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S. Dakota Lawmakers Draft Bill Mandating Gun Ownership

Feb 1, 2011

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Reported by

Frank James

Earlier I wrote how Mitt Romney believes individual mandates enacted by states are constitutional because states, unlike the federal government, have the power to order their citizens to do certain things, like mandatory schooling or auto insurance.

So how about this for a mandate? Some South Dakota state lawmakers have drafted legislation that would require all adult citizens 21 and older to buy guns.

As the Argus-Leader reports:


Nor does the measure specify what type of firearm. Instead, residents would pick one "suitable to their temperament, physical capacity, and preference."

The article continues on to report that this is actually a bit of tongue in cheek legislation meant to prove a point:



Actually, as Romney points out, states do have the power to mandate certain behavior. So despite what Wick says, a gun mandate might not be so far fetched after all if a state wanted to do it.

(h/t Political Wire.)

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