Local lawmakers at 2nd Amendment rally

By TAYLOR BROWN

tbrown@yourmvi.com

Several legislators from the Mon Valley took part Monday in a show of support for the Second Amendment. 

Hundreds of gun enthusiasts joined lawmakers on the Capitol steps in Harrisburg for a Right to Keep and Bear Arms Rally organized by state Rep. Daryl Metcalfe, R-Butler. 

Metcalfe said the rally was to press for legislative priorities such as a constitutional carry bill and a proposal to limit local gun ordinances that are more restrictive than state or federal laws.

While attendance for the event was lower than it has been in the past 16 years, there were hundreds of people in attendance, including dozens of Republican representatives and senators.

Past versions of the annual rally have sometimes packed the Capitol’s cavernous Rotunda.

Adam Garber, executive director of CeaseFire PA, the state’s leading gun violence prevention organization, said the turnout could represent a shrinking influence of gun lobbyists in Harrisburg. 

“Today’s rally is a reminder of, I think, the shrinking influence of the greedy gun lobby, who is refusing to address a public health crisis that destroys the lives of thousands of Pennsylvanians every year,” Garber said. 

Mon Valley lawmakers who attended were Sen. Camera Bartolotta, R-Carroll Township, and state Reps. Eric Davanzo, R-South Huntingdon and Bud Cook, R-West Pike Run Township. 

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