Wisconsin Anti-Gun Activists Fail at Public Hearing
The truth hurts so bad you can see it on their faces. WGO’s testimony at the Jan. 7, 2026, public hearing in Madison on Assembly Bill 609 (Constitutional Carry) left members of a small anti-gun group planted in their seats with arms folded and scowling faces as they were forced to listen to the truth about gun owners’ inalienable right to bear arms. WGO Photo
WGO delivered blistering testimony in support of Assembly Bill 609 (Constitutional Carry), destroying anti-gun groups’ rehashed arguments.
Madison, Wis.—Testimony delivered on Wednesday by Wisconsin Gun Owners, Inc. (WGO), supporting Assembly Bill 609 (Constitutional Carry) left members of a small anti-gun group planted in their seats with arms folded and scowling faces as they were forced to listen to the truth about gun owners’ inalienable right to bear arms.
That testimony, delivered by WGO representative David Eiden, pre-empted the weak, vacuous arguments used by the gun control lobby to argue against the right to self-defense.
WGO representative David Eiden testified in support of AB609, or Constitutional Carry. The bill would eliminate the requirement to get a license to carry, but would leave the permit process in place as an option for those who want one for reciprocity purposes with other states. WGO Photo
“This is not a complicated issue to understand,” Eiden said. “Since WGO’s founding in 2003, we have always maintained that concealed carry is a right, not a privilege. Constitutional Carry (permit-less concealed carry) would do away with the requirement to get a Big-Brother-May-I-Please permission slip to carry.
“The word ‘permit’ implies permission; a concealed weapons permit is a government permission slip. Try to imagine the outrage in the streets that would (justifiably) erupt if the State required a permit to exercise free speech or practice the religion of your choice.
“This matter is really that simple,” said Eiden.
Following testimony to the Assembly Committee on State Affairs, no Democrats attempted to refute WGO’s points or question its rationale for supporting the legislation. That 10-member committee has seven Republicans and three Democrats.
State Rep. Chanz Green (R-74) authored the pro-gun bill, along with a strengthening of the State’s Right to Keep and Bear Arms language in the Wisconsin Constitution. WGO Photo
During testimony by the bill’s author, State Representative Chanz Green (R-74), one Democratic lawmaker attempted to suggest that Constitutional Carry would lead to “more guns on the streets” and cited a study claiming that passage of the bill would supposedly lead to more officer-involved shootings. Still, they did not provide the study to the public for review. They also didn’t address the net benefit to society in lives saved via defensive gun uses.
Also on Wednesday, WGO provided supporting testimony on Assembly Joint Resolution 112, which would significantly strengthen the language of the Right to Keep and Bear Arms amendment to the Wisconsin Constitution.
The Committee on State Affairs is expected to vote on AB609 next week.
Members of the Assembly Committee on State Affairs—where Republicans hold a 7-3 majority—will vote on AB609 next week. WGO Photo
NEXT STEPS—TAKE ACTION
WGO presently has a surplus of excuse letters, but needs activists to get this legislation across the finish line.
1. Use WGO’s Online Action Center to send a pre-written message to your state representatives, urging them to support AB609, AB610, and AJR112.
2. Is your WGO membership active? Click Here. The direct action mailings WGO sends are the only hope gun owners have of keeping up sufficient pressure to overcome the closet anti-gunners in the Wisconsin legislature.
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