He also said he wanted to implement national right to carry in all 50 states, and he appeared to suggest that gun rights advocates should take lethal action against his Democratic rival, Hillary Clinton, should she be elected president and threaten the Second Amendment by appointing a far-left justice to the U.S. Supreme Court. (His campaign later said he was referring to convincing supporters of the Second Amendment to rally votes for him.)
And, just five days before the presidential election, he formed a 64-member Second Amendment coalition—featuring National Rifle Association board members, pro-gun U.S. representatives and firearms manufacturers—that seeks to advise him on protecting the constitutional right to keep and bear arms.
Now that he has won the election, what will President-elect Trump actually do when it comes to gun laws? During the campaign, the billionaire businessman touted many big plans—including building a wall at the Mexican border, changing U.S. trade relations and backing away from climate change agreements—but in the week since his victory he has appeared to soften his tone on some of his key complaints, including saying he wants to repeal only parts of Obamacare and contemplating not prosecuting Clinton for her use of a private email account as secretary of state.
On the guns issue, one prominent Democrat says she is optimistic Trump will live up to his promise to shake up Washington and not be beholden to the political party he represents. “In the Nixon goes to China mode, Donald Trump may be exactly the president who could do something positive on gun safety,” U.S. Representative Elizabeth Esty of Connecticut tells Newsweek. Esty, who represents the district where the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School mass shooting took place, is vice chairwoman of the House Gun Violence Prevention Task Force.
