Bn by &
Republican Senator Ted Cruz’s latest commentary on gun control following the mass murders in Atlanta and Boulder Colorado exemplifies his ignorance, indifference to gun violent deaths, and allegiance to gun advocate donors over his constituents. He called lawmakers demands for sensible gun control reform ” political theater” and said restrictions on access to guns would not reduce the incidence of mass shootings. He blames gun murders on mental illness, ignorantly missing the point that stricter background checks could eliminate disturbed people like the shooters in Atlanta and Boulder from obtaining guns. The media hypes how bright Cruz is with his Harvard degree, but missing the point that easy access to guns increases the odds of mentally ill people obtaining them and carrying out violent acts doesn’t make him seem all that bright.
The majority of Americans support stricter background checks on gun sales and the banning of assault weapons to the general population. Republicans thwart any attempt at bipartisan negotiations on the gun reform issue, falsely declaring Democrats want to abolish the 2nd Amendment. They take their orders from the NRA and other gun fanatic donors while ignoring the voices of the American voters. On its website soon after the Democratic convention in 2020, the NRA lied about the intent of the Democrat’s policies on guns. The Democratic platform championed reforms aimed at protecting the public from injury and death from gun violence caused by mentally ill and violent criminals. The platform called for:
- Enact universal background checks
- End online sales of guns and ammunition
- Close dangerous loopholes which allow stalkers and those who have been convicted of assault or battery to possess firearms
- Adequately fund the federal background check fund
- Prevent people who have convicted of hate crimes from possessing firearms
- Ban the manufacture or sale of assault weapons and high capacity magazines
- Encourage states to enact gun licensing requirements for owning firearms
- Red flag laws giving courts the right to remove guns from those who may be a threat to themselves or others
- Legislate guns be stored safely at home
- Prioritize repealing the law that protects manufacturers from civil liability
The gun-rights restrictions in this platform affect people who are deemed to be dangerous to themselves or others. The restrictions are based on common sense and compassion towards human life. Nowhere in the platform are guns for self-protection taken away from any American deemed psychologically capable to responsibly own a gun. Nowhere is the elimination of the 2nd Amendment mentioned. The additional legislation aims to protect lives while preserving access to guns for self-protection, hunting, and other non-life-threatening gun-related activities. Polls report approx. 80% of Americans support the banning of assault weapons for non-military individuals, yet Republicans insist on calling common sense, life-preserving gun reform an attempt to eliminate the 2nd amendment. Greedy opportunism is the only explanation for Republican members of Congress to oppose gun laws that aim to reduce mass shootings and family gun violence deaths.
The hypocrisy by Republicans towards defending the Constitution is shameful. They hang the moniker of patriot on anyone who worships gun rights, religious rights, and free speech and yet opposes immigration and asylum rights, voting rights, and laws that support the concept that ” all men and women are created equal.” The GOP stance against any type of gun reform legislation shows the party’s indifference to the suffering of victims caused by gun violence. They offer ” thoughts and prayers” but take no action towards keeping guns out of the hands of the mentally ill and banning military-style assault weapons.
The mass murders in Atlanta which killed predominantly Asian American women did not bring one member of the Republican Congress to call for gun reform. Within the same week, 10 people were killed in a local supermarket in Boulder, Colorado. Still, the only messaging coming from the GOP on gun violence is explained in two words, ” mental illness.” What explains this over-simplification might be, ” it takes one to know one.”
