Second Amendment Advocate Takes Fight to Washington

The South Shore Press caught up with gun rights advocate Angelo Veltri to see what the former Save Long Island activist has been working on since taking his fight to Washington. Now serving as federal affairs director for the National Association for Gun Rights, the Ridge native is helping shape federal firearms legislation while keeping a close eye on developments in New York.

One of the biggest developments came this week when a federal judge in Texas ruled that portions of the National Firearms Act requiring registration of suppressors, short-barreled rifles and short-barreled shotguns are unconstitutional after Congress eliminated the tax previously attached to those items. Veltri said the decision is expected to be appealed and could ultimately reach the U.S. Supreme Court.

His organization’s primary focus in Congress is legislation establishing nationwide constitutional carry, which would eliminate the need for concealed carry permits for law-abiding citizens. Twenty-nine states already have constitutional carry laws, and Veltri said his group has spent the past year building support for extending that policy to all 50 states.

On the state level, Veltri is also watching New York’s latest firearms restrictions, including a recently enacted provision aimed at prohibiting the 3D printing of firearm components. He argues the measure will be difficult to enforce and believes it raises First Amendment concerns because courts have recognized computer code used by 3D printers as protected speech.

Veltri, a self-described Second Amendment absolutist, maintains that additional gun restrictions primarily burden lawful citizens rather than criminals.

“When you make it harder for good people to get guns, then all that’s left with the guns are the bad people,” he said.

Before joining the National Association for Gun Rights, Veltri organized student activists for Young Americans for Liberty before becoming the organization’s Northeast regional director. About a year and a half ago, he was promoted to Washington to lead the group’s federal legislative efforts.

Closer to home, Veltri remains active with Save Long Island, the grassroots organization that helped lead the successful effort to eliminate Suffolk County’s controversial red-light camera program and continues to advocate against what it considers government overreach, including school bus cameras and automated license plate readers.