Gov Ricketts declares Nebraska a ‘Second Amendment Sanctuary State’

Nebraska Gov. Pete Ricketts (R) signed a proclamation on Wednesday declaring the state a “Second Amendment Sanctuary State.”

Ricketts signed the proclamation in a video that he shared on social media. He said that he signed the proclamation as a “symbol” of the state’s support for gun rights.

“Nebraska has always been a state that has supported our Second Amendment rights,” Ricketts said. “As a symbol of that support, I am signing a proclamation declaring Nebraska a Second Amendment Sanctuary State, and with my signature it will become official.”

According to a local ABC affiliate, dozens of counties in the state have designated themselves “Second Amendment Sanctuary Counties.”

It’s official: Nebraska is a Second Amendment Sanctuary State! #2A pic.twitter.com/oUqS1FvSWT

— Gov. Pete Ricketts (@GovRicketts) April 14, 2021

The proclamation comes as Democrats seek to push measures at the federal level in an attempt to curb gun violence amid several high-profile mass shootings, including one at a King Sooper’s Grocery in Boulder, Colo.

President Biden last week unveiled a series of executive actions aimed at addressing the issue. Among the measures, Biden directed the Justice Department to propose rules making home made “ghost guns” subject to background checks; propose model red flag legislation that could help keep firearms away from dangerous individuals; and to reclassify pistols modified with stabilizer braces to be subject to the National Firearms Act.

Meanwhile, congressional Democrats have introduced several measures aimed at gun safety, including universal background checks and closing the so-called Charleston loophole.

However, any gun control measure in Congress will face an uphill battle in the evenly divided Senate, where the issue of the filibuster will likely pose a huge hurdle for Democrats.

Ricketts’s proclamation, which he shared on Twitter, said that “the White House and U.S. Congress have announced their intention to pursue measures that would infringe on the right to keep and bear arms.”

It also says that the state “will stand up against federal overreach and attempts to regulate gun ownership and use in the Good life.”

The White House and U.S. Congress have announced their intention to pursue measures that would infringe on the right to keep and bear arms. Nebraska will stand up against federal overreach and attempts to regulate gun ownership and use in the Good Life. #2A pic.twitter.com/m6sfltho5I

— Gov. Pete Ricketts (@GovRicketts) April 14, 2021