Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam’s gun, magazine, suppressor, and trigger activator ban is scheduled to be heard in the state senate’s Judiciary Committee next Monday morning, and it will likely be the best opportunity to kill the bill before it can get to Northam’s desk.
HB961 narrowly passed out of the Virginia House of Delegates a few days ago, but the bigger hurdle for the bill was always going to be in the state Senate. Four Democrats in that chamber have expressed their opposition to the bill in its original form, though only Sen. Lynwood Lewis has flat out stated he won’t vote for any bill that bans guns or magazines.
Lewis isn’t on the Judiciary Committee, but the other three senators who’ve expressed reservations (Chap Petersen, Creigh Deeds, and John Edwards) all happen to be assigned to the committee that will hear the bill Monday morning. In fact, Sen. Edwards is actually the committee chairman. How those three Democrats vote on Monday will determine whether the bill not only passes out of committee, but the full Senate as well.