as they please. An endorsement from the NRA or similar pro-gun groups is always a boost to politicians, especially in Florida.
Interestingly, Florida Carry did not explicitly mention supporting Trump in November, but the statement released late Tuesday seems to suggest Trump is the answer to the Clinton scenario.
“There is only one candidate for President who can defeat Hillary, who has committed to appoint constitutionalist Justices to the Supreme Court, who for years has carried his own handgun, and will defend your Individual Right to Bear Arms,” the group wrote.
Trump refused to back down from the statement, reiterating he meant Second Amendment supporters as a voting bloc rather than a group to take out his opponent.
“There can be no other interpretation,” he said on Fox News. “I mean, give me a break.”
Reach reporter Allison Nielsen by email at allison@sunshinestatenews.com or follow her on Twitter: @AllisonNielsen.
