Reaction came quickly from Arizona politicians to news of New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham’s Executive Order suspending Second Amendment rights .
Lujan Grisham explained on Twitter that she signed an executive order declaring gun violence a public health emergency, barring firearms from being carried in public in Albuquerque. Albuquerque police Chief Harold Medina promptly announced he won’t enforce the Governor’s order.
While reaction from Republicans was uniformly negative across the country, Lujan Grisham’s order divided Democrats. Congressman Ted Lieu, a liberal California Democrat tweeted: “I support gun safety laws. However, this order from the Governor of New Mexico violates the U.S. Constitution. No state in the union can suspend the federal Constitution. There is no such thing as a state public health emergency exception to the U.S. Constitution.”
Predictably, Arizona House Democrats praised Lujan Grisham’s action on Twitter.
“Hat Tip to New Mexico,” the @AZHouseDems account tweeted.
Hat tip to New Mexico! https://t.co/ge4pEE7nSS
— Arizona House Democrats (@AZHouseDems) September 9, 2023
Pinal County Sheriff Mark Lamb, the Republican candidate for U.S. Senate, responded to the Democrat’s tweet: “Arizona Democrats pretend to be moderates when campaigning, only to govern as far-left radicals. Remember this betrayal in 2024 and hold them accountable at the ballot box.” He also tweeted a video message:
My response to the unconstitutional, tyrannical action taken by the Governor of New Mexico. pic.twitter.com/wntp7MhE7k
— Mark Lamb for Senate (@sherifflamb1) September 9, 2023
Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Mitchell repeated the same line other Republicans had delivered in response to the Democrats.
“See you in court,” tweeted Mitchell.
Mitchell’s tweet had some Republicans shaking their head, as the Maricopa County Attorney’s office would have no jurisdiction in New Mexico and no conceivable path to filing a lawsuit against the New Mexico Governor. It also drew a sarcastic rebuke from the Abe Hamadeh Grassroots War Room.
“Bet they’re shaking in their boots,” the @AbeWarRoom account tweeted. “Does this mean you’re going to be spending less time sanctioning @AbrahamHamadeh & @KariLake for their election Integrity efforts and more time challenging the tyrannical Democrats?”
Hamadeh was the Republican nominee for Attorney General in 2022, and Mitchell has actively blocked his efforts to have every legal vote counted in that election, going so far as to request sanctions by the courts against Hamadeh’s lawyers and being uncooperative in multiple efforts to get relevant files in a timely manner.
2022 gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake, who has been flirting with a possible run for U.S. Senate or the Vice-Presidential slot on a ticket with Donald Trump, avoided bravado and hyperbole and addressed Democrat Party members directly.
“I would ask old-school Democrats this question,” tweeted Lake. “Do you even recognize your party even more? The modern-day @DNC believes that we live in a post-constitutional America. If our country is going to survive, we need to prove them wrong.”
For once, Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs, known for being quick to embrace liberal positions, was unusually quiet on the subject, avoiding the subject on Twitter altogether.