This week, we're doing a deep dive into the gun bills that have reached the final phase of the Virginia legislative process.

That process is pretty unique, with Governor Abigail Spanberger (D.) having a rare ability to change bills after they've already passed. To break down how that process works and what Spanberger is trying to accomplish, we have Virginia Citizens Defense League (VCDL) President Philip Van Cleave back on the show.

The changes pushed legislation in both directions, but Van Cleave said VCDL was very angry with the overall suggestions Spanberger made. That's because her recommendations to moderate a few gun bills were far less significant than those to double down on other restrictions. Specifically, he argued the changes Spanberger pushed for the "assault firearm" carry and sales ban were the most significant.

He said Spanberger's language change for what constitutes an "assault firearm" is confusing and could be read to be extremely expansive. He argued even if you take the most restrictive reading, the move would effectively ban the carry of the 15+ magazines the bill bans the sale of. That would be a substantial tightening of the proposed ban.

Still, Van Cleave said some of the changes Spanberger recommended will probably face at least some pushback from the Democratically-controlled legislature. For instance, her request to convert the 18-to-20-year-old handgun ban into an emergency measure that would go into effect immediately actually requires a 4/5ths vote of both houses to pass. Even her "assault firearm" ban changes could be doomed because she removed exemptions for retired and off-duty police, a powerful political force.

The legislature can only vote up and down on the overall changes in each bill, Van Cleave said. So, if they don't like one change, they have to reject them all.

Whatever makes it into law, though, Van Cleave said VCDL would challenge in court. He said the group is likely to go to state court to challenge, and he welcomes the possibility that the Department of Justice might file suit against the new gun bans in federal court.

Special Guest: Philip Van Cleave.

Contributing writer Jake Fogleman and I cover the changes requested by Virginia Governor Abigail Spanberger to the state's pending "assault firearm" ban and other major gun control bills. We also discuss a new ruling out of the Second Circuit Court of Appeals upholding New York's ban on stun guns and tasers.

Stories:
-https://thereload.com/virginia-governor-sends-assault-firearms-ban-back-to-legislature-demands-expansion/
-https://thereload.com/spanberger-requests-stricter-hospital-gun-ban-from-virginia-legislature/
-https://thereload.com/federal-appeals-court-upholds-new-york-city-stun-gun-ban/
-https://thereload.com/newsletter-virginia-governor-pushes-to-further-tighten-new-gun-bans/

This week, we're looking at how the Department of Justice (DOJ) has performed on gun policy during the second Trump Administration and why Jeanine Pirro's newest legal filing could change the review.

To examine the DOJ's track record, we have the Second Amendment Foundation's Kostas Moros on the show. He has been willing to defend the administration's overall approach to gun policy and to criticize moves he believes are likely to produce significant setbacks. He argued that the DOJ has actually been as pro-gun as any in modern history.

In fact, he said a lot of the disappointment from online gun activists stems from bad expectation setting. He argued the DOJ was never likely to stop defending all federal gun laws, nor would that move guarantee the kind of gun-rights wins some believe it would. He also said the administration's moves to sue localities over alleged violations of the Second Amendment, as well as their efforts to back gun-rights challenges, even up to the Supreme Court, create a positive case for why it has been a good ally to gun-rights activists.

Still, Moros admitted the DOJ has been pretty all over the place in its arguments at times. And he further criticized a new legal filing that stands to undermine a serious breakthrough in the gun-rights movement's fight against magazine bans. He said Jeanine Pirro, who Donald Trump appointed as US Attorney for Washington, DC, and who he is reportedly considering making the Attorney General, intervened to ask a DC court to reconsider its ruling against the city's magazine ban.

Moros argued Pirro didn't need to say anything at all, given that she isn't actively defending the law, and that her filing makes it more likely the case will be reheard. That, he noted, could undermine the all-important circuit split on the question of magazine bans. Ultimately, Moros argued, that could keep the Supreme Court from settling the question and further sour gun activists' view of the administration.

Special Guest: Kostas Moros.

Contributing writer Jake Fogleman and I cover a new ruling out the First Circuit Court of Appeals which held that waiting periods for gun sales do not even implicate the Second Amendment. We also discuss a New York federal judge's recent decision to toss a lawsuit filed by a licensed concealed carrier who was wrongfully arrested by NYPD officers who were unfamiliar with the city's gun laws.

Stories:
-https://thereload.com/federal-appeals-court-reinstates-maine-waiting-period-law/
-https://thereload.com/judge-tosses-war-heros-suit-against-nyc-over-mistaken-gun-arrest/
-https://thereload.com/analysis-jeanine-pirro-may-have-just-fumbled-a-long-sought-hardware-ban-circuit-split-for-gun-rights-activists/

This week, we've got a lawyer from the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) on the show.

