Breaking News.
Sixty-Seven New Hampshire House Reps have signed on to an open letter to Governor Hassan. They are asking that she change state policy to allow members of the NH National Guard to carry firearms either concealed or openly, like any other legal gun owner in the State, at their own discretion.
This letter is to be delivered to the Governor, the press, and Major General William N. Reddel III, Adjutant General, New Hampshire National Guard.
The letter follows…
Governor Maggie Hassan
Office of the Governor
Statehouse, 107 North Main Street
Concord, NH 03301
Your Excellency,
It has come to our attention that members of the New Hampshire National Guard, of whom you are the Commander-in-Chief, are not allowed to carry firearms openly or concealed except under specific direction from yourself or the local commander. This fact appears to be due to current standing orders, regulations, or policies and denies to them the right of self-protection enjoyed by all citizens of New Hampshire. This right is embodied in Part 1, Article 2-a of the New Hampshire Constitution, which provides that “[a]ll persons have the right to keep and bear arms in defense of themselves, their families, their property, and the state.”
Due to the multi-dimensional threat posed to our nation and our state by various terror groups, including radical Islamic Jihadists (as demonstrated most recently in the military reserve and recruiting stations assassinations in Chattanooga Tennessee), it is our firm opinion that it is imprudent to continue to refuse New Hampshire Guard personnel their right to arm themselves at their own discretion.
The current policy of not allowing members to carry concealed or even openly is a supreme irony in that we come from a strong Second Amendment state that is both an “open-carry” and “shall-issue” pistol permit state for concealed carry.
Furthermore, people who have volunteered to put their lives on the line in defense of our state and federal constitutions should have the means available to civilians to protect themselves and their comrades at all times.
Therefore, we the undersigned, as current members of the New Hampshire House of Representatives, are urging you to immediately rescind any and all standing orders, regulations, policies and practices that would prohibit New Hampshire National Guard personnel in good standing from carrying personal firearms at their own discretion, either openly or concealed. We need to allow New Hampshire’s military guardians the best and most effective way to counter the threat to our state and their safety.
At the date of this letter, several other States have already implemented a similar policy. We hope that New Hampshire can join them in adopting this common sense strategy to fight a persistent threat.
Most Respectfully,
CC: Major General William N. Reddel III
Adjutant General, New Hampshire National Guard
Here’s a PDF of the letter on House letterhead.
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