The Commonwealth of Virginia, once the cradle of American liberty and the home of the Bill of Rights, is witnessing a historic betrayal in real time.
On March 14, the Virginia General Assembly wrapped up their 2026 legislative session and rammed through over 15 pieces of anti-gun legislation. In just 60 days, the anti-gun left has nearly undone gun rights for millions of law-abiding Virginia residents.
Their crown jewel of tyranny? SB 749 and HB 217, two so-called "assault weapons" ban bills.
These identical bills landed at the desk of newly elected Democrat Gov. Abigail Spanberger during the final days of the legislative session and are currently awaiting her signature.
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She has promised to sign them into law.
For years, Gun Owners of America (GOA) and our dedicated members have stood against these unconstitutional infringements as they’ve popped up in state legislatures all around the country.
Just a few weeks ago, through overwhelming grassroots activism and pressure from gun rights organizations like GOA, a similar "assault weapons" ban was defeated in New Mexico. And last year in Virginia, former Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin vetoed over 27 anti-gun bills – including an "assault weapons" ban.
But with the election of billionaire Michael Bloomberg-backed Spanberger in November 2025, the governor’s seat is now occupied by a rubber stamp for the radical gun control lobby. Anti-gun Democrats also flipped over a dozen pro-gun seats in the Virginia House of Delegates while also maintaining a slim majority in the Virginia Senate.
And within hours of gaining control of the governor’s mansion and legislature, anti-gun lawmakers began drafting numerous gun control measures, promising to ram them through the General Assembly at warp speed.
Make no mistake: SB 749/HB 217 have nothing to do with "safety" and everything to do with removing your Second Amendment rights. This legislation targets the most popular firearms in America — tools used by millions of law-abiding citizens for self-defense, competition and sport. According to the FBI, nearly twice as many people are murdered with hands/fists than rifles of any kind. And over three times as many with knives. Yet anti-gun radicals want us to believe semi-automatic firearms must be banned.
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But by arbitrarily labeling semi-automatic rifles, pistols and shotguns as "assault firearms" based on common features like folding stocks or threaded barrels, the anti-gunners are actively removing your ability to defend yourself and your family with the tool of your choice.
Furthermore, the legislation takes aim at standard-capacity magazines, labeling anything over 15 rounds as a "large capacity ammunition feeding device."
The proponents of SB 749 point to similar laws that exist in other states, yet the Supreme Court’s Bruen decision made it clear: the government must prove that a firearm regulation is consistent with this nation’s historical tradition.
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There is zero historical tradition of banning the most commonly owned firearms in the country. There is zero constitutional basis for targeting certain semi-automatic firearms and using the power of the state to punish anyone who buys, sells or transfers one after July 1, 2026.
The anti-gun Democrats' argument that these are "weapons of war" is a lazy buzzword term. These weapons are the modern-day equivalent of the musket — the standard arm of the citizen-soldier.
And let’s be clear — the Second Amendment was not written for deer hunting; it was written to ensure that the "body of the people" would always have the means to resist a tyrannical government.
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When George Mason wrote the Virginia Declaration of Rights, he did not mince words when it came to our right to own firearms. "That a well regulated militia, composed of the body of the people, trained to arms, is the proper, natural, and safe defense of a free state, therefore, the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed…"
It’s easy to see where the inspiration for the Second Amendment to the U.S. Bill of Rights originated from.
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By stripping Virginians of these tools, Spanberger and her allies are intentionally shifting the balance of power from the people to the state and jeopardizing liberty and freedom in the process. It’s clear they have forgotten, or worse yet, are purposefully ignoring the motto of this great commonwealth: "Sic semper tyrannis" which translates to, "thus always to tyrants."
Make no mistake — Gun Owners of America will not idly stand by while the Spanberger-led government of Virginia tosses our gun rights into the trash.
Gun Owners Foundation — the legal wing of GOA — is already working with our friends at Virginia Citizens Defense League to challenge these infringements in court. No law-abiding Virginian should be subject to such heinous and un-American laws.
The political and legal fights to restore gun rights in Virginia which lay ahead will be long and difficult, but GOA will continue on until every single word of gun control is repealed. And as we fight, we carry the words of the great Founding Father and lifelong Virginian Patrick Henry with absolute resolve, "The great object is that every man be armed. Everyone who is able may have a gun."
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