Pavlich: The Democrats next ‘public health’ power grab is coming

Throughout the course of the coronavirus pandemic, the civil liberties and constitutional rights of Americans have been pushed to the side as simple conveniences or privileges and violated by overreaching federal and local governments.

Across the country and in violation of the First Amendment, people have been barred from attending church services or peaceably assembling.

“Many policies that would be unthinkable in regular times have become commonplace in recent weeks, and we do not want to unduly interfere with the important efforts of state and local officials to protect the public. But the Constitution is not suspended in times of crisis. We must therefore be vigilant to ensure its protections are preserved, at the same time that the public is protected,” former Attorney General William Barr wrote in an April memo to the assistant attorney general for civil rights and U.S. attorneys around the country.

But under the guise of public health, the Biden administration is gearing up to go after the Second Amendment. After all, Biden promised during the campaign to “dedicate the brightest scientific minds to solving the gun violence public health epidemic.”

Now, his administration is working to get the job done through the executive branch.

“When the president was the vice president in the Obama-Biden administration, he helped put in place 23 executive actions to combat gun violence. It’s one of the levers that we can use,” White House press secretary Jen Psaki said during a recent briefing. In her own view, Psaki believes guns should be “taken” and that lawful gun owners should be registered with the federal government.

As the old Washington saying goes, personnel is policy and Biden has put the perfect people in place to do the job without Congress.

Newly confirmed Surgeon General Vivek Murthy, who also served as former President Obama’s surgeon general, has a history of anti-Second Amendment advocacy under the guise of public health. His confirmation in 2014 nearly failed on the issue after vote on his nomination was pushed back.

“Tired of politicians playing politics w/ guns, putting lives at risk b/c they’re scared of NRA. Guns are a health care issue. #debatehealth,” Murthy tweeted in 2012.

Murthy is also the co-founder of Doctors for America, an organization whose mission includes combatting “gun violence” as a “public health issue.” Their advocacy, which the group says is #inourlane, includes asking patients — adults and children — about firearms lawfully owned and kept inside the home. They’ve also lobbied Congress to ban certain types of commonly owned firearms and accessories.

“Doctor-patient discussions about firearm safety are critical to educating patients, but physicians need to feel prepared and confident to lead those conversations,” Doctors for America training and activism materials state. “Health is the sphere where our voices have the greatest authority and impact.”

“Gun violence is a public health epidemic. Doctors can do their part to prevent tragedies by talking to patients about gun safety. #GunSafetyDoctor,” they use as a sample for activists to tweet.

Democrats, anti-Second Amendment groups and the White House have already declared a new “public health” crisis. Now, the Department of Justice is ready to use the strength of law enforcement to enforce executive decisions.

“The president is a strong supporter of gun control and has been an advocate all his professional life on this question. The role of the Justice Department is to advance the policy program of the administration as long as it is consistent with the law,” Attorney General Merrick Garland said during his Senate confirmation hearing. “Where there is room under the law for the president’s policies to be pursued, I think the president is entitled to pursue them.”

Room under the law is one thing, but what about room under a national emergency or for the sake of public health? How far will government bureaucrats be willing to go in order to save the public from the “health threat” of ammunition magazines, modern sporting rifles or other firearms?

As we’ve seen with the coronavirus pandemic, the government has been more than happy to violate individual rights for the sake of public health. They’ve had a test run with the First Amendment and will soon come for the Second.

Pavlich is the editor for Townhall.com and a Fox News contributor.