Even if Donald Trump never runs for president again (and oh how we hope he does), his legacy is now secured forever. The Supreme Court ruled 6-3 on Thursday that the state of New York’s evil restrictions against concealed carry are unconstitutional. This overturns terrible anti-gun laws in at least seven states.

And it was all possible because President Donald Trump appointed three new Justices to the Supreme Court during his first term in office. Justice Clarence Thomas authored this latest ruling, and in a happy coincidence, the ruling was announced on Thomas’ birthday.

To understand how significant this week’s ruling is, let’s take a closer look at New York’s draconian anti-gun law that was affected.

You cannot own a gun in New York unless you get permission from the government. You have to purchase a license. Doesn’t matter if you plan to keep the gun in your own home at all times, or if you want to conceal carry – you need a license to exercise your God-given right to self-defense in New York.

And it’s not exactly easy to get that license. A government employee must first determine whether you are a person of good moral character. Try to read that last sentence out loud without bursting into laughter. You also have to submit to a thorough criminal background check and a mental health background check.

Even after you jump through those hoops, you’re not done! Next, you have to prove to the state of New York that you have “proper cause” to concealed carry. (Open carry is fully banned in New York.) In order to prove proper cause, courts in New York have ruled that you must “demonstrate a special need for self-protection distinguishable from that of the general community or of persons engaged in the same profession.”

Just because you want to carry concealed, because you thought you lived in America, does not justify “proper cause” according to the courts in New York. New York has required residents to prove “proper cause” to get a gun license since 1980.

That draconian anti-concealed carry law is what the Supreme Court just struck down completely in its latest ruling. The Supreme Court has now positively affirmed the right of Americans to carry a loaded gun outside of their homes without requiring them to demonstrate that they have some sort of “special need.”

About 25% of the American population lives in the states that are most affected by this ruling. The states include New York, California and Massachusetts.

Justice Clarence Thomas interestingly argued in the majority opinion that these types of anti-gun ownership laws violate the 14th Amendment. Not the 2nd Amendment. It violates the 14th Amendment in that it prevents law-abiding citizens with ordinary defense needs (not special needs) from exercising their 2nd Amendment rights.

Thomas wrote:

“To justify its regulation, the government may not simply posit that the regulation promotes an important interest. Rather, the government must demonstrate that the regulation is consistent with this Nation’s historical tradition of firearm regulation. Only if a firearm regulation is consistent with this Nation’s historical tradition may a court conclude that the individual’s conduct falls outside the Second Amendment’s ‘unqualified command.’”

Justice Thomas has wanted to rule on this case for several years now. The same pro-gun group that sued in this particular case brought the same issue to the Supreme Court a few years ago. However, they withdrew the case right before the court was scheduled to hear it. This angered the judges, because many of them wanted a chance to swat down these unconstitutional “particular need” laws.

Residents in these states will still have to jump through a number of (illegal) hoops to own a gun. But the right to conceal carry can no longer be restricted arbitrarily by state bureaucrats. They can no longer deny gun owners a concealed carry license. If it’s legal for them to own a gun, and they want to carry concealed, the states have to issue them the permit.

President Trump should be truly proud. The rights of the people greatly expanded, and the power of government was restricted, by this proper ruling. And this proper ruling was only possible because of Donald Trump’s Supreme Court picks.