The anti-gun governor of Virginia must be tearing his hair out.

Via Washington Post:

The Republican-controlled Virginia Senate voted Tuesday to repeal an old law banning guns — as well as bowie knives, daggers and other weapons — from places of worship.

Sen. A. Benton Chafin Jr. (R-Russell) said the “archaic law,” thought to date to Colonial times, treads on the private-property rights of churches. He also said it threatens the safety of worshipers, noting the massacre of 26 people at a Texas church in November.

“For any of us to sit here and think that when a gunman comes to you that a law is going to somehow protect you is sheer lunacy,” Chafin said during the floor debate.

The measure passed along party lines, 21 to 18, with one Democrat absent. The bill now heads to the House, which like the Senate is narrowly controlled by Republicans.