It seemed like the Uvalde shooting was no longer a cause for action for Democrats. They were struggling to get the votes for a new assault weapons ban. After weeks of demanding something be done in the wake of that awful shooting, it looked like the Democrats were resigned to defeat. Why? Well, the last ounces of political exploitation over this tragedy got milked. Democrats face destruction in the 2022 midterms. We’re in a recession. It’s time for Democrats to start stacking sandbags. Even more pathetic is that at the time, the two wings of the Democratic Party couldn’t compromise on this anti-gun provision and funding for more police (via The Reload):
There will not be a House vote on the “assault weapons” ban this month.
Democrats failed to come to a compromise on how to move forward with both the ban and a police funding initiative on Wednesday. Instead of being scheduled for a vote by the end of this week, they have pushed both bills past the August recess.
“For safer communities, Members have been working on a package of critical public safety bills,” Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D., Calif.) said in a statement to Punchbowl News, which first broke the news. “As those discussions are continuing, it is clear that the House will reconvene in August in order to vote for the Reconciliation bill.”
The odds of the assault weapons ban ever getting a vote in the House are now diminished. Leadership has not been able to juggle balancing the interests of competing factions to this point. It’s unclear if they can get it done before the midterms arrive.
The bill would ban the sale of semi-automatic rifles and shotguns that are equipped with one or more features such as a pistol grip, flash suppressor, or adjustable stock. It would ban hundreds more guns by name, including the popular AR-15 rifle. It is similar in language to, though more aggressive than, the federal assault weapons ban passed in 1994. Enacting a new ban has been a key gun policy proposal from Democrats, including President Joe Biden, since the earlier ban expired in 2004.
The House Judiciary Committee cleared the bill last week with hopes of having it brought up for a full vote by the end of this week. However, the declining popularity of the ban coupled with the increasing popularity of the guns it seeks to outlaw appears to have some Democrats second-guessing the plan.
“This is a bill that destroyed the Democrats in ‘94. I guess, do we really have a death wish list as Democrats?” Representative Kurt Schrader (D., Ore.) told Politico last week. “It undermines what we already did and reemphasizes to all the people in America that are not hardcore urban Democrats that our party’s out of touch.”
Well, they somehow got it done:
House Democrats voted to ban sales of the most popular rifle in America on Friday.
H.R.1808, otherwise known as The “Assault Weapons” Ban of 2021, cleared the House by the thinnest of margins: 217 to 213. It is the first sales ban on guns, including the AR-15 and AK-47, since a similar ban was enacted back in 1994 and expired in 2004. It represents the culmination of a decades-long push by gun-control activists to reinstitute that ban.
So, the first act by House Democrats in addressing the economic recession announced on Thursday is to declare war on gun owners and the firearms industry. In the minds of the Left, shredding the Second Amendment addresses our most pressing national issues. It’s warped. Democrats can’t govern. The inability for them to focus continues to be a killer. While they got the votes on this occasion, the social agenda has often derailed any efforts to pass legislation. Americans want job creation, lower gas prices, and inflation corralled under control. A ban on modern sporting rifles isn’t part of that plan. It’s not a dot on any map that will lead this country out of the Biden recession.
Yes, some House Democrats felt this bill only exposed how out of touch they are with average Americans. That notion got reinforced tonight.
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