Surprise! No Labels “Republican” Mark McKinnon thinks the GOP should take up the cause of gun control, because “guns are killing the Republican party.” Here is his list of suggestions, in no particular order other than they make very little sense:
• Reinstatement of an expired ban on assault weapons and high-capacity ammunition
• Requirement of universal background checks for firearm buyers
• Track the movement and sale of weapons through a national database
• Strengthen mental health checks
• Stiffen penalties for carrying guns near schools or giving them to minors
• Make gun trafficking a felony
• The president should make a recess appointment to fill the vacancy at the top of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF)
• The Justice Department should step up prosecution of criminals who try to buy guns (In 2009, the latest year fully recorded, only 77 out of 71,000 people who had been convicted of gun crimes and tried to buy guns were prosecuted.)
• The Justice Department should crack down on rogue gun dealers
• Requiring law-enforcement notification of customer purchases of more than 1,000 rounds of ammunition
• Create a database that would allow the ATF to track all gun sales.
• Outlaw armor-piercing bullets
I'm very curious to know what "high capacity ammunition" is. Is that like a .38 round with extra lead in it somewhere? The rest is the usual hodgepodge of… nothing, really. There is still no such thing as an "assault rifle," large ammo purchases have never once been a clue to an impending mass murder, and WTF is he doing suggesting the President make a recess appointment while the Senate is in session? Does McKinnon even know what that means? I wouldn't argue against strengthening mental health checks — but how does he intend to do it?
Anyway, I have a few labels for McKinnon, but none of them are repeatable on a family blog.
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