There’s an exodus underway from West Coast states largely due to left-drifting politics, according to Fox News, and among those heading to “free America” are Washington State gun owners jumping the border to neighboring Idaho.
At least, that seems to be one of the reasons Bryan Zielinski took his family and his professional background in firearms retail to Post Falls, Idaho, about 20 minutes east of Spokane via I-90. As the Fox story revealed—and as Zielinski explained to Ammoland via telephone—Washington became just too political, and the gun laws became increasingly restrictive.
A Washington native, Zielinski worked as the general manager at the popular Wade’s Guns in Bellevue, within walking distance of the national headquarters of the Second Amendment Foundation and Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms.
In his remarks to Fox News, Zielinski explained, “Everything is political. Whether it’s the car you drive, where you work. You’re wearing a mask, you’re not wearing a mask.”
In a video posted online, Zielinski lamented about how the recent ruling by a Cowlitz County Superior Court judge declaring the state’s two-year-old ban on so-called “large-capacity magazines” unconstitutional was swiftly stayed by a State Supreme Court commissioner. He took particular aim at Democrat state Attorney General Bob Ferguson, who rushed to get the stay just 88 minutes after Judge Gary Bashor issued his 55-page opinion in mid-April.
“We saw an attorney general who wants to be your governor that is willing to violate all of the trust that the public has for that position,” Zielinski says in his video. “And I know there’s not much trust left with the attorney general.”
In 2022, Washington banned magazines capable of holding more than 10 cartridges, and since then Ferguson has sued at least two gun shops for violating the law. The second lawsuit resulted in the case before the Cowlitz County court.
Last year, the state banned so-called “assault weapons” with legislation Ferguson had been pursuing for the past few years. That law is presently being challenged in federal court.
In the same video, Zielinski encourages viewers to throw their support behind Republican gubernatorial candidate Dave Reichert. He is the former seven-term congressman and King County Sheriff on whose watch the notorious Green River Killer, Gary Ridgway, was finally captured and convicted.
Zielinski believes Reichert is the only candidate who can defeat Ferguson in November, and recent polling by Echelon Insights showed the former lawman slightly ahead. However, the election is still months away.
Gun laws may be a shadow issue in the Washington election. Crime is up in the state, and a former sheriff once caught on camera chasing a rioter down a Seattle street may have an edge against an attorney general whose policies are seen by many as soft on crime. Ferguson is supported by anti-gunners, while Reichert is getting support from law enforcement.
Last week, the state Department of Licensing reported active concealed pistol licenses have gone upwards again, with 695,321 active CPL’s at the end of April, a spike of 4,214 from the March 31 figure of 691,107 licenses, according to TheGunMag.com. Despite its “blue” politics in recent years, Washington has always had a high percentage of adults licensed to carry, regardless of their politics.
Four months ago, Zielinski opened North Idaho Arms in a small strip mall on the west side of Post Falls. The store is just far enough across the Idaho line to allow him to thumb his nose at Washington.
He told Ammoland the move was “the single best thing I’ve ever done” and the hardest decision he’s ever made. But he is now in a state where modern semiautomatic rifles and original-capacity magazines are still legal, and the state is not using a consumer protection law to drive him out of business. He is registered to vote, is shopping for a home—he is currently renting—he pays about 70 cents less for a gallon of gasoline and his family is much happier.
“Washington has used the consumer protection law against the interests of the Second Amendment,” he observed.
He will eventually encourage Gem State politicians in Boise, and lawmakers in other states, to adopt laws prohibiting the use of consumer protection laws against the Second Amendment.
Next month will mark the one-year anniversary of his move to Idaho, and he said he talks to dozens of people a week who are considering a similar move, so it is not as though Zielinski is a maverick. He simply got tired of living in a state where government is ratcheting down on every aspect of life.
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About Dave Workman
Dave Workman is a senior editor at TheGunMag.com and Liberty Park Press, author of multiple books on the Right to Keep & Bear Arms, and formerly an NRA-certified firearms instructor.
Nice. Liberals destroy everything they touch.
All this does is concede states to the Left. I remember when Colorado was solidly red, and Nevada too but turning blue fast. That’s just a couple of examples. If we keep fleeing to free states, eventually all states will turn blue.
