The Weekly Reload Podcast

This week, we're doing a deep dive into the history surrounding Americans under 21 buying guns. That's why we've got gun-rights lawyer Alan Beck on the show. He's currently representing a client who is fighting Hawaii's age restrictions. In the wake of the Eleventh Circuit upholding Florida's gun sales ban for those under 21 by pointing to how contract law limited the same age group's ability to buy guns, he researched the question. He argues the evidence contradicts the Eleventh Circuit's holding. He said rulings from the Founding Era suggest those under 21 couldn't enter into contracts for things that weren't necessities, but that was actually a pretty broad exception. He said most guns would have been considered necessities because they were needed to hunt, perform mandated militia service, and provide for general security. Beck also gave a working-lawyers view of the Supreme Court's Second Amendment jurisprudence and where it's headed. He described the details of his latest case at the High Court and what the cert application process is like.Special Guest: Alan Beck.

Contributing writer Jake Fogleman and I discuss the potential fallout from President Trump's sweeping tariff announcement on the gun and ammunition market. We talk about why the potential cost increases come at a precarious time for an industry already facing some headwinds, including another month of declining gun sales based on newly released figures. Plus, we discuss a pair of opposite rulings in state courts in Pennsylvania and Illinois dealing with the question of whether major gun companies can be sued for crimes committed by third parties with their products. Get a 30-day free trial for a subscription to The Dispatch here: https://thedispatch.com/join-offer-reload/?utm_source=thereload&utm_medium=partnerships-podcast&utm_campaign=0125

This week, we're taking a close look at the Supreme Court's ruling in Bondi v. VanDerStok. To do that, we have the Independence Institute's David Kopel on the show. Kopel has written extensively on gun policy and been cited repeatedly at the Supreme Court. So, there are few people better qualified to dissect what the VanDerStok ruling means. Kopel argued the decision upholding the ATF's "ghost gun" kit ban is relatively narrow, but still likely applies to more than just the Polymer80 "buy build shoot" kits discussed at length by the majority. He also explained why the majority decided the case as a facial challenge and why he, along with Justices Thomas and Alito, disagrees with the use of that standard. He said the Trump Administration could have tried to intervene in this case, but didn't move fast enough. However, he argued that it can still try to undo the rule despite the decision. Kopel also gave his view on where the balance of the court lies on gun issues and whether there's a reliable way to read what they might do with other pending gun cases. Get a 30-day free trial for a subscription to The Dispatch here: https://thedispatch.com/join-offer-reload/?utm_source=thereload&utm_medium=partnerships-podcast&utm_campaign=0125Special Guest: David Kopel.

Contributing writer Jake Fogleman and I talk about the Supreme Court's 7-2 decision to uphold the ATF's ability to treat unfinished firearms parts kits as completed guns and what that means moving forward. We also talk about the new financial troubles hitting the gun-control group March for Our Lives. Finally, we cover an outlier federal ruling on New York City's stun gun ban before highlighting DOJ's plans for the ATF and investigation into California's gun-carry permitting. Get a 30-day free trial for a subscription to The Dispatch here: https://thedispatch.com/join-offer-reload/?utm_source=thereload&utm_medium=partnerships-podcast&utm_campaign=0125

This week, we're looking at a few actions the Trump Administration just took on gun policy. To wade through those moves and navigate where the signs point, we've got Cam Edwards of Bearing Arms back on the show. We look at different stories from Health and Human Services (HHS), the Department of Justice (DOJ), and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF). As Cam noted, some were bigger deals than others. First, HHS deleted a Biden-era report calling for new gun restrictions--like an "assault weapons" ban--from its website. Cam said that move was one well within the President's authority. He said that while the action arrived at a comparatively slow pace to some of the other things the Trump Administration is doing, it mirrored what it did in shutting down the White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention and could signal more is coming in the short term. Then there is the first rule related to guns from the new administration. The DOJ published a plan to restart the gun rights restoration process. Cam said it was more of a plan to make a plan, but he argued it was another strong sign the administration plans to follow through on promised gun rulemaking. The final development points in the same direction and may be the strongest indicator of what's to come, according to Cam. That's the appointment of Robert Leider as the new ATF Chief Counsel. Cam argued that Leider, a Second Amendment scholar and gun-rights advocate, will likely put his expertise to use to help enact numerous pro-gun reforms. Get a 30-day free trial for a subscription to The Dispatch here: https://thedispatch.com/join-offer-reload/?utm_source=thereload&utm_medium=partnerships-podcast&utm_campaign=0125Special Guest: Cam Edwards.

