It was deja vu all over again from the White House tonight. President Biden addressed the nation again, talking about the shootings in Uvalde, Buffalo and beyond. If you’ve been paying attention to Biden’s speeches regarding gun control since he took office, you’ve heard it all before.
Quick summary: he called for these “rational, commonsense measures” . . .
An “assault weapons” ban
A “high capacity” magazine ban
A safe storage mandate law
A federal red flag law
A ban on all gun sales to adults under 21 years of age
Repeal of the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act
Sound familiar? It should. While he framed his remarks around the mass shootings in Buffalo and Uvalde (while pulling in Sandy Hook, Parkland and Fort Hood) literally nothing he called for tonight was anything he hasn’t said he wants dozens of times before.
Biden made sure to assure his audience that this really isn’t about taking away anyone’s guns, or vilifying gun owners. He said (with a straight face) that he “respects the culture, tradition and concerns of lawful gun owners.” He noted that machine guns have been “federally regulated for 90 years and we’re still a free country.”
Then he reiterated his recent talking point that the Second Amendment isn’t absolute. He decried that, as he said, too many schools and everyday places have become killing fields and battlefields here in America. It’s time, he said, after spending time with the family members of victims, that we “do something, just do something.”
He backed up his call for action by claiming that 20 mass shootings have taken place since the Uvalde shooting last week. He cited the skewed CDC data that claimed guns are the leading killer of children (though the study included “children” as old as 19 years old in order to make that claim).
Biden then applauded the gun control bills that are currently moving through the House of Representatives. They would reinstate an “assault weapons” ban, outlaw “high cap” magazines, ban “ghost guns,” make private sales illegal, and raise the age to purchase all guns to 21.
Then he tsk-tsked the prospects of getting anything through the Senate, noting that it will take 10 GOP Senators to make that happen. It was an obvious ploy so he’ll be later able to blame Republicans when the gun control bills he know won’t pass die somewhere short of 60 votes.
Biden then said he’s “been in this fight for a long time, but I’ll never give up. If Congress fails, the American people won’t give up either. I hope they will make their outrage central to their vote…enough, enough, enough.”
Was that transparent enough for you? With sky-high gasoline prices, rampant inflation, baby formula shortages and more, Democrats are looking at getting shellacked at the polls in November. Biden hopes to make a lack of action on “gun safety” a key campaign talking point for Democrats to use against Republicans in order to limit the damage.
He ended with this . . .
“My fellow Americans, enough. It’s time for each of us to do our part. It’s time to act. Let’s meet the moment. Let’s finally do something.”
And with that, he turned and left, having done precisely what he’s done on these same issues repeatedly since taking office…nothing.
