Virginia’s Democratic Governor Terry McAuliffe made headlines when, after the shocking on-air murder of two journalists, he called for new gun control laws before police had captured the suspected shooter. Now he is catching heat for attending an anti-gun rally organized by the anti-gun group Everytown For Gun Safety with armed security in tow in Washington, D.C., where it is nearly impossible for residents to obtain a permit to carry a firearm.
When asked by Townhall’s Katie Pavlich why his security detail can be armed yet others cannot, McAuliffe responded, “You can be armed, go through a background check.” Washington, D.C. has approved only 44 concealed carry permits out of 206 applications since October 2014.
McAuliffe then claimed he was only calling for closing of the “gun show loophole.” Asked why he implied Virginia did not have background checks for firearm purchases, the Governor responded, “We don’t have…you can go to a gun show loophole.”
When pressed to state which gun show exactly he was talking about when he implied dealers at gun shows in Virginia that advertise they don’t run background checks, McAuliffe simply replied, “You can go to any gun show and they have signs.”
As for the “gun show loophole,” the Daily Signal reports:
Under the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act—which created the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS)—all federal firearms licensees are required to conduct a background check for all firearms transactions, even if they sell the firearm at a gun show. This is to make sure that the gun isn’t being sold to a person who is prohibited from purchasing a gun under Section 922(g) or (n) of Title 18 of the United States Code, which would include convicted felons, people who have been adjudicated to be severely mentally ill, and people who have been convicted of a domestic violence offense.