Gun control! Gun control! Gun
Tragedy strikes in [fill in the blank], and Democrats immediately seize the opportunity to attack the Second Amendment. Rinse, repeat. Tragedy, exploited. It’s one of the most tiresome themes in American politics.
Recent events have certainly given Democrats their fair share of opportunities. Following the supermarket shooting in Buffalo, New York, President Biden again called for a ban on assault weapons and high-capacity magazines. Nearly 40 left-wing advocacy groups are now putting pressure on the Biden administration to extend background checks to all gun purchases, with the liberal media all too willing to publish supportive headlines under the guise of “gun safety.”
Fortunately for American citizens, President Biden is one of the most ineffective presidents in U.S. history, himself admitting that “it’s going to be very difficult” for Democrats to push gun control across the finish line. One of the reasons is Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV)—one of the only moderate Democrats left on Capitol Hill—and his insistence on reaffirming the Second Amendment rights of all Americans.
Public opinion is also on the side of pro-gun Republicans. More than half of Americans believe the right to “keep and bear arms” is important. Nearly two-thirds of Democrats (yes, Democrats) say the same, contrary to their party leadership.
But Americans must remain vigilant. In Washington, D.C., moderate Democrats like Manchin have become an endangered species. They are the exception, not the rule. Race-baiting, anti-gun Democrats like Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT)—showered with fawning news headlines—presented themselves as the true “reformers.” The Murphy types know that the left-leaning mainstream media will stop at nothing to exploit tragedy for political gain, and so they go on—but only in certain cases.
Where were Democrats like Murphy and their media allies after a left-wing activist (of color) carried out the Waukesha, Wisconsin, Christmas parade massacre, when a driver of an SUV plowed through a crowd, killed six people and injuring 60 more? Where were they last month, after the Brooklyn, New York, subway shooting spree, when the assailant set off a smoke bomb before firing 33 rounds into a crowded station, injuring 29 people and leaving 10 shot?
The Democratic Party and the liberal media swept the culprits’ political motivations under the rug. Neither racism nor gun control became a hot-button talking point. It was left to conservative media to flesh out the politics of the perpetrators.
Why? Because neither mass-murder event fit the liberal narrative (e.g. America is racist), whereas Buffalo fit perfectly. It’s telling that President Biden refused to visit Waukesha, supposedly due to limited “assets” and “resources.” Yet, within a few days after the Buffalo shooting, he found time to meet with the victims’ families. Of course, the president should have visited both sites of tragedy, rather than picking one as a platform for his agenda and ignoring the other.
Today’s Democrats—obsessed with identity politics—are all too willing to regurgitate “systemic racism” and “white supremacy.” They just need the proper platform.
It will backfire in 2022. Biden Democrats have nothing to offer American voters but fear, division, and racial tension. And, in the end, most Americans understand that evil is evil—regardless of the perpetrator’s skin color. Voters are tired of Democrats’ stale, predictable games. President Biden’s approval rating fails to crack even 40 percent. The overwhelming majority of Americans are primarily concerned about economic issues, especially inflation, not gun control or systemic racism or the boogeyman of white supremacy. Yet the Biden administration has no clear idea how to combat inflation, promoting tax hikes instead.
With prices running hot and economic growth anything but, pocketbook issues will be the decider in 2022. And most Americans have decided: The Biden agenda does nothing for them.
Democrats are scrambling for solutions before November. I can assure you, by focusing on gun control, the “red wave” will only become redder.
Ted Harvey serves as chairman of the Committee to Defeat the President.