I think you might live in one of those red states and if so, congratulations. Here is the other side of that coin. Numbers count. When you are a blue state simply because more blue people live in three major leftist counties, reds are moving out and more blue is coming in from other states because you are blue, when do the numbers change to make red the majority. If red people stay in blue states, they will most likely not be happy as much as they would in a red. In addition when they move to red states, they… Read more »
Musicman, you’re spot on because in Connecticut where I reside there’s Hartford, Fairfield, New Haven county that are the blue bastions of majority vote. Most of Connecticut is red. I decided to stay and fight and that’s I decided to become a lead plaintiff here when asked in a second Amendment rights called Grant v Rovella (Lamont). We have a lot of people here leaving the state to exodus to New Hampshire, Tennessee, Florida, South Carolina, Texas, and other red states. Oh, the move was/is tempting but I’m a fighter so I’m staying. Red states don’t sit and rest on… Read more »
I love my Colts that were made in Connecticut. I would like to stay in my state too but the blue has already won here and I don’t see that changing. I am glad you are in a Red state. I don’t want to live in snow and I like the rain and allot of the people but just like Kommiefornia where I was born and raised I don’t like the big cities because they ruin it for everyone as well as most kommiefornians where ever they move too. I had a friend today tell me the Missoula Montana has… Read more »
I left Ct ten years ago, I couldn’t afford the expenses living in Ct. Paid off house, taxes, fuel costs, utility bills, general cost of living after I retired and was no longer working 70 hours a week.Florida is hot and humid AND FREE!!!!
“Talk to on the radio”
That reminds me… I got an FCC 2nd Class in 1985, but I never did get a ham ticket. Time to do so.
You know with all the crap going on, if our cell towers were knocked out or power grids, it would not be a bad idea to have one. They make them designed to run on 12 volt DC and all you need is literally a wire to transmit on at about 35 feet in the air and you could talk around the world but it doesn’t need to be that high for local which is about 500 miles. Ya, 500 miles was a super good day riding the skip in our younger CB days wasn’t it. My best was Sacramento… Read more »
Yeah, but PUUULLEEEAASSE leave your wokeness and leftist ideology and voting tendencies behind! I got out of leftichusetts 50 or so years ago to settle in Virginia. But as the years have passed, the influx of woke, leftists has gradually deteriorated the sensibly conservative nature of Virginia. It’s the same old culprit; a few urban splotches of blue controlling a sea of red counties.
I know what you mean. When I was in Virginia visiting all over especially Quantico, I asked a few residents why is it turning blue and most said, that DC is so messed up that the people that work there live in Virginia and that is the problem. They vote, their kids vote, their relatives that follow them to get those high paying excellent retirement jobs follow and it is a vicious cycle that they are fighting. Some say West Virginia is their next choice if they move because they are not going to live on the West coast because… Read more »
People can relocate only so many times anyway. Instead of fleeing new gun laws, they should stay put and stiffly defy them.
They come to Montana freeze thier ass off and leave for a warmer climate within a year or 2 . It’s a continuous cycle of idiots that we don’t want in Montana . Bozeman has been infested with liberal idiots that are clueless and not smart enough to check the weather report before heading over Bozeman pass . They have been stuck thier for a couple days enjoying spring time in Montana . LMAO
If you are moving to a red state because you are sick and tired of the political atmosphere of the state you are leaving, you damn well better assimilate to the politics of the new state. Otherwise it’s like farting while walking, the stench follows you.
If we didn’t have some serious health issues to deal with, I’d be selling out and headin’ for Idaho, too. The Peoples Republic of Pugetopia is starting to slosh over the Cascade crest. Leavenworth and Cle Ellum are being infested with more and more unicorn fart smelling Pugetopians every year. The thing is, most of them haven’t got the common sense to pour piss out of a boot with directions on the heel, as my dad used to say. Leavenworth had an old Catholic church camp that got bought by one of the Bullit sisters (big media in Seattle,) and… Read more »
At 77 years old I’m not inclined to start a business but some enterprising entrepreneur needs to market “Proud to be a gun-free residence!” lawn signs and “This is a gun-free vehicle” bumper stickers for the anti-gun folks to proudly display.
Advertising for home invasions and carjackings?
