Week by week, Republicans take steps toward confirming that there is literally no number of mass shooting deaths high enough to make them reconsider their position on gun laws. (Namely, that there basically shouldn’t be any.) In the wake of the Las Vegas shooting that killed 58 people, it seemed like Republicans might at least get behind some form of ban on bump stocks, which allow semiautomatic weapons to fire at automatic rates. But even that minimal a measure has devolved into mealy-mouthed mumbling from Republicans:
In an interview Monday, Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) said he plans to hold a hearing soon with ATF officials on bump stocks. An aide said preparations for a hearing are underway, but did not offer a date.
When “somebody invents something that makes a regular rifle automatic, then, you know, that’s a legitimate question to ask,” Grassley said. He also said the ATF will explain during the hearing why the Obama administration allowed the devices to be sold “when they’re anti-gun to begin with.”
But Grassley declined to endorse legislation that would ban bump stocks outright.
As for this week's Texas church shooting, Republicans are giving it a giant shrug:
“Do you pass more laws when the laws that are on the books were likely violated? And would that have made a difference?” Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn (R-Texas) said Monday. “I think those are all going to be questions we need to ask ourselves, but I think right now, the fog of this event is not yet lifted and we need to know the answers before we know how to act.”
Ha ha ha ha ha, John Cornyn. As if you are going to “act” as a result of this. You are going to delay and then do nothing, just like always.
“You know, it’s hard to envision a foolproof way to prevent individual outrages by evil people,” Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said Monday in Louisville. “I mean, last week in New York, you had a person who figured out he could kill people by driving his automobile up on the sidewalk. It’s a very, very challenging thing.”
How about we not require it to be foolproof? How about we just look for it to do something? Laws against murder aren’t foolproof, but we still have them. Laws against drunk driving aren’t foolproof, but we still have them. And yes, you can kill a person by hitting them with a car, but it’s noteworthy that the New York City attack killed eight people while the Texas shooting killed 26 and the Las Vegas shooting killed 58. Also, as is often pointed out, cars have uses other than killing people. And we have lots of laws regulating and licensing them. In short, every damn word out of Mitch McConnell’s mouth was flagrant excuse-making for the action he will not take to save lives.