When It Comes To Rejecting Gun Bills, Republicans Have No Shame.
As America mourns this weekâs tragic mass shootings, Senate Republicans gave all of us a big middle finger and voted against a series of gun bills. As reported on Friday by CBS News:
By a vote of 52 to 47, the Senate rejected a proposal to strengthen treatment for mental illness and substance abuse disorders.
Lawmakers voted 50 to 48 to reject a bill that would have expanded background checks for guns purchased online or at gun shows.
Additionally, they voted 45 to 54 against a bill that would have stopped people on the terror watch list from purchasing guns.
Thatâs right. Even when tacked on to the GOPâs latest Obamacare repeal effort disguised as a âbudget reconciliation billâ â which would also defund Planned Parenthood â the Republicans canât be tempted into voting for these (and other) perfectly reasonable gun bills that would help protect us from the next mass shooter.
Who Do Republicans Work For? The American People, Or The NRA?
Since the Sandy Hook massacre back in 2012, the majority of Americans have clamored for tougher gun laws. But thanks to the Republican party and their deep-pocketed NRA donors, weâve seen little in the way of gun reform at the federal level.
When asked about the failed gun bills, Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) told reporters:
âIf you need proof that Congress is a hostage to the gun lobby, look no further than todayâs vote blocking a bill to prevent known or suspected terrorists from buying guns and explosives,â she said in a statement. âCongress has been paralyzed by the gun lobby for years, while more and more Americans are killed in mass shootings. The carnage wonât stop until Congress finds the courage to stand up to the gun lobby and protect the nation.â
To their credit, not all Republicans are cruel, heartless and politically tone-deaf. The Washington Post reports Senators Susan Collins (R-Maine); John McCain (R-Ariz.), and even the rabidly pro-NRA Pat Toomey (R-Pa.) voted in favor of Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.)âs bill to expand background checks.
Still, as Nicholas Kristof from the New York Times told MSNBCâs Lawrence OâDonnell, passing a few commonsense gun bills could save an estimated 11,000 lives each year, but our GOP-run Congress isnât even trying.
âThe larger point is not what happened in San Bernadino, itâs not what happened in Colorado. Itâs that every 16 minutes in America one life is lost to guns, and we have to address that.Thereâs no silver bullet, so to speak, [âŠ] but there are steps that we know could reduce the toll. And if we could reduce the toll by one-third, which experts see as a reasonable estimate, thatâll be 11,000 lives saved each year. And, yet, theyâre not even trying.â
As the death toll mounts, the GOP may come to regret not passing a single gun bill when the 2016 elections come around.