Contributing writer Jake Fogleman and I recap the en banc Ninth Circuit's newest decision upholding California's ban on magazines capable of holding more than ten rounds and its much-discussed video dissent from Judge Lawrence VanDyke. We also talk about a separate Ninth Circuit panel's ruling striking down Hawaii's unique restrictions on handgun sales. Finally, we cover a long awaited en banc Eleventh Circuit decision dealing with Florida's post-Parkland ban on gun sales to adults under the age of 21. Get a 30-day free trial for a subscription to The Dispatch here: https://thedispatch.com/join-offer-reload/?utm_source=thereload&utm_medium=partnerships-podcast&utm_campaign=0125Special Guest: Mike Willever.

We've been highlighting the fact that The New York Times, the largest paper in the country, has finally hired a gun-beat reporter. So, this week, we invited him on the show to talk about his approach and goals. Reporter Thomas Gibbons-Neff has started consistently doing gun stories for The Grey Lady, as The Times has long been known. It's not his first assignment. I also wouldn't call it his most challenging since he went from active-duty service in Afghanistan to covering it and, later, the war in Ukraine. Still, as Gibbons-Neff readily admits, covering guns in America for a paper like The Times is not without its own challenges. One of the things he has to navigate in order to find sources is The Times' reputation, especially given its aggressive editorial stance in favor of new gun restrictions and bans. But he agreed his background and continual focus on firearms should help him produce better stories than many in the gun world might expect. And he said he's going to work to earn the gun-owning community's trust that he'll be fair, mainly by demonstrating it in the pieces he publishes. Get a 30-day free trial for a subscription to The Dispatch here: https://thedispatch.com/join-offer-reload/?utm_source=thereload&utm_medium=partnerships-podcast&utm_campaign=0125Special Guest: Thomas Gibbons-Neff.

Contributing writer Jake Fogleman and I talk about a ruling out of the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals that found short-barreled rifles aren't "arms" as considered by the Second Amendment. We also talk about a pair of state court rulings, one out of Oregon upholding the state's purchase permit requirements and magazine ban, and another out Massachusetts that upheld the state's requirement that out-of-state visitors get a special permit before bringing their guns into the state. Plus, I talk with Idaho Senator Mike Crapo (R.) about the Hearing Protection Act and his views on the GOP's plans for gun policy in Congress. Get a 30-day free trial for a subscription to The Dispatch here: https://thedispatch.com/join-offer-reload/?utm_source=thereload&utm_medium=partnerships-podcast&utm_campaign=0125

This week, we've got a longer episode than usual. That's because we're doing a deep dive into oral arguments for the Supreme Court's latest gun case, Smith & Wesson v. Mexico. Most observers, including me, thought Mexico faired poorly in its attempt to move forward with liability claims against American gunmakers over cartel violence south of the border. However, Professor Dru Stevenson, who studies gun policy at Southern Texas College of Law, had a bit of a different take. So, I wanted to have him on the show to go through why he thought the justices may be more sympathetic toward Mexico's claims than most other people thought. While he still believes Mexico's suit is unlikely to make it through the Supreme Court unscathed, Stevenson argued the justices might allow part of it to proceed. And, even if not, he said The Court may end up laying out what amounts to a framework for how to successfully pierce gun industry liability protections in future suits. Get a 30-day free trial for a subscription to The Dispatch here: https://thedispatch.com/join-offer-reload/?utm_source=thereload&utm_medium=partnerships-podcast&utm_campaign=0125Special Guest: Dru Stevenson.

Contributing writer Jake Fogleman and I break down the latest national gun sales data for February and discuss why they suggest trouble ahead for the gun industry. We also talk about Trump's latest omission of his gun policy priorities in a major public address, this time in his first joint address to Congress. Finally, we briefly recap this week's Supreme Court oral arguments in Mexico's lawsuit against Smith and Wesson that seeks to hold the company financially responsible for cartel violence across the southern border. Get a 30-day free trial for a subscription to The Dispatch here: https://thedispatch.com/join-offer-reload/?utm_source=thereload&utm_medium=partnerships-podcast&utm_campaign=0125