Today’s Gun Ruling Is More Proof That a Captured Court Delivers for the Powerful — Not the People
The Roberts Court strikes down Hawaii's commonsense gun law in another 6-3 decision that defies the will of the American people
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, the Roberts Court issued a 6-3 ruling striking down a Hawaii law that banned the carrying of concealed handguns on private property open to the public without the owner's express permission. The decision is the latest in a pattern of rulings from a Court that has been systematically captured by wealthy interests and ideological donors, and that continues to deliver for the gun lobby while ordinary Americans pay the price.
Stasha M. Rhodes, Executive Director of United for Democracy [unitedfordemocracy.us], issued the following statement:
"Most Americans already know that guns don't belong in grocery stores, concert venues, restaurants, or their neighbors' homes unless someone explicitly says otherwise. That is not a radical position. That is common sense. And it is what Hawaii's law reflected.
"But common sense doesn't matter to a Court that answers to the gun lobby and the dark money interests that spent decades engineering its majority. This is the same Court that has called the Second Amendment a 'disfavored right,' expanded gun rights far beyond anything the framers contemplated, and consistently made it harder for states to protect their own residents. Today's ruling is not a surprise. It is a pattern.
"This is what a captured Court looks like in practice. Not an abstract threat to democratic norms, but real consequences, in real communities, for real people who simply want to go about their lives without fear of gun violence. A wide majority of Americans support commonsense gun laws. The Court does not represent them. It represents the interests that built it.
"The response cannot be incremental. You cannot fix a captured Court with a modest reform or an ethics rule. The American people deserve a Supreme Court that is accountable, independent, and capable of reflecting the will of the people, not the will of its donors. That is what we are fighting for. And today's ruling makes that fight more urgent than ever."
###
United for Democracy (UFD) [unitedfordemocracy.us] is a diverse and growing coalition of 160 grassroots organizations, labor unions, and advocates for reproductive rights, gun violence prevention, the environment, workers’ rights and more, all representing tens of millions of Americans. The campaign launched to educate Americans about the impact today’s Supreme Court is having on their lives, freedoms, and democracy — and call on Congress to rein in its unchecked powers.
Contact: press@unitedfordemocracy.us