That's because the group's North Carolina affiliate has filed an amicus brief in a Second Amendment challenge that's going to be heard by the North Carolina Supreme Court. And the ACLU is on the side of the defendant who is attempting to assert his gun rights. So, to discuss the details, we have ACLU of North Carolina Legal Fellow Jacqueline Landry joining us.

Landry helped author the group's brief in State v. Ducker, a Second Amendment challenge to the state's felon-in-possession gun crime. She said Ducker's underlying felony was non-violent, fleeing the police, and he never served any time in jail. She said the case isn't even about whether or not Ducker can be disarmed, but, rather, whether he can individually challenge his charges at all.

Landry said the lower court in this case had determined that anyone convicted of a felony falls outside of "the people" that the Second Amendment protects and, therefore, can't even make an as-applied challenge to their gun charges. She said the ACLU is arguing, alongside the CATO Institute, that the judge was wrong. Landry said the Supreme Court has determined the Second Amendment guarantees an individual right, and governments have to justify their modern gun restrictions comport with the historical tradition of gun regulation to survive a challenge.

She explained that the ACLU, which has started doing more Second Amendment challenges in recent years, has adapted to the Supreme Court's view of the right. However, Landry denied that the group has modified its views on guns and civil liberties. She argued the ACLU has always been primarily concerned with pushing back against the kind of categorical infringements on individual rights, like the felon-in-possession ban. She also disagreed that the group views Second Amendment rights as more limited than First or Fourth Amendment rights.

Landry also said the ACLU is likely to continue pursuing new Second Amendment cases moving forward, even if they aren't necessarily the group's top priority.

Special Guest: Jacqueline Landry.

Contributing writer Jake Fogleman and I break down the details of a new Pete Hegseth memo that seeks to expand how many off-duty military members can carry personal firearms for self-defense on military installations. We also cover a new US Postal Service proposed rule that would allow legal gun owners to ship handguns in the mail.

Stories:
-https://thereload.com/hegseth-moves-to-make-it-easier-to-carry-guns-on-military-bases/
-https://thereload.com/usps-moves-to-allow-mailing-of-handguns/
-https://thereload.com/trump-doj-doubles-down-on-claim-it-can-ban-all-knives-member-exclusive/
-https://thereload.com/canadian-ar-15-mandatory-buyback-program-concludes-without-a-bang/
-https://bearingarms.com/camedwards/2026/03/31/did-the-case-against-charlie-kirks-alleged-killer-just-fall-apart-n1232065
-https://coloradosun.com/2026/03/27/colorado-3d-gun-bill-amended-jared-polis-veto/

This week, we're taking a close look at the latest in the legal battle over "red flag" laws.

To help understand the ins and outs of why gun-rights activists object to the temporary gun seizure orders, we have the director of legal operations for the group challenging Maryland's version of the law. The Second Amendment Foundation's Bill Sack joins the show to discuss the latest ruling in the case, which actually went against the group.

Sack said their Maryland case centered around a dispute between a county zoning official and a resident that saw the man's guns taken from him over what he said were false claims of a threat. Sack said the incident is an example of the flaws in Maryland's system that allow for abuse of a fundamental right.

He also said the case shows the difficulty of making a Second Amendment case against red flag laws in the wake of the Supreme Court's US v. Rahimi decision. Instead, Sack said the group is relying more heavily on Fourth, Sixth, and Fourteenth Amendment claims against the lower evidentiary standards the laws use. He said the judge's point about similar procedures utilized in other contexts being blessed by the Supreme Court and others wasn't persuasive, and should be reversed--even in circumstances that don't involve firearm seizures.

Sack said the Second Amendment Foundation hasn't yet decided what to do in the Maryland case, but they plan to keep fighting red flag policies that don't meet their constitutional standards.

Special Guest: Bill Sack.

Contributing writer Jake Fogleman and I talk about a new federal court ruling out of Connecticut where a judge upheld the ban on bringing guns into a post office, splitting with recent rulings on the same law out of Texas and Florida in the process. We also discuss my upcoming range day with the National Journalism Center internship program and the dismissal of a federal lawsuit challenging Maryland's red flag law.

Stories:
-https://thereload.com/federal-judge-upholds-post-office-gun-ban-creating-circuit-split/
-https://thereload.com/federal-judge-upholds-maryland-red-flag-law/
-https://news.bloomberglaw.com/litigation/court-upholds-federal-gun-ban-for-misdemeanor-domestic-violence
-https://bearingarms.com/camedwards/2026/03/25/federal-judge-upholds-multiple-gun-free-zones-in-texas-n1231991