Every state in the nation has some sort of concealed carry law. The requirements vary state by state. Some allow concealed carry without a permit. Other states like Illinois require a permit. Illinois was the last state in the nation to implement a law allowing carrying concealed firearms outside the home in 2013.

U.S. Lawshield’s Kirk Evans said national concealed carry reciprocity would be similar to how states recognize driver’s licenses from other states.

“But the general concept is if you’ve got a concealed carry permit in, say, Virginia, then Illinois is going to be required to recognize that permit,” Evans told The Center Square.

In 2018, gun control advocates Everytown posted on Twitter, now X, that “’Concealed Carry Reciprocity’ would force every state to accept other states’ concealed carry standards, even states that have weaker standards, or, worse, no standards at all,” and “would undermine the standards that states have set for who can carry hidden, loaded guns in public.”

With Illinois’ firearms regulations among the most strict in the nation, Evans expects some to be “kicking and screaming” from gun control groups in Illinois if national reciprocity is enacted.

“The better news for Illinois is while you have to recognize that permit, you can still regulate the how, where and why of carrying,” Evans said.

Bills filed in the U.S. House and Senate have been endorsed by the National Rifle Association, U.S. Concealed Carry Association, National Shooting Sports Foundation and Gun Owners of America.

Maxon Shooter’s Supplies owner Dan Eldridge said a national concealed carry reciprocity law could increase tourism to Chicago and elsewhere.

“If indeed there is national reciprocity, I think there would be a boom in gun tourism in New York and Chicago,” Eldridge told The Center Square. “People that otherwise wouldn’t come here will.”

But, Evans said if a reciprocity law were enacted, there would still be carve outs for any so-called “sensitive places” states could restrict concealed firearms.

“That part is extraordinarily difficult when you’ve got these ongoing legal battles to figure out what the status is in any given second,” Evans said.

In Illinois, concealed carry is prohibited on mass transit. That law was found to be unconstitutional by a federal judge in the Northern District of Illinois in October, but the ruling only impacts the plaintiffs that sued the state. Benjamin Schoenthal, et al v. Eileen O’Neill Burke is pending in the Seventh Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals.

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In November, President-elect Donald Trump announced he would sign a concealed carry reciprocity bill into law. The bill is expected to pass Congress. After Trump signs it into law, it would go into effect within 90 days, according to the bill language.

No one can deny that No. 19 Illinois and No. 12 Michigan State waged an epic battle Sunday when the Illini visited the Breslin Center in East Lansing, where the Spartans came away battered and perhaps a bit bruised but with an 80-78 win – their 11th victory in a row.

Beyond that, fans of the Illini (13-5, 5-3 Big Ten) and Spartans (16-2, 7-0) could find very little common ground in their assessment of the matchup – especially given how pivotal the officials’ calls were in such a tightly contested affair.

With many Illini fans bemoaning the officiating in Illinois’ sixth loss in its past seven visits to the Breslin Center and Spartans fans accusing their orange-and-blue-backing counterparts of excessive whining, the most objective and sober judgments on social media came from the press and other unbiased sources. (Even if the funniest came from elsewhere.)

Let’s take a quick look at the best and most significant reactions to the Illinois-Michigan State game, starting with a couple of alums:

Several prominent members of the college basketball media weighed in on the Illini during and after the game, unable to help noticing the Illini’s grit – and perhaps the seeds of potential greatness:

CBS Sports’ Jon Rothstein deserves his own special shout-out after serving up volume, analysis and humor in a series of posts:

Then you have the sharp, the voice and the former coach, all of them with unique perspectives on what they saw on the floor at the Breslin Center on Sunday:

And this one? Well, we just couldn’t get away with running a social-media reaction story and not including this post:

Michigan State Outlasts Illinois Basketball in Big Ten Slugfest

Michigan State’s Tom Izzo Compares Illinois Basketball to ‘Celtics or Lakers’

Illinois Basketball Makes Significant Moves in NET, KenPom Rankings

For all the scowls, snarls and shouts coming from the Illinois sideline Sunday at the Breslin Center in East Lansing, Michigan, Illini coach Brad Underwood was, by comparison, a picture of zen-like contentment by the time he hit the postgame presser following his club’s 80-78 loss to Michigan State.

“Anybody in here expected anything different?” Underwood said with a weary smile to open his remarks. “A good college basketball game.”

Many Illini fans thought not. Social media was bustling in the aftermath with hot takes howling over the foul calls against Illinois and memes clowning the game officials. Illini guard Kasparas Jakucionis fouled out after just nine minutes of game action, and a critical technical foul was issued by referee Jeffrey Anderson on the Illinois bench in the late stages as the Illini were gamely clawing back into the game with Jakucionis on the sideline.

But when given the opportunity in his media session, Underwood – though disappointed – wouldn’t pile on.

“They teed our bench. Their guy was up, but our guys got the T,” Underwood said. “So I didn’t get the T – it was considered on our bench. Unfortunate. Two-point game. But Jeff’s a great official. He’s one of the best in the country.”

As for the whistles on Jakucionis, Underwood gave the officials further grace – mostly.

“I’m not gonna go there without … especially ’til I watch the film,” he said. “But the fourth one was awful. I’ll say that he got shoved in the back and pushed into a guy. And I mean, that one was just gross. Gross. I mean, how?”

If Underwood seemed oddly content as he offered his postgame thoughts, it’s likely because he could be observed extrapolating in real time what his Illini squad will be capable of when fully galvanized and facing something even slightly more favorable than Sunday’s dire game circumstances (including center Tomislav Ivisic playing through a nasty case of strep throat).

“I thought we handled a lot of tough situations today pretty well,” he said. “Best player in the game played [nine] minutes. You saw just a little bit of what he could do when he was in – just controlled the whole game with pick-and-rolls and passes. And, unfortunately, today he didn’t get a play.”

Michigan State Outlasts Illinois Basketball in Big Ten Slugfest

Michigan State’s Tom Izzo Compares Illinois Basketball to ‘Celtics or Lakers’

Illinois Basketball Makes Significant Moves in NET, KenPom Rankings