Capitol Hill Blue Forums Political Issues Guns Court Rules in Favor of Second Amendment Gun Right

Never before had the Supreme Court found that the 2nd Amendment bestows on individuals a right to have guns. In fact, in 1939 (and other occasions), the court rejected this view. In effectively overturning these prior decisions, the court both ignored precedent and invalidated a law adopted by a popularly elected government.

What's more, the court's interpretation is questionable. The text of the 2nd Amendment is ambiguous. Its second clause speaks of a right to "keep and bear arms," but its first clause suggests that this right exists because a "well-regulated militia" is essential. There is thus strong reason to believe that the 2nd Amendment only guarantees gun rights for those serving in a militia.

At the very least, one would expect that a high court committed to judicial restraint would have used the 2nd Amendment's ambiguity to defer to the political process and to follow precedent. Yet nowhere in Scalia's opinion was there mention of the need for judicial deference that is so characteristic of his opinions in cases involving other individual liberties.