I’ll Say It: Gun Deal Is Window Dressing

Too many people are celebrating the bipartisan deal on a framework that may eventually become a weak response to gun violence. It’s like they are celebrating a weak attempt at bipartisanship than what actually came out in the end.

The tentative deal, for which Cornyn was the lead negotiator, includes a mix of modest gun control proposals and funding for mental health. It would incentivize states to pass “red flag” laws, which are designed to keep guns out of the hands of individuals who pose a threat to themselves or others; boost funding for mental health services, telehealth resources and more school security; permit juvenile records to be incorporated into background checks for purchasers under the age of 21; and crack down on the straw purchase and trafficking of guns.

After all of these years, after some pretty awful mass shooter events, and after a re-invigorated movement to stop guns from getting into the wrong hands, this is the best that can be done because Republicans really don’t care and because Democrats have little fight to make even the killing of children an issue. There’s more fight for faux bipartisanship than for actual issues.

Let’s face it, the funding of mental health can easily come from our own state dollars if Republicans and Greg Abbott hadn’t already made deep cuts that were given to the border boondoggle. Texas being given the option for free federal money to pass red flag laws isn’t much different than giving Greg Abbott the same option to deny federal money for Medicaid expansion. Abbott won’t do it, or the money will be misspent. More money for security that has been proven lax and weakly trained, though they make a big deal for photo op purposes. Deeper background checks for those under 21 is an even weaker response to this as most “issues” a kid may have go undetected. There are still too many questions left to be answered.

It is window dressing that will do little to stop the next mass shooter. The only thing it may be is a small dent in the Republican’s NRA armor. Still, I expect them to just laugh it off as a victory against gun control advocates who I think would be kneecapped by this deal. In other words, even the window dressing used for political purposes is hanging by a thread.

Kuff is a little bit more hopeful than I am.