Rep. Richard Hudson, R-N.C., told Newsmax on Tuesday that concealed carry reciprocity "is just common sense" and that's why he's introduced a bill in the House that would allow concealed carry permit holders to carry their guns across state lines.
"When I drive from my home in North Carolina to D.C., I don't have to stop at the Virginia state line and take a new driver's test and get a Virginia driver's license," Hudson said on "Carl Higbie FRONTLINE." "They recognize that North Carolina license. And so it's just common sense that when it comes to your Second Amendment right, your right to conceal carry, that every state ought to recognize that concealed carry permission coming from a different state."
When asked about states making different requirements and mandating that concealed carry permit holders do different things, Hudson said, "It doesn't make sense."
"You've got the Second Amendment, which is very plain, but you've also got Article IV, Section 1, the Full Faith and Credit Clause, which says every state has to recognize the legal proceedings and documents of other states, and it gives Congress the authority to make laws about how that's to be done," he said. "So, it's completely appropriate for Congress to do this, to say that each state has to recognize that concealed carry permit from other states."
The North Carolina congressman said that the last time Congress came close to passing a concealed carry reciprocity bill was in 2017 during President Donald Trump's first term.
"Last time Donald Trump came to office, we were able to get this bill out of the House of Representatives, but, unfortunately, I couldn't even get a hearing in the U.S. Senate," Hudson said. "I think things are different now. Donald Trump campaigned on this issue, he will sign this bill, and [Sen.] John Thune [R-S.D.] is the new leader in the Senate. We know he supports this issue. So, I think now is the best time we've ever had. This is our best opportunity to get this done."
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Nicole Weatherholtz ✉
Nicole Weatherholtz, a Newsmax general assignment reporter covers news, politics, and culture. She is a National Newspaper Association award-winning journalist.
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