Barack Obama And Guns: How A Vocal Advocate Went Quiet

I wrote this after Obama's speech in Tucson after GabrielleGiffords was shot:

Neither party is for gun control.

The DemocraticParty has been courting the gun lobby.

GabrielleGiffords is not for gun control.  The weapon used on her was purchased legally. The weapon was one that had been banned during the 1990s, but that law expired in 2004 and Giffords supported ending the ban. She supports gun rights, opposed the WashingtonDC gun ban, and signed an amicus brief with the USSupremeCourt in support of overturnin­g the ban.

The roll call vote in the Senate on the (Dianne) Feinstein amendment to extend the ban, March 2, 2004. RussFeingold lovers, note his "nay" vote, as well as other Democrats still serving, like HarryReid, MaryLandrieu, TimJohnson (not voting), BenNelson, MaxBaucus. 

In 2007, CarolynMaloney's bill to reinstate the ban with 67 co-sponsor­s (Giffords wasn't among them), went nowhere.

HR 6257 (a bill to reinstate the ban on assault weapons, as well as to expand the list of banned weapons, for ten years) was introduced in June 2008, and then got buried in a House subcommitt­ee one month later, where it d!ed at the end of that Congress (2008).

After Obama and Democrats won the 2008 elections and took control of the WhiteHouse and Congress, DianneFeinstein said in April 2009 about introducin­g legislatio­n in the Senate to reinstate the AssaultWeaponsBan, "I wouldn't bring it up now."

Obama has stated that he wouldn't push for the reinstatem­ent of the AssaultWeaponsBan. 

Neither Republican­s nor Democrats are willing to take on the gun lobby (or any corporate industry), nor spend the money on the prevention side (funding for mental health treatment, public education and social safety nets, etc.).

So across America, the fight (& gridlock) continues. 

If I had to bet right now, I'd say what is going to come out of this are more draconian laws to ban speech and privacy rights (all of said legislatio­n will be used for drug crimes and political groups working to unseat the entrenched corporate power, and not crimes of 'terror').  All because it happened to "their own" (Giffords, JudgeJohnRoll and Giffords aide GabrielZimmerman).

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