Senate Dems Push Gun Control Measures & Obama Agrees: "This Is Something We Should Politicize"

Today In Washington, D.C. - Oct. 8, 2015:

The House reconvened at 10 AM today.
today the House may take up H.R. 538 "To facilitate the development of energy on Indian lands by reducing Federal regulations that impede tribal development of Indian lands, and for other purposes, and providing for consideration of the bill (H.R. 702) to adapt to changing crude oil market conditions."

Yesterday the House passed 303-121 H.R. 3192 — "To provide for a temporary safe harbor from the enforcement of integrated disclosure requirements for mortgage loan transactions under the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act of 1974 and the Truth in Lending Act, and for other purposes."

The major dust up in the House today was the announcement that Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) has ended his bid to become the next speaker of the House of Representatives. Full Story here.

House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) today issued the following statement regarding the election for a new Speaker of the House of Representatives: “After Leader McCarthy’s announcement, members of the House Republican Conference will not vote today for a new Speaker. As I have said previously, I will serve as Speaker until the House votes to elect a new Speaker. We will announce the date for this election at a later date, and I’m confident we will elect a new Speaker in the coming weeks. Our conference will work together to ensure we have the strongest team possible as we continue to focus on the American people’s priorities.”

The Senate reconvened at 9:30 AM today. At 10:45, the Senate began consideration of the motion to proceed to H.R. 2028, the Fiscal Year 2016 Energy and Water appropriations bill.

At 12:45 PM, the Senate voted 49-47 on the cloture motion on the motion to proceed to (i.e. whether to take up and debate) H.R. 2028. Senate Democrats have now filibustered three appropriations bills. The last two they blocked would have funded our troops and programs for our veterans.

Yesterday, the Senate voted 70-27 to approve the conference report for the Fiscal Year 2016 Defense authorization bill, H.R. 1735. The bipartisan Pentagon policy bill now goes to the White House, although President Obama has said he will veto it at a time of escalating crises throughout the world.

Last week, President Obama said, “There’s been another mass shooting in America -- this time, in a community college in Oregon. … Well, this is something we should politicize.” Today, Senate Democrats appear to be taking him up on his invitation.

The AP writes, “Senate Democrats are preparing a legislative push to curb guns . . . . Republicans controlling Congress have shown scant interest in restricting guns and the Democratic effort has little chance of success. But their drive could keep the issue alive during next year's elections, driving up support from sympathetic voters and contributors . . . . In a letter to fellow Democrats, Sens. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and Debbie Stabenow, D-Mich., wrote that their effort ‘will be a rallying point for a public that is eager for congressional action and will be the basis for future legislation that we will demand’ receives a Senate vote.”

As of yet, Democrats have produced no bill and thus have no actual proposal to vote on.

As a reminder, the AP story points out, “Democrats fell five votes short of moving their background check expansion through the Senate two years ago. Thanks to retirements and losses in the 2014 elections, they now are probably 11 votes shy of the support they'd need to succeed.”

And a ban on so-called “assault weapons”, put forward by Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) at the same time, was rejected with 60 no votes.

Indeed, USA Today reports, “Acknowledging that it's not yet possible to pass stricter gun laws, Democrats said they are appealing to Americans to pressure lawmakers to act in the months ahead. Previous efforts have failed in the aftermath of other mass shootings. ‘We're here to start a national movement,’ said Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va. . . . Kaine joined about 30 other Democratic senators at a news conference on the Capitol steps to outline a package of tougher gun laws. Supporters included Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont, who is seeking the Democratic nomination for president.”

Interestingly it was only yesterday that Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) was accusing House Republicans of “us[ing] the tragic deaths of four Americans as political fodder to win an election.” “Don't the victims deserve better?” Reid asked. He went on to say, “For 16 months now we have used the tragic deaths in a way that is not what we should be doing.”

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