The state Assembly is set to vote on a package of bills that aim to make New Jersey's gun laws even stricter. Watch video
UPDATE: Lawmakers just voted to make N.J. gun laws even tougher
Two days after thousands rallied across the globe for more gun control, hundreds of gun-rights activists held a demonstration of their own in New Jersey's capital on Monday.
They gathered on the steps of the War Memorial across from the Statehouse in Trenton to protest as the state Assembly prepares to vote on a package of bills that aim to further tighten the state's already tight gun laws.
Scott Bach, director of the Association of New Jersey Rifle & Pistol Clubs -- which co-hosted the rally with the National Rifle Association -- told the crowd "we are facing a perfect anti-gun storm."
"Lawmakers are in a feeding frenzy right now to push the most extreme laws," Bach said.
Big gun bills up for votes in N.J.
Monday's voting session comes amid increased calls for more gun laws in the wake of last month's school shooting in Parkland, Florida.
On Saturday, people around the world took part in the March for Our Lives, a rally organized by students who survived that shooting.
Among the Democratic-sponsored statewide proposals up Monday is one to reduce magazine capacity, another to ban armor-piercing bullets, another to make it tougher to obtain a permit to carry a handgun, another to expand background checks on private gun sales, and two to keep firearms out of the hands of people deemed a threat to themselves and others.
Both the Assembly and then the state Senate -- each controlled by Democrats -- must pass the measures before they head to Gov. Phil Murphy's desk.
Murphy, a Democrat who has repeatedly called for tougher gun laws, has vowed to sign them.
But those at the rally in Trenton argued the measures punish only law-abiding gun-owners and would do nothing to make New Jersey, which already has some of the nation's toughest firearm laws, any safer. They also said lawmakers are violating their right to bear arms under the Second Amendment.
Steve Michel, an Ocean City resident who took off from work to attend the rally, said he's afraid New Jerseyans are "losing our constitutional rights."
"I go anywhere else, and I can carry (a gun)," Michel said. "I can protect myself and my family. I can't do that in New Jersey. The only place I can is in my home."
Hundreds attend a gun-rights rally on the steps of the War Memorial in Trenton on Monday morning. The State Police estimated that 2,000 people attended the rally.
Some of the signs in the crowd read: "Defend Freedom," "Follow the Constitution," and "N.J. & Tyranny: Perfect Together."
Donna Simon, a former member of the state Assembly, told the crowd that "what happened in Parkland was heart-wrenching."
"We all felt sick to our stomachs," said Simon, a Republican who had an A-plus rating from the NRA when she was a lawmaker.
But, she added, that it's wrong for gun-control activists to say the NRA "wants to kill our children."
"How do you expect people to hear you?" Simon asked. "Now is the time to come together."
Another gun-rights group, the New Jersey Second Amendment Society, held a news conference around the corner to speak out against the bills.
"The children of New Jersey deserve better," said Alex Roubian, the group's president. "Enough is enough. We know what stops a bad guy with a weapon."
The head of the N.J. Second Amendment Society and state lawmakers hold a news event at the @NJGOP to speak out against the gun-control bills up in the N.J. Assembly today. pic.twitter.com/oo3HqmIB5X
-- Brent Johnson (@johnsb01) March 26, 2018
A trio of Republican state lawmakers from rural Sussex County -- state Sen. Steven Oroho and Assemblymen Parker Space and Harold Wirths -- pushed a bill they've introduced to put bullet-proof doors on all New Jersey classrooms.
"What's the real problem?" Oroho asked. "School safety, as well as mental health issues."
Congressional candidate Steve Lonegan, a Republican who is running to unseat U.S. Rep. Josh Gottheimer, D-5th, in November, noted that schools are running lockdown drills in which teachers are told to gather students in a corner, put themselves between them and the gunman, and then throw things at the shooter.
"What are you going to do? Throw stuffed animals at the gunman?" asked Lonegan, whose wife is a teacher.
Wirths said he is introducing another bill to require retired law enforcement officers assigned to help protect schools be allowed to have guns on campus. He said some districts require them to keep their firearms locked in their cars.
Roubian said his group is prepared to take the state to court over some of the measures if they are passed.
Brent Johnson may be reached at bjohnson@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @johnsb01. Find NJ.com Politics on Facebook.