In case you missed it, just one day after President Trump hosted a roundtable discussion with bipartisan members of Congress in which he expressed support for many common-sense gun safety measures, the NRA’s chief lobbyist, Chris Cox, went to the White House to try to sway the president against common-sense gun safety.
President Trump also tweeted:
Here’s the bottom line: Lawmakers must choose between the NRA’s dangerous agenda or meaningful gun safety reforms that meet this moment. The NRA is simply out of sync with the public on this issue. President Trump should be working with members of Congress on both sides of the aisle to support meaningful gun safety reforms, such as:
- Requiring criminal background checks on every gun sale. Passing only the Fix NICS Act is wholly insufficient. 97 percent of voters support background checks on all gun sales. That should be the starting point. But, the NRA opposes it and has spent millions fighting against it.
- Passing Red Flag legislation. This law would empower family and law enforcement to petition a judge to temporarily block people from possessing guns if they pose a serious threat to themselves or others. Some Republicans are supportive of this. But, the NRA has opposed similar legislation in states across the country. The NRA doesn’t want this to become a federal law, or even see states pass such laws.
- Raising the legal age to buy semi-automatic rifles and shotguns. The NRA has stated this is not a policy it would support.
These are just a few examples. But the record is clear: The NRA doesn’t want to improve America’s gun laws. In fact, the NRA benefits financially as a result of them. Its overall agenda at the federal level is to weaken U.S. gun laws in order to profit gun manufacturers.
Gun lobby-beholden lawmakers must buck the NRA and come together on big reforms that meet the moment after the Parkland shooting. Lives are depending on it. If our leaders do not take meaningful action to reduce gun violence after Parkland, then voters will throw them out.
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