Anticipating the rush of gunmakers fleeing Colorado after the state’s recent adoption of a semiautomatic firearm ban, Gov. Greg Gianforte (R) is letting the manufacturers know: “Montana is open for business.”
Breitbart News reported that Colorado Gov. Jared Polis (D) signed the semiautomatic firearm ban on April 10, 2025, and it takes effect in August 2026. In addition to banning America’s most popular rifle–the AR-15–Colorado’s ban also prohibits AK-47s, numerous semiautomatic shotguns, and even a number of pistols.
Gov. Gianforte released a video on April 23, 2025, describing Colorado’s new gun control as “one of the most restrictive gun bans ever adopted in the United States.”
He noted that the gun control bans not only the selling of numerous semiautomatic firearms, but also the manufacturing of the guns.
Gianforte noted, “This is on top of the liberal state’s existing ban on ‘high capacity’ magazines. That’s just crazy.”
He then pointed out, “Colorado is ranked in the top 10 states with the biggest gun industries. So, to all gun manufacturers in Colorado, my question is simple: Do you want to move back to America? Montana is open for business.”
A press release accompanying the video noted that Montana is a constitutional carry state which “[prohibits] the enforcement of any federal law, executive order, rule, or regulation that infringes upon ownership, possession, transfer, or use of any firearm, magazine, or firearm accessory.”
Gianforte summarized his message by saying, “In Montana, we embrace freedom and the free enterprise system. Come on home to America, right here in Montana.”
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, a member of Gun Owners of America, a Pulsar Night Vision pro-staffer, and the director of global marketing for Lone Star Hunts. He was a Visiting Fellow at the Russell Kirk Center for Cultural Renewal in 2010 and has a Ph.D. in Military History. Follow him on Instagram: @awr_hawkins. You can sign up to get Down Range at breitbart.com/downrange. Reach him directly: awrhawkins@breitbart.com.
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