General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Neal Katyal tweet [View all]thesquanderer
(11,986 posts)The basic reading of the Constitution is that things that are protected by the Constitution cannot be left to the states; things that are not protected by the constitution are left to the states.
There is no hypocrisy in saying some things should be left to the states and others should not.
The question at hand is, rather, whether something is or is not protected by the Constitution,.
*IF* you believe abortion is not protected by the Constitution, then it should be left to the states. That's typically been a matter of whether you accept that a right to privacy, though not explicitly stated in the Constitution, is implicit.
*IF* you believe that concealed carry IS protected by the Constitution, then it should NOT be left to the states. That's a matter of how the second amendment is interpreted.
You don't have to like (or accept) those arguments for leaving one to the states and the other not, but it is not intellectually unjustifiable or inherently inconsistent.