I see the usual argument here between those who say “get out” and those who think it’s abandoning the fight. I wonder if something else has occurred to anyone; that the Left is deliberately pursuing policies that encourage this trend of self-segregation for a reason? I recall that both that idiot Swalwell and the Biden-puppet have intimated (in Swalwell’s case outright threatened) on more than one occasion that WMD might be deployed against Americans who refuse to bend the knee. That wouldn’t be a very practical ‘solution’ for this crop of would-be tyrants unless they could convince their enemies to… Read more »
BY CLAIRE RUSH AND LINDSAY WHITEHURST Published 4:24 PM PDT, February 15, 2023 Share PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Local governments in Oregon can’t declare themselves Second Amendment sanctuaries and ban police from enforcing certain gun laws, a state appeals court decided Wednesday, in the first court case filed over a concept that hundreds of U.S. counties have adopted in recent years. The measure in question, which was approved in Columbia County, forbids local officials from enforcing most federal and state gun laws and would impose thousands of dollars in fines on those who try. The state Court of Appeals ruled that… Read more »
Fox needs to look for more data. Oregon and Kommiefornia are moving to Idaho for the same reasons. I know a group of people that want to have Oregone and part of kommiefornia become part of Idaho. If the new laws Oregoneistan are pushing comes though and they cannot get the merger, they will leave. Some have already left for Boise, Nampa and Tennessee.
Just so long as they leave their KommiFornia and Oregonistan behind them.
What was the meme I read? “Remember, you’re a refugee, not a missionary.”
I totally agree but it seems that more states complain about the invasions then are happy with their new comers because they instinctively try and make it like the shit hole they ran away from.
We have that same problem here in Oregoneistan.
That isn’t how it happens. Think for a minute; California, for example, doesn’t have enough leftists to move and ‘convert’ other states, even if all of them poured in, and they aren’t the ones moving out anyway. Conservatives are doing that. No, what’s actually been happening is kids from your state go away to college, where some of them fall for the brainwashing that these former schools turned re-education camps feed them. They return home, and immediately embed themselves in a public sector job, usually in education or some part of the elections system. They gradually recruit more like them.… Read more »
Very good point. In orgoneistan, the leftists come here from other states to play football, baseball etc. for the colleges, are allowed to vote and vote for crap that changes the town, city and state and causes more taxes and then leave to go back to their home state. The difference is that the ones coming here are the leftists. P.S. If you are going to move and don’t want to deal with the trash, stay away from college towns. The brain dead seem to infect wherever they live. Wyoming, Montana, Oregoneistan, South Dakota all have it. Wherever there is… Read more »
Charlottesville, VA is a perfect example of a college town infesting the surrounding counties, Albemarle in particular with leftist, woke crap! (full disclosure, I actually have a UVA degree). Same thing is happening down around Virginia Tech!
I would say what do we do to get more republican conservative kids into school but I have friends that sent their kids to school and came out libtards. So the only answer I can find is either private school where you can know what they are being taught or change the system. I am for changing the system.
I often reflect on what President Regan said. The XXX amount of words you need to fear most are “I’m from the government and I am here to help”. We need to get the government out of our schools.
Boise is no longer a red city, absolutely NO better than Spokane or Wenatchee.
The same thing is happening to Bend Oregone. A bunch of rich democraps from commiefornia are moving there and the people born and raised there are leaving. They call it Oregon’s new LA now. Bend was Red up to about 4 years ago. New woke judges are changing the face of the town now and new woke findings are being applied.
It’s what kommiefornians that come to your town do.
I moved from a very blue Washington county to North Idaho 17 years ago. There is a sense of freedom one feels in Idaho that is just missing in the Peoples Republic of Washington. I’ve done SBR, SBS and suppressors since moving to Idaho. No kickback at the local sheriff’s office.
Good luck in your new location, too bad you can’t sell handguns to Wa state residents anymore.
Why do the people of Washington State, Oregon, California, Colorado, and Nevada vote for this crap? Stay in your state and vote the progressives out.
It’s a numbers game and we all have the same problem and I can only find one answer but even how that would be done would screw us. The metropolitan cities and the amount of people in them outnumber all of the people in the remaining counties. In the case of Oregoneistan it is Portland, Salem, Eugene and now Bend that are blue. That is 4 counties out of 36 and yes those for have more people than the remaining 32 red counties. If we could make it where the governess was voted in by the amount of counties that… Read more »
Read my response to JB
One of the objectives of law is to reduce crime. Legislators, however, have to frame those laws in a manner compatible with the Constitution. And Attorneys General and District Attorneys are likewise obliged to charge and prosecute in a manner compatible with the constitutional rights of the citizen. If they are not capable of doing so, if they cannot achieve the goal of crime reduction in a manner compatible with the restrictions on their actions imposed by the Constitution, they need to be removed from office for incompetence and replaced by those who CAN achieve those objectives in a manner… Read more »