Former Ally Blasts Bloomberg’s Anti-Gun Crusade

by B. Christopher Agee 

Michael Bloomberg’s tenure as New York City mayor was liberally peppered with outrageous rules and regulations meant to restrict the freedom of his constituents while increasing the role of the government. One of his most impassioned missions was the de facto repeal of the Second Amendment.
He formed the far-left group Mayors Against Illegal Guns, earning early support from other municipal executives from across the nation. While several like-minded mayors initially signed on to his radical gun control proposals, at least one member has publicly denounced the initiative.
Poughkeepsie, N.Y. Mayor John Tkazyik penned an opinion column in his local newspaper regarding his change of heart.

“Under the guise of helping mayors facing a crime and drug epidemic,” he wrote, the real mission of the group is “to promote confiscation of guns from law-abiding citizens.”
The alliance, formed eight years ago under Bloomberg’s leadership, has shed far more members than just Tkazyik.
“Nearly 50 pro-Second Amendment mayors have left the organization,” he continued. “They left for the same reason I did. MAIG became a vehicle for Bloomberg to promote his personal gun-control agenda,” which he contends only takes “resources away from initiatives that could actually work to protect our neighborhoods and save precious lives.”
He explained in the article that Bloomberg’s true intentions were much different than his stated goals, a lesson he learned shortly after aligning himself with the group.

“It did not take long to realize that MAIG’s agenda was much more than ridding felons of illegal guns,” he concluded.
Tkazyik presented his views as entirely different than those of his former ally, assuring readers his ideals did not change throughout the process.
“Just as Ronald Reagan said of the Democrat Party,” he explained, “it left me.”
As more and more Americans begin to recognize the left’s true intentions, Tkazyik’s realization is indicative of millions who do not want to see legal gun owners punished for the acts of a criminal minority.
Photo credit: Center for American Progress (Creative Commons)