West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey (R) is advising sheriffs in his state to stay on task processing concealed carry permit applications and issuing those permits for applicants legally able to carry a gun.

Morrisey wants residents of this state to maintain the ability to defend themselves, regardless of coronavirus shutdowns and/or social distancing requirements.

The NRA-ILA quoted Morrisey saying, “While we want our residents to be safe and practice good social distancing, we also want to ensure they can still exercise their right to keep and bear arms.”

On March 27, 2020, Breitbart News reported Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s (R) comments, in which he made clear counties and municipalities cannot shut down gun sales during the coronavirus crisis.

Paxton was asked to opine on the extent of a county’s power during an emergency and said:

While the Legislature granted local officials certain emergency powers to address disaster situations, that local authority is not without limitation. Relevant to your question, provisions in the Local Government Code prohibit municipalities and counties from regulating, among other things, the transfer, possession, ownership, or sale of firearms, notwithstanding any other law.

In Arizona, Governor Doug Ducey (R) signed an executive order exempting gun stores from shutdown orders during the coronavirus crisis.

Ducey’s order designates “firearm and ammunition suppliers and retailers” as essential, noting their role in “safety and security.”

AWR Hawkins is an award-winning Second Amendment columnist for Breitbart News and the writer/curator of Down Range with AWR Hawkins, a weekly newsletter focused on all things Second Amendment, also for Breitbart News. He is the political analyst for Armed American Radio. Follow him on Twitter: @AWRHawkins. Reach him at awrhawkins@breitbart.com. You can sign up to get Down Range at breitbart.com/downrange.