1. United States
2. N.C.
3. Letter

Help me make sense of Trump’s and his cabinet’s comments about the 2nd Amendment and our right to bear arms. I’m very confused. In 2020, Kyle Rittenhouse crossed state lines to enter Minnesota and with an AR-15 style rifle visibly strapped to his chest and killed a man. He was deemed a hero by Trump and many of your GOP colleagues. Alex Pretti was a citizen of Minnesota, carrying a holstered weapon that was never brandished. He was had permits for this weapon. He was assaulted by CBP for helping a woman, had his weapon removed, and then was executed on the street in broad daylight. The President, Noem, Bovino and many of your GOP colleagues took to social media and news outlets over the weekend to say he shouldn’t have had a gun. So Kyle Rittenhouse is a hero, and him bringing a gun to a protest is exactly why we have the 2nd Amendment. But Alex Pretti shouldn’t have carried his gun? Help me understand this. When and under what circumstances does the 2nd Amendment come into play? Does political party affiliation determine who can carry a gun and when? Is the 2nd Amendment circumstantial pertaining to who does the shooting and who was killed with gun? Does gender or skin color determine who is covered by the 2nd Amendment? Or, is the 2nd Amendment only valid when the President “likes” who is holding the gun or “likes” who got killed? This seems to be how the President and some of your colleagues are interpreting the 2nd Amendment. And, if that’s the case, then we’ve got a real problem in this country with a President who thinks he’s king and a party of lap dogs who parrot what he says. I’m looking forward to hearing your response. I’m betting many Americans are, especially those in NC who value their ability to hold and carry guns.