Keith Lusher 09.26.25
California’s status as one of many nation’s most difficult states for gun possession obtained additional affirmation when even its personal governor discovered the legal guidelines too advanced to navigate.
The state of affairs started throughout Newsom’s July look on “The Shawn Ryan Show,” the place host Shawn Ryan, a former Navy SEAL, stunned the governor with a Sig Sauer P365-Xmacro pistol price roughly $700.
“That is fabulous,” Newsom stated in the course of the recorded interview, holding the boxed pistol. “The very last thing individuals would count on is that I respect this reward.”
The governor instructed Ryan he was “not anti-gun in any respect” and described himself as being “for gun security, frequent sense.” He added that he was “deeply conscious and respectful of the Second Modification and other people’s constitutional rights.”
Nonetheless, California Assemblyman Carl DeMaio revealed in late July that Newsom in the end rejected the reward off-camera on account of compliance points with state laws.
“DeMaio’s workplace has now realized that off-camera Newsom rejected the reward due to compliance guidelines and left the firearm behind in Tennessee,” in keeping with an announcement from DeMaio’s workplace printed within the Fallbrook & Bonsall Village News.
The assemblyman’s workplace reported that Newsom’s staff “admitted that the California anti-gun legal guidelines are so difficult that they’ve needed to rent authorized counsel to conduct a authorized evaluate.”
In accordance with California regulation, transferring a firearm requires a number of steps, together with a background examine, acquiring a Firearm Security Certificates, finishing a Vendor File of Sale (DROS) submission, observing a 10-day ready interval, and offering a protected storage affidavit. The method additionally entails particular taxes and costs.
DeMaio famous the complexity of bringing the gun into California legally, saying the governor would wish to navigate “the painful, bureaucratic maze he constructed” because the architect of lots of the state’s present gun laws.
Newsom’s spokesperson, Izzy Gardon, confirmed that the pistol would have been the primary firearm registered within the governor’s title. The reward exceeded California’s $630 restrict for political items, requiring Newsom to pay Ryan the distinction if he accepted it.
In the course of the podcast, Newsom defended California’s gun legal guidelines, arguing they’ve helped the state obtain one of many nation’s lowest charges of gun-related deaths. He expressed assist for background checks and age restrictions whereas stating considerations about “massive capability magazines” and “weapons of warfare.”
The governor shared that he was raised in a family with firearms and talked about that his father-in-law had gifted his 11-year-old son a rifle, calling it “some extent of delight” and noting the emotional attachment it created between his son and grandfather.
Gun rights advocates criticized Newsom’s dealing with of the state of affairs. Sam Paredes, government director of Gun House owners of California, known as the incident “the peak of hypocrisy” and stated it demonstrated how troublesome California has made it to personal firearms legally.
The Sig Sauer P365-Xmacro is a well-liked hid carry pistol that Ryan instructed Newsom was “California compliant.” Regardless of this assurance, the switch course of proved too difficult for the governor’s workplace to finish with out skilled authorized steering.
DeMaio despatched letters to each U.S. Lawyer Normal Pam Bondi and California Lawyer Normal Rob Bonta requesting help to assist Newsom adjust to the state’s gun legal guidelines, although it stays unclear whether or not the governor intends to pursue the switch.
The incident has drawn consideration to the complexity of California’s firearms laws, which critics argue have made authorized gun possession unnecessarily burdensome even for the state’s highest elected official.
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