On his 74th birthday Thursday, Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas was the one giving gifts to the American people.
In a landmark decision released Thursday morning, the court ruled 6-3 that a New York law requiring “proper cause” to carry a concealed firearm was unconstitutional.
Thomas authored the majority opinion the case, New York State Rifle & Pistol Association Inc. v. Bruen, and was clear about what the decision meant for the interpretation of the Second Amendment’s guarantee of the “right to keep and bear arms.”
The ruling stated, in no uncertain terms, “that the Second and Fourteenth Amendments protect an individual’s right to carry a handgun for self-defense outside the home,” as Thomas wrote in the majority opinion.
Later in the opinion, he wrote that the court holds “that when the Second Amendment’s plain text covers an individual’s conduct, the Constitution presumptively protects that conduct.”
Thomas wrote that the Second Amendment should not be treated differently from any other right guaranteed in the Constitution.
“The constitutional right to bear arms in public for self-defense is not ‘a second-class right, subject to an entirely different body of rules than the other Bill of Rights guarantees,’” Thomas wrote, quoting from the 2010 McDonald ruling, another major victory for gun rights written by Justice Samuel Alito.
“The exercise of other constitutional rights does not require individuals to demonstrate to government officers some special need. The Second Amendment right to carry arms in public for self-defense is no different,” Thomas wrote.
Soon after word of the decision spread, people began noticing something unique about Justice Thomas. The decision was handed down on his birthday — how unexpected is that?
The GOAT, Justice Clarence Thomas, on his birthday:
“The constitutional right to bear arms in public for self-defense is not ‘a second-class right, subject to an entirely different body of rules
than the other Bill of Rights guarantees.’” pic.twitter.com/ulc1ymYUY7— Katie Pavlich (@KatiePavlich) June 23, 2022
Today is Justice Clarence Thomas’ birthday — I am sure he is enjoying it. ??#2A
— Gregory T. Angelo (@gregorytangelo) June 23, 2022
The right to self-defense is integral to American freedom, and Thomas outlined this importance in the majority opinion. Enshrining this right for all Americans is one of the best gifts we could have asked for.
Are you grateful for Clarence Thomas being on the Supreme Court?
Thomas was joined by Chief Justice John Roberts and Justices Brett Kavanaugh, Amy Coney Barrett, Samuel Alito and Neil Gorsuch.
The Bruen decision was not the only gift the Supreme Court gave Americans on Thursday. In an 8-1 decision in the case of Berger v. North Carolina State Conference of the NAACP, the court ruled that state lawmakers have the right to “intervene in litigation to defend a state voter-ID law,” according to SCOTUSblog.
The state’s Democratic attorney general is defending the law, but the court said GOP lawmakers have a right to as well.
The Supreme Court rules 8-1 that GOP lawmakers in North Carolina can intervene in litigation to defend a state voter-ID law. The NAACP is challenging the law, and the NC attorney general (a Democrat) is defending it. GOP legislators want to intervene anyway. SCOTUS says they can.
— SCOTUSblog (@SCOTUSblog) June 23, 2022
Justice Neil Gorsuch authored the ruling in that case, and Justice Sonia Sotomayor was the only justice who dissented.
Contrary to leftist talking points, voter ID requirements are aimed at securing elections while ensuring every legal vote is counted. This is an effort that is paramount to the protection of democracy,
Thomas used his 74th birthday to help fight for more secure elections and Second Amendment rights, and the importance of those gifts cannot be overstated.
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