The American Civil Liberties Union is upset, liberal state legislators are wary, and social justice advocates are crying foul. At the same time, police officers from rural communities are thrilled, mothers of victims of gang violence are applauding, and at least one conservative Democratic legislator who used to be a cop, Representative Christopher Hurst of Enumclaw, is impressed.

What more could Attorney General Rob McKenna, the all-but-certain Republican candidate for governor in 2012, ask for?