The Ruling of the U.S. Supreme Court: A Poor Figure for Biden

The Ruling of the U.S. Supreme Court: A Poor Figure for Biden
Fecha de publicación: 
28 June 2022
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Common sense seems to be less and less common in America. At least, it’s evident by the most recent ruling of the Supreme Court of that country, mostly conservative, which last Thursday annulled a law of the state of New York that dated from 1911 and prohibited carrying firearms in public.

The old New York law required those who carried weapons in public to have a license to do so or to show that they needed to do so in self-defense.

This Supreme Court decision will start ripples because it will prevent, from now on, states from limiting the right of their residents to bear firearms from their own regulations, and could have consequences, experts estimate, in seven other states where there are similar laws to the one that prevailed in New York: California, Delaware, Hawaii, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey , and Rhode Island.

Still lingers in the air the mourning for the recent mass shooting that took the life of 19 children and two teachers perpetrated by an 18-year-old boy. It also gains strength the national debate about the possession of guns and gun violence, which in New York is circled in red.

And it’s precisely in that heated atmosphere that such a controversial decision is taken, which counted on the vote of six judges in favor and three against. Those who cast their vote of acceptance argued that the law in that state was "too restrictive" and contravened the Second Amendment of the Constitution on firearms.

In his conclusions, conservative Judge Clarence Thomas argued that the Second Amendment on the right to keep and bear arms did not distinguish between home and public space.

Hence, from now on, and in accordance with the ruling of the Supreme Court, any New Yorker will be able to carry an assault rifle on his shoulder like someone carrying his work briefcase, and this supposedly, in the name of the rights under the Second Amendment.

The reactions within the country were immediate. The Governor of New York, Kathy Hochul, considered the Supreme Court ruling "outrageous" and "reckless", while Senator Richard Blumenthal, former Connecticut Attorney General and a decisive piece in the chess of the bipartisan negotiations on gun violence, described it as "deeply destructive"

New York City Mayor Eric Adams also criticized the court's decision, saying the ruling puts New Yorkers "at greater risk of gun violence."

Biden, who already accumulates efforts against armed violence in his country, and has promoted, among others, the aforementioned bipartisan bill for weapons reform, was left in a bad spot, according to the old saying. He stated that he was "deeply disappointed" with this latest decision. And he does have reason to be, especially because of the little influence he seems to have nowadays, as this terrible result indicates.

he White House man highlighted that such a ruling "contradicts both common sense and the Constitution, and should deeply upset us all." He said the new ruling undermines the "long-established authority of the state to protect its citizens," the very ones he called on to make their voices heard because "lives are at stake."

Translated by Amilkal Labañino / CubaSí Translation Staff

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