Whether through willful ignorance or outright dishonesty, anti-Second Amendment politicians get the facts wrong all the time. Some lies, however, are so obviously false they are just embarrassing.
This brings us to Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey (D), who recently said that “it is easier to buy a gun than a fresh apple” in Minneapolis.
When he said this, Minnesota Attorney General, and former U.S. representative, Keith Ellison (D) was standing next to Frey. Ellison closed his eyes, raised both eyebrows and then opened his eyes and looked around the room in wonder as if anyone bought that line.
Ellison isn’t even pro-freedom. As the NRA Institute for Legislative Action reported of Ellison during his 2016 failed presidential run, “Ellison has made clear that he believes the Democratic Party should not only pursue a litany of severe gun-control measures, but that the party should also directly attack the Second Amendment.”
Frey’s troubling comments call to mind similar ones made by David Chipman, President Joe Biden’s (D) initial nominee to lead the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF). “The reality is in much of America, it’s easier to buy a gun than a beer,” said Chipman last year.
Like apples, purchases of beer don’t require a federal background check, but all firearms purchases from licensed gun dealers do. Ultimately, Chipman was deemed unfit to run the ATF.
The comments also echo those of former President Barack Obama (D), who said in 2015 that “it’s easier for you to buy a handgun and clips than it is for you to buy a fresh vegetable.”
But Frey’s comments most closely resemble ones made by New York state Attorney General Letitia James (D), who once claimed, “What’s so tragic is that in some parts of New York state, you can find a gun more easily than you can find an apple.”
The Minneapolis mayor has also called for numerous gun-control initiatives, of course, including universal background checks and red-flag laws, which he noted was the “bare minimum” he would like to have enacted into law. It should come as no surprise to see his ignorance on full display with his most-recent remarks.
