California Gov. Gavin Newsom proposes constitutional amendment to enact gun control

California Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom proposed a 28th Amendment to the Constitution that would enact gun control measures in all 50 states. 

According to NBC, The proposed amendment would raise the minimum age to purchase a firearm to 21, mandate universal background checks, require a waiting period when purchasing a gun, and ban the sale of "assault rifles." 

When asked why now? Newsom responded, "It's pretty self-evident that a lot of the laws we pass are being rolled back by the federal courts." He continued, "This is an existential crisis that we're experiencing every single day." 

According to World Population Review, California had the 17th highest violent crime rate in 2022 with 442.05 incidents per 100,000 residents. It also had the highest amount of violent crimes with 174,026 instances. 

When asked how he would explain these numbers Newsome claimed the "California gun death rate today is 73 percent lower than Texas." He added, "These federal judges want to turn America into Texas. We cannot let that happen."

According to Pew Research, in 2021 54 percent of all gun-related deaths in the US were suicide. 

Newsom was asked if he thinks this will ever happen in his lifetime. He responded, "hope so. If you don't start we'll never happen."

In order to trigger a convention of states, it would require 34 states to propose a similar amendment. At a convention of states, 38 states would have to vote in favor of the new amendment to be added. Currently, more than half of state legislatures are under Republican control. 

This comes as California sees a massive decline in residents. San Francisco lost 6.3 percent of its residents, more than any other city in the country in 2021. The state had five cities in the top 15 for losses in population in 2022

For reference, Fort Wort, Texas, saw the highest population increase of any other city, gaining over 19 thousand residents in 2022. Texas had five cities in the top 15 for population gained, in 